Comments for The Decline of Desktop RSS Readers

The Decline of Desktop RSS Readers

2007-01-25T22:54:28Z

The latest Read/WriteWeb poll has highlighted some interesting trends. We asked what type of RSS Reader do you use the most? Here are the results so far, from nearly 900 respondents:

1. Web-based (e.g. Bloglines, Google Reader, Rojo) 55% (495 votes)

2. Desktop (e.g. FeedDemon, NetNewsWire) 18% (160 votes)

3. Start page (e.g. Netvibes, Pageflakes) 14% (125 votes)

4. Browser (e.g. Firefox Live Bookmarks, IE, Flock) 7% (62 votes)

5. Portal-based (e.g. MyYahoo, ThePortNetwork) 2% (21 votes)

6. Other (please comment) 2% (18 votes)

7. Email-based client (e.g. Thunderbird, Newsgator) 1% (11 votes)

8. I subscribe to emails from individual blogs 0% (3 votes)

Even though desktop RSS Readers are second-most popular, only 18% of the poll respondents use desktop readers as their primary means of accessing RSS feeds - well behind the 55% who use browser-based readers like Bloglines and Google Reader. A quick check of my site's Feedburner stats confirms that desktop readers are in the minority. In case you're wondering, Bloglines and Netvibes are most used by R/WW readers - although note that Google Reader stats are not currently counted by Feedburner and also Rojo has been temporarily removed. So Feedburner is under-counting RSS subscribers currently.

]]> Also note that start pages are not far behind desktop readers, with 14% of the vote. Even taking into account the controversial figures bandied around by start pages about their user numbers (the latest I've heard about Netvibes, for example, is 10 Million users - which seems an awful lot), start pages are undoubtedly becoming widely used, amongst the tech set especially, for reading feeds.

Browsers are becoming more popular too, with 7% - and this is bound to increase when IE7 hits full effect later this year.

Interested in your thoughts on these trends - please add to the discussion in the comments below. Also here is the poll, which we'll leave open for a little longer...

Comment from Jared Hanson on 2007-01-25

2007-01-25T23:39:20Z

NetNewsWire was my choice in feed readers for a long time, but the web-based readers have won me over. I tried to use Bloglines, but the interface never sat well with me. Then, when NewsGator bought NetNewsWire, I switched to using NewsGator Online.

But, all that changed with the latest version of Google Reader. I've migrated all my subscriptions to Google, and swear by their interface. It is by far the best web-based reader.

I keep NetNewsWire around, but the only subscriptions I maintain with it are to private feeds on the LAN.

Comment from Steve Moncada on 2007-01-25

2007-01-25T23:54:09Z

I use Firefox 2's Live Bookmarks for my feeds. When I read this post I took a trip over to Google Reader and watched intro video and set up the same feeds I have on my browser with the reader. I haven't used it extensively, and I'm sure the 55% use it for good reason, but I can't think of a better solution for feeds than the browser implementation. It's completely unobtrusive in that you don't have to navigate away from whatever page you're viewing. I guess the downside is that there is only so much room for the Live Bookmarks. I end up having to use some odd acronyms to fit all my feeds.

Comment from Matt Albert on 2007-01-25

2007-01-25T23:55:07Z

I am a big RSS fan and a news junky. I spent some time looking into all the various options for readers and really never liked the offerings. That was until I found Netvibes. It is such a useful tool in so many ways and can really harness the power of rss feeds. I even implemented a Netvibes page for a graduate class I attended last semester.

I was intrigued by the recent updates to google reader and there are some cool things about it and it really does have the best UI of the web based offerings. I just could not step away from Netvibes as it has become such an integral tool in my tech life. I am always amazed to see these articles stating that these start pages still have a ways to go. Everytime I introduce Netvibes to friends they are hooked within weeks. No I don't work for Netvibes... :)

Comment from Nick Lothian on 2007-01-25

2007-01-26T00:02:34Z

Not a good statistic for those who believe that rich-client applications (Apollo etc) are going to take off. People are migrating away from traditional desktop apps to the web environment. 71% of respondents are using some kind of web based feed reader (ie, Web-Based + Portal + Start Page)!

Comment from stan on 2007-01-25

2007-01-26T00:14:26Z

IM-based

Comment from Mike Gotta on 2007-01-25

2007-01-26T01:03:31Z

There are some influencing factors to consider. Desktop RSS readers are not always free, some of those that are free are add-ins to Outlook which is not as popular in the consumer space as it would within a corporate environment.

The results make sense for consumer use. Enterprise use I imagine would be different - as adoption grows behind the firewall, I would expect to see IE7 and Outlook pop up a lot more.

Comment from Richard MacManus on 2007-01-25

2007-01-26T01:13:56Z

That's a good point Mike, the most popular desktop apps are not free. Also there doesn't seem to be a really popular general-purpose desktop RSS Reader. NNW is for Mac and FeedDemon for Windows - but no standout that crosses both platforms.

