Hasta la Vista, Google Reader. Now What?

As many of you know, Google Reader is fading into the sunset July 1, 2013 (that's only 2 weeks away!). So if you are one of their millions of users, you're likely scurrying to find a new reader for your favorite blogs and news sites.

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But have no fear, I've done a little digging, and found, what I think to be, the best alternatives to Google Reader. Once you create a free account, both make it simple to migrate over by quickly importing the blogs from your Google Reader feed.

1) Bloglovin'

Nevermind the annoying goofy name...this is the site I've migrated to, and so far, I love it. It's got a really clean, user-friendly interface, and is simple to use. Once you sign up, you'll want to migrate the existing blogs from your Google Reader feed.

First, click on this link:

http://www.bloglovin.com/import/reader

And it will take you to this page. 

Then click that blue button that reads, 'Import from Google Reader.' It will ask for permission to access your Google Reader account, then import all your blogs over in a manner of minutes. It looks very similar to Google Reader, so you'll feel comfortable with it right away.

You can view all your blogs by most recent feed, or click on one to see all their posts. From there you can save the post by 'liking' it, or share via Twitter, Facebook, etc.



To add new blogs to your reader, just type them in the search bar, and click the blue 'Follow' button.

Bloglovin' also helps you find new blogs by subject category, or what's most popular.

If you're like me, you follow a crazy number of blogs, and they get a little difficult to sort through. By clicking the heart icon, you can manage your blogs by creating and placing them in separate groups. Like food, diy, home decor, fashion, daily reads, etc.



The funny thing about blogging, is you have less time to actually read blogs. So my favorite aspect of Bloglovin, is receiving all my favorite feeds in a single email every night.

2) Feedly

Feedly is a cloud based reader that is available for web browsers and mobile operating systems.
On their homepage you will find a button that prompts you to click and install Feedly. It detects the browser you are using and will show the correct button for your browser.

If you're using Chrome or Safari, a new tab will open with Feedly. If using Firefox, you will need to restart your browser to finish the installation. Your next step is to connect your Google Reader account. If you are using Chrome or Safari, this screen will prompt you to get started immediately after installation.

Once you allow permission for access to your Google Reader, they will automatically import all your feeds.

To search for blogs, click 'Add Content,' then type the name in the search box.

Once you're following that blog, you can edit the preferences and create a group to categorize it.

You can also view your feeds in several formats. Magazine and Full Feed look to be the easiest to read.

Hopefully this post was easy enough to follow, and was somewhat helpful! I know all the screen shots get confusing, and I'm certainly no techy-expert! I just don't want you guys to lose touch with your favorite blogs July 1st. If you have any questions, leave them in the comments and I'll try to answer them.

Do you use a Reader? If so, what's your favorite? What are you going to use once Google Reader goes away?

Make sure you continue following Hi Sugarplum!!