Subscriptions Explained
Subscriptions provide a convenient way for you to stay informed with the least amount of effort.
In the old days, you bookmarked a site in your favorites and revisited it if you remembered. If you’re like me, you’d either forget about the bookmark or it would lose itself among all your other bookmarks. Eventually, you’d just clear everything out and start again – vowing to be more organised this time!
Fortunately, as the internet is evolving, technology is making it easier for information to come to you so that you don’t have to rely so much on bookmarks.
Subscribe by RSS
RSS lets you receive new content from all your favourite websites in one place. You need an account with a feedreader service to begin with. Many feedreader services allow you to set up an account for free. There are standalone feedreaders that you install onto your computer. There are also web-based feedreaders – my personal favourite is the web-based and free Google feedreader. It’s simple to use and does what it says on the tin.
When you find a site that you want to follow by RSS, click on it’s RSS link (easily identified by the orange RSS button). This brings up the feed for that site and asks you which feedreader you would like to add it to. As I use Google, I attach the RSS to the Google reader.
Click here for the Paradox of Reality RSS feed
From now on, whenever this site publishes new content, your feedreader will store it for you. So the next time you log into your feedreader, it will be there waiting for you to read. No bookmarks and no needing to remember to visit the site.
Subscribe by Email
Email subscriptions send new content directly to your email account. It’s direct and very easy to set up. All you need to do is enter your email address and validate your subscription by replying to the confirmation message.
The subscription verification process protects you from anyone maliciously using your address. If you do not respond to this message, the service does not get activated. Sometimes the email verification message goes into the Spam or Junk mail folder. If you have subscribed to a website by email and do not see your verification email, check your spam folder because it will probably be there. If it is not there within a couple of hours, then you may have entered your email address incorrectly. Please subscribe again.
The benefit of email subscriptions is that you can file away useful emails and refer to them whenever you want.
Click here to subscribe to Paradox of Reality by email
Paradox of Reality (along with all other reputable websites) only uses your email address to send you your subscribed service. You will never get spam and your email address will not be abused.
Subscribe by facebook (Networked Blogs)
I’ve closed my personal facebook account now so I’m not sure if this option will work anymore. However, I’m leaving the information intact in case you are on facebook and find that it still works.
The NetworkedBlogs application on facebook allows you to have new content from a blog show up in your facebook information stream. This is very handy if you are a keen facebook user because you get new information that blends in perfectly with your facebook usage. It also means that you can comment on a post from within facebook, share the posts with your friends and encourage them to join in with your conversation.
When you subscribe by facebook, you’ll see the Paradox of Reality blog page. Once you have logged in, click on the “Follow” button and you’re done. Now, whenever a new post appears on the Paradox of Reality blog, you’ll see it in your facebook newsfeed.
Nowadays I choose a mixture of subscription methods that suit the way I work and surf. My habit is to log into my feedreader once a week, so I choose the RSS method for websites that I do not consider urgent. I use email subscriptions when I want to get new information immediately.
If you are new to subscriptions, experiment with all the methods and see which one works best for you. It is very easy to unsubscribe from any of these so feel free to play around.
