Stop Your Whining About Google Reader

Emin Gun writing on Hacking Distributed about the impending demise of Google Reader and the farcical backlash that ensued following the announcement:

“Second, I suspect that the Reader-loving hacker-turned-entrepreneur crowd, which is deeply insecure about its position in society, is perhaps so sensitive because they see this as a sign that Google, and by proxy, the computer industry, values the masses with their dirty mobile devices and effervescent Twitter feeds more than the self-titled ‘digital cognescenti’ with their MacBooks and Reader accounts and IFTTT recipes that save noteworthy articles in Evernote or whatever. They want to flex their digital muscle. And to some extent, I sympathize with this. But let’s call a spade a spade, and let’s pick something more worthy over which to flex our muscle. My greatest fear is what would happen if Google were to go back on their decision. It will feed the crazed, self-important ‘technocrati’ so much that we’ll be deluged with overblown outrage at every perceived online slight. I know how 2 year olds turn out when they get their way with tamper tantrums.”

Emin made a lot of great points in his article, my favorite of which was his call for all the people whining and complaining about Google’s announcement to instead focus their collective energies into making or finding a good alternative to Reader. If you can code, write a script to fetch and parse your favorite feeds; such a challenge would be simple and take a few evenings, at best; if not, there are plenty of alternatives out there. Embrace this change, don’t fight it.