The Big Find

The Big Find:

Last week Google decided to eliminate the sharing features of Google Reader in an attempt to force users into Google+, or more politely put, to consolidate its social offerings into one product.



For three years I have actively shared links I found interesting on Google Reader. Reading shared links from my small community of friends on Google Reader has become part of my daily life and one of the primary ways I am exposed to new and interesting ideas.



Unfortunately, Google+ is a poor substitute for the sharing tools Google Reader provided. Without RSS, I am forced to either clog all my friends' Google+ streams with links (I tend to share a lot) or personally cull a circle of friends who I think will want to read what I have to offer. There is no way for folks to subscribe or unsubscribe from my shared links as they please, or keep track of what they have and haven't read.



I want to keep my small sharing community alive. I want to keep sharing the interesting things I discover on the web with whoever would like to read them. But as a wise man once said, if you're not paying for it, you're not the customer; you're the product being sold. Google isn't here to provide what I want, they're here to use my data to sell ads. So I've come up with an alternative: I've created a micro-blog called The Big Find.



Micro-blogging (if you're unfamiliar) is sharing very small pieces of content, like links or pictures or videos, in blog form. Mine is located at bigfind.justinis.com. If you would like to read what I've found interesting lately, you can stop by once in a while, or subscribe to the RSS feed here (using Google Reader, for instance), or check out the Big Find box in the sidebar of this blog. Or, if you're of the Twitter persuasion, you can follow @justinis–all my shared links and blog posts will be sent there.



I would also encourage you to follow my small community of friends who are slowly making the move to micro-blogs to keep the party going:

Erin Smith

Harrison Brookie

Alyssa Buckley

Cheryl Swit

(More will be added as they arrive; if you decide to join in, send me your link!)



Image: Vector Hugo