The first beta of FeedDemon 1.6 is about a week away, and I think you're going to like it. Despite the minor version increment from 1.5 to 1.6, the new FeedDemon actually contains enough improvements to warrant calling it 2.0. So, I figured I'd highlight some of the new features over the next few days, just so you know what's coming.
If you're a long-time FeedDemon user, no doubt you're aware that the current version only updates feeds in the active channel group. I designed FeedDemon this way because it was so bandwidth-friendly, and also because I figured people didn't really care about feeds in inactive groups until the group became active. Well, let's just say I was wrong - very wrong - because second only to synchronization, the ability to update feeds in inactive groups has been the biggest feature request.
So I'm happy to report that FeedDemon 1.6 will update all of your feeds based on their schedule, regardless of whether they're in the active group. And as the image to the right illustrates, the lackluster list of channel groups has been replaced with one that shows which groups have flagged and unread items. While this isn't the treeview that so many have asked for (hey, I have to leave something for 2.0, right?), I think you'll find this change to be a big step in the right direction (and I'll be the first to admit that I should've had this all along).
This is just one of the changes in FeedDemon 1.6, though - there are many more, almost all of which were the direct result of feedback from FeedDemon users. Stick around for the next few days if you'd like to see more of what's in store :)
Fantastic news! I look forward to getting my hands on 1.6 sometime soon.
How will Newsgator support the channel groups btw?
Posted by: Dan Woolstencroft | Wednesday, July 06, 2005 at 01:04 PM
Thanks for the info Nick, it's great to hear you're taking the feedback on board - you've got a great product and i'm sure FeedDemon will go from strength to strength
Posted by: Rob Lewis | Wednesday, July 06, 2005 at 01:09 PM
Since things can be updated across the board now...here's a few random ideas.
It would be nice to sort channel groups by last update (newest stuff on top) and/or interest rating. I'd also like to create a special group for the top interest rating. That way I can preserve groups as categories and still manage to hit the major unread stuff when I'm too busy to scan everything.
It would also be nice to sort feed items by any tag on a per-feed basis. That might handle those non-conforming folks that end up with oldest items at the top of the list, for example.
Posted by: Walt Lounsbery | Wednesday, July 06, 2005 at 02:03 PM
Looking great Nick but whats up with the Firefox icon on the Browsing tab ;)
Posted by: Morgan | Wednesday, July 06, 2005 at 02:05 PM
Does this version include Newsgator Online synchronization?
Posted by: Tim Marman | Wednesday, July 06, 2005 at 02:15 PM
Tim, yes - FeedDemon 1.6 will include synchronization with NewsGator Online.
Posted by: Nick Bradbury | Wednesday, July 06, 2005 at 04:04 PM
Just what I am looking for (http://mikewills.name/archives/2005/07/05/looking_for_a_better_aggregator.php). I just may buy a copy if this works in a way I would like it to.
Posted by: Mike Wills | Wednesday, July 06, 2005 at 05:06 PM
Awesome news. That is a little annoyance. Can I recommend a v. 2.0 enhancement? Onfolio's ability to capture, categorize & annotate rss postings (as well as web pages, notes, etc.) is a great idea, but the implementation for the report writer (to create web pages based on folders, or in FeedDemon's case, your News Bins) is a little underpowered. But they are the best out there currently, which represents a great opportunity. :)
Posted by: Bob Tabor | Wednesday, July 06, 2005 at 05:31 PM
I only read one channel group and use any others to remember feeds I've discontinued (or might not read). The group names say it all Often, Seldom, Never...
Reading all groups would be a definite negative.
Please leave the ability to only update the current group. (Updating them all is a bad idea for people like me.)
Posted by: Mike Gale | Wednesday, July 06, 2005 at 06:07 PM
- Please leave the ability to only update the current group. (Updating them all is a bad idea for people like me.) -
It's in their, Mike. No worries. :)
Posted by: Jack Brewster | Wednesday, July 06, 2005 at 06:12 PM
Thanks Jack. That's great.
Posted by: Mike Gale | Wednesday, July 06, 2005 at 06:14 PM
Quick question, did you ever get the syncing with Bloglines sorted out?
Posted by: Tom | Wednesday, July 06, 2005 at 06:29 PM
Tom, which part of the Bloglines synching are you referring to?
Posted by: Nick Bradbury | Thursday, July 07, 2005 at 11:46 AM
And here I thought nested/subgroups/tree view was the most requested feature...:)
Sorry...couldn't help that ;). This is probably the only reason I don't use FD all the time (gasp! the horror!). Now it'll always be in my tray.
Posted by: critter42 | Thursday, July 07, 2005 at 12:26 PM
"Well, let's just say I was wrong - very wrong - because second only to synchronization, the ability to update feeds in inactive groups has been the biggest feature request."
I think you forgot nested (tree-like) grouping of channels, which has been by far the most requested missing feature in the FD forums ever since I've been visiting them.
Posted by: Daniel | Thursday, July 07, 2005 at 06:10 PM
Daniel, I definitely haven't forgotten the nested tree - I did mention it in this post, after all :)
Posted by: Nick Bradbury | Thursday, July 07, 2005 at 06:19 PM
True True ;)
Good luck with your work on 1.6!!!
Posted by: Daniel | Friday, July 08, 2005 at 06:52 PM