The Google Reader: What Happens When Whiz-Kids Get Rich and Spoiled
Eric Peterson of JupiterResearch talks here about his experiences with Google Reader and talking with the Google Reader project manager, Jason Shellen. While I'm ecstatic to see Google communicating publicly about an internal product, all of my major complaints about Google Reader remain entirely unresolved.

Let's start with expectations. Fresh in my mind are the releases of Gmail and Google Maps.

Gmail: Are you kidding me? More free space than their competitors by a factor of 10 and innovation to spare! Folderless email? Only searching, labels, and stars?? That took chutzpah and Google stepped up to the plate and delivered on everything they promised. Add to this the mystique of it being invite only and you have one desirable new innovation.

Google Maps: This gem combines map services, directions, satelitte overlays, and a staggering amount of useful features all wrapped up in a elegant intuitive interface.

Google Maps has a Macintosh-like simplicity to which even a PC user like me has to give accolades. The result is geek-Zen and with this product, the term AJAX was introduced to the sphere of pop-web development. This set standards that only Google could possibly live up to and, have no doubt, I do expect them to live up to them.

Now enter Google Reader. You can almost hear the Warner Brothers wa-wa-wa-wahhhh as the anti-climactic climax moment is revealed to Daffy Duck. Only this time, noone's laughing. Here's why:

Ease of use: D+
Since it's mostly a proprietary interface built in AJAX, my typical keyboard controls don't work.

This is all well and good on a graphical map like Google Maps, but in a series of good old squares with text, I want to use my keyboard if I want to and I want to use the controls that I've been using since I was 12. Arrows, Delete, Page Down, Home, etc. These are taken for granted in all good desktop applications and in the Web 2.0 world, I expect the same online to as great of an extent as possible.

Even more frustrating, in the parts that are normal i-frames, keyboard arrows and page up/down still do nothing. At least the i-frames do have one thing over the lower AJAX controls: arrows on the top and bottom of the scroll bars. Come on Google, could you have left nothing that we were familiar with? The lower part, while it does have nifty smooth scrolling effects, if very unwieldy, doesn't even have arrows where we've learned to expect them.

Want to add a new feed? Go to "Add a feed", enter the URL, then...? I guess hit preview since the only other option is Cancel. An "OK" button, or even the ubiquitous "Submit Query" button, would be a welcome addition here.

Overall, I can't decide if "confusing" or "frustrating" is my word of choice.

Presentation: B-
In Gmail and Google Maps, areas expand and contract to fit your window. Google Reader: nothing. (Again, Google has only itself to blame for this expectation of mine.) In fact, there doesn't even seem to be a pattern to how the windows are laid out. Are there i-frames or aren't there?

Well, both, and as we say above, not for any real functional gain either.

Predictability: C-/D+
I've never thought to include this in a review until Google Reader did so many unpredictable things. There are links that I don't know what they mean and when clicked I can't tell what they do. There are some things that can't even easily be identified as links.

In the bottom area, if I go down to the bottom of the scroll area, more items sometimes get tacked onto the end, so 19/20 turns into 19/40. On some subscriptions, this seems to occur indefinitely into the hundreds.

In unrelated matters, at one point I accidently used my scroll wheel over some area (I'm still not sure which one) and a window popped up to write an email in my Gmail account!

Interoperability: A+
There's only one standard that matters for RSS and Atom feed lists: OPML and Google Reader supports import and export in this format.

Accessability on different computers: A-
Full functionality on 5 major browsers and on all 3 major operating systems. Points lost here only because Opera isn't fully supported.

Integration with Other Google Products: D-
If you count the links at the top of Google Reader to "Google Home", "My Account", and "Sign Out" to be integration, then yes, it's integrated. However if you're like me, you don't need just another thing to check everyday. We all already have those by the boatload and even Outlook has an RSS plugin. Google Reader isn't even accessable from Gmail or from most other My Account areas. It's just another thing out there somewhere with the Google brand on it.

Innovation: F
There's nothing here you haven't seen before.

Overall: D
If I had brought home a report card like this in high school, my mother would still be yelling at me about it. Google's new product offering is almost guaranteed to underwhelm you.

If you already keep up with RSS feeds, you already no doubt have a favorite reader and will be unimpressed by this alternative. If you are new to this area, I'd recommend that you use Google's real strength (web search) and find a better RSS reader.
Robert McRackan | permalink | +marktd |