NetNewsWire
If you are like most people, you have several web sites you check daily; sites that get updated frequently, such as blogs, new music release sites, or Mac rumor boards. If you are the obsessive type, you might even check some sites several times a day, just to see if something new got posted. Imagine how nice it would be if somehow all your favorite web sites notified you when something new came around. In a nutshell, that is the idea behind the program NetNewsWire, and if you surf the web more then five minutes a day, it will change your life!
NetNewsWire uses a technology called RSS (short for Really Simple Syndication) to work its magic. RSS feeds are simply special URLs that get updated whenever a particular web page is changed. NetNewsWire keeps track of these feeds automatically and lets you know when new information gets posted to a web site on your watch list. After initially telling NetNewsWire what sites to track (a process as simple as clicking a link in your web browser) the rest is automatic. When web sites are updated, NetNewsWire lets you know and if you are interested in reading the new posting, you can simply click a headline to view the new information. In practice,this is as intuitive and easy as reading email.
In fact, if you have ever used email, you’ll find NetNewsWire very familiar. It has a beautiful and easy-to-use interface, laid out similar to most popular email programs, with a list of sites you are watching on the left side (where an email application shows all the mailboxes). Clicking on any site name will show you a list of postings, with new posts showing up in bold, once again similar to how email works. Click any subject to view the full web page. NetNewsWire will actually display the web page itself, using the same technology Apple’s own Safari uses. NetNewsWire will check for updated web sites on a schedule you set and once you start using it,it will really change how you use the web. NetNewsWire lets you become lazy, in a good way. News and web sites come to you, automatically. Surfing the web becomes both more efficient and more fun.
If you only used NetNewsWire to keep track of favorite web sites, it would be well worth the shareware fee. However, as you become a more experienced user, you will likely find that many of NetNewsWire’s extra features really make your internet experience even better. NetNewsWire can keep track of podcasts (which are actually just a special kind of RSS feed) and send them to iTunes. A very useful synchronization function uses .Mac to automatically sync your preferences and subscription list between two or more computers. You can also create “smart lists” of web sites to track, which works similar to smart playlists in iTunes.
NetNewsWire is one of the finest shareware applications written for the Mac. Apple’s own RSS reader, built in to Safari, pales in comparison. You pretty much cannot go wrong with NetNewsWire; it will save you time and make your web experience much better. The software comes with a 30-day fully-functional demo period so you can try it yourself, and then wonder how you lived without it.
Pro: An elegant,well-written application that will change how you use your computer.
Con: None
$24.95
5 out of 5 dog cows