Comment from Richard MacManus on 2007-01-25

2007-01-26T01:16:44Z

Nick (#4), that was one of my first thoughts too - what does this say for rich desktop apps like those from Adobe and Microsoft?

Comment from Marshall Kirkpatrick on 2007-01-25

2007-01-26T01:38:28Z

There are so many ways to use RSS - live bookmarks and nnw can scarcely be compared. I get around 30 feeds by im/sms/email, check another 30 through netvibes throughout the day and do the heavy lifting of 1k+ in nnw. they really can be complimentary - diff rss tools fill diff functions. fun conversation but if you r only using 1 of these tool types yer missing out. maybe i'm crazy though.

Comment from Pradeep Sethi on 2007-01-25

2007-01-26T02:16:26Z

Almost 70% of users are using Web based (Bloglines, Rojo etc) or the Start Pages (Netvibes, Pageflakes etc).

I am not suprised that even though Portal based also would fall in the category of Web Based Readers, only 2% are using them.

I use both Netvibes and Rojo and keep switching between them because each has its own benefits. While Netvibes gives me the concise summary (& a newspaper feel) for my feeds categorized in different tabs, Rojo allows me to tag the same feed with multiple tags (I haven‚Äôt come across any Web-based reader that does it so well).

Comment from Richard MacManus on 2007-01-25

2007-01-26T02:22:04Z

Marshall and Pradeep, I agree they can be complementary. I too use a combo of start page and full RSS Reader (Google Reader right now).

Comment from Chris Harrison on 2007-01-25

2007-01-26T02:22:08Z

I use FeedDemon at home and work, but I use NewsGator Online whenever I don't have access to my PCs...

Comment from Randy Charles Morin on 2007-01-25

2007-01-26T04:48:28Z

I suspect your poll is geek centric too! This should benefit native RSS readers which are more popular among geeks.

Comment from Devon on 2007-01-25

2007-01-26T06:39:07Z

Being that Start Pages and Portals are just another style of Web-Based feed reader, one could say that 71% use a Web-Based reader. That's really high. If you combine the Desktop & Browser based (since they both run off the computer itself and are thus 2 forms of the same approach), they'd be only 25%. Web-Based is about 3X's the amount. Huge gap.

I think portals and start pages are the future of RSS & Atom, because they're much more user friendly and easier to grasp. I've tried to introduce a few people who are half techy to places like Google Reader or Bloglines, and they just "don't get" it. That surprises me. Yet, the front page of AOL, Yahoo, or something like that...they easily use and configure.

Comment from Flammae Long on 2007-01-26

2007-01-26T11:11:49Z

We use different computers during the week (work, home...). And we want to be up to date. Then using on-line readers seems to be a good solution. And probably the trend for future.

Comment from Chance McClain on 2007-01-26

2007-01-26T15:44:38Z

I have been on Netvibes since it launched and I absolutley love it as an rss farm. I like to have as few programs running at once and having netvibes in a firefox tab accomplishes multiple things at once.

Comment from Erik on 2007-01-26

2007-01-26T16:33:26Z

I've used several Web-based readers and the biggest limiting factor for me is that they're simply not as efficient at plowing through a large quantity of feeds. NetNewsWire has an amazinglyl efficient interface, and it allows me to sift through information more rapidly. I also like the dead-simple manner in which NNW lets me add and sort feeds. NNW wins for me because it saves me time.

Comment from Scott on 2007-01-26

2007-01-26T17:22:01Z

I use FeedDemon, but it syncs with my NewsGator Online account, so I can use a web-based reader if I need to. I use the web-based (mobile) version Newsgator has when I'm on my Blackberry. All these sync with each other.

However, in Feedburner, this all looks like I am using Newsgator Online. Newsgator Online is the central holding spot and it syncs with other apps. Newsgator owns FeedDemon and NetNewsWire. I suspect there are a sizable amount of people using the desktop clients, but Feedburner stats don't show it. Feedburner will still show NewsGator Online.

Comment from Mark Evans on 2007-01-26

2007-01-27T02:32:29Z

If FeedDemon would make a version for Mac, I'd happily keep using a desktop RSS reader but until that days arrives, I'll be using Google Reader.

Comment from David Gray on 2007-01-26

2007-01-27T05:19:56Z

I use the Sage extension for Firefox and have never thought of replacing it, even though i've tried all these others mentioned. Sage is flawless, can site beside any web page i have open, or i can close it and access it's button from the toolbar. I use Alien 6 on my phone, i have MobiPocket--which is great--on my ppc, but i want an rss reader "right there" that allows me to switch to the actual site when on the PC. Sage does that with Firefox seamlessly.

Comment from Danno on 2007-01-27

2007-01-28T03:50:00Z

Though it's becoming decreasingly relevant in the ever more wirelessly networked world, I'm really interested in a reader that could sync with my Google Reader feeds to give me offline browsing capability for when I'm commuting (on the train, of course).

Sometimes I'll have a few good hours of feeds to go through and it can be annoying to be anchored to a network drop.