Just downloaded and installed SharpReader and it took about 45 seconds to get it running. Great stuff. Easy to import feeds, and I think that just this moment I figured out the solution to my wanting access to my RSS feeds from every computer dilemma. (I absolutely love it when my bulbs go off, though I am also absolutely sure that they usually light up way behind everyone elses…) David Wiley has a post “A Beginner’s Guide to Joining the Instructional Technology Blog Scene” which highlights the use of RSS. He created an .opml file of all of the edubloggers he has on his list which I downloaded and imported into SharpReader. Voila, I had twenty feeds in a moment. Well, why can’t I just do that with my own feeds, then just import the .opml into the SharpReader install I have on each computer I use (only three, really.) And I could have the .opml and the SharpReader install online for “emergency” use if necessary. Duh.

Ok, now two things. First, how to create the .opml file, which I know I can do through the Manila. (I think I’ll need to create the list as a my subscriptions file and then grab the code, right?) Second, what do I do when I want to add to the list? I guess I just add it to my subscriptions and then reexport the code. A couple of steps, but still the easiest solution I can think of if I can’t get all of this to be Web based. And yes I know the Manila aggregator qualifies as that, but I just don’t like the lack of flexibility in terms of sorting and searching.

Now the only other problem is finding time to read all the stuff I’m going to aggregate, and even more, keep track of all the good stuff in here. Has anyone else noticed that as more and more thoughtful, smart, forward thinking educators latch on to this idea it gets harder and harder to keep up? I could do this full time, I swear.

UPDATE: Too easy. I now have an .opml file for all my student Web logs which I can read through Sharpreader AND click through to respond. AND, I realized that Sharpreader will export the .opml file of my list of feeds, so when I update it, I just upload it for import on my other machines. I am now officially overwhelmed.
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Bonnie Borthwick of Lesley U. in Cambridge has started a Haavaahd Web log that is “exploring uses of blogs in the workplace,” which in her case means schools. As always, it’s interesting to watch as someone publicly thinks out loud about how blogs might fit his/her situation. And, should I be envious that having a Crimson blog means Dave will respond to your Manila musings? Bonnie wonders if she can audioblog in Manila, and Dave comments: “I’ve asked them to do a general audio blogging tool, and there’s some hope they’ll do that.” Must be nice.

So, um, hey Bonnie…can you wonder aloud if Manila’s going to get a trackback feature any time soon? ;0)

I have to say that it’s pretty eye-opening to watch the Manila Dev board at Yahoo as Dave demands and grumbles and Jake cranks out the requests. Watching that interaction has given me a lot of insight as to the issues with Manila and the problems with developing it. But the greatest thing to happen to Manila users is Dave’s commitment to Harvard. He’s panicked by the problems his new users are having, the same problems we’ve been having all along. And he seems pretty committed to making Manila a standard for wider adoption in schools, which means he’s gonna have to add all the bells and whistles we’ve been asking for.

Now, if only he would be so impassioned about hosting…
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