Cullect.com – A Shareable Reading List for Each of Your Interests

We all have different facets of our personality – if only work and family. The things that are relevant and interesting for work are off-topic for family. It’s an national election year, so I bet a you’re tracking politics more closely than other years. Again, a separate facet or mindset. Sometimes distinct from the other two.

Last night, I spoke with someone who maintains 2 separated Google Reader accounts – each one for a different high-level topic (marketing news vs. industry news). To switch between those topics, he needs to sign out of one Google account sign into the other (or have a browser / account). Not the most reader-friendly or elegant set up, but it solved the problem of information-overload-via-mixed-interests.

I was impressed with the hack, but not surprised. Today’s feed readers break quickly once feed counts hit triple digits and the ‘single reading list per person’ amplifies the problem.

Right now, I’m actively maintaining 5 feed reading lists (“Cullections”) in Cullect.com for a total of 210 feeds:

  1. Technology News: Cullect.com/1
  2. Friends & Family: Cullect.com/5
  3. My Favorite Podcasts: Cullect.com/33
  4. Economics: Cullect.com/53
  5. PodcastMN: Cullect.com/66

I quickly navigate to each reading list by clicking it’s number at the top of my browser window, or using the number keyboard shortcuts. No re-signing-in or moving to a completely different browser.

While there’s a little overlap in feeds across those lists, I find it useful for ensuring I catch the really relevant things – those things overlapping my interests.

In each of those interests, there are different people I trust. For example, Ben Moore and I have similar economics perspectives. I’m interested in the economics feeds he reads and the individual posts he finds interested. So, I’ve invited him to my Economics reading list. Think of it as pair-programming for feed reading. We each get the benefit of another pair of eyes at the day’s items. With Cullect.com being open – you can read the things we’re reading and use it to start your own economics reading list – with a different slant.

All of this is to state, I no longer feel information overload and I’ve been able to dramatically cut down the time I take reading feeds all while feeling more connected.

Plus, when others ask me what blogs or podcasts I like, I can point them to one of these reading lists and they’re on their way.

Monthly subscriptions are now available for as little as $6/month (gets you 3 Cullections). Try it out and let me know what you think.

Thanks.

Twitter Updates for 2008-01-21

  • ok. this proves it – football needs snow to be interesting. bitter cold just don’t do it for me. #
  • @swirlspice – we’re Tivo-ing Amazing Race and catch it after the football game. #
  • wishes http://fawnt.com/fonts/ had an RSS feed w/ enclosures. #
  • thinks he’s a ‘foul weather fan’ of the Packers. Maybe even a ‘fowl weather fan’. Football + migrating ducks could be interesting. #
  • is glad he’s on this side of the WI border right now. #
  • asks: Why isn’t TiVo just a USB stick yet? Just a fat flash drive w/ wifi & co-ax/hdmi. My Series 2 box is fugly. Series 3 isn’t any better. #
  • @jayamorgan, yes, right now TiVo = Palm, I’d sure like either of those companies to make me excited about them again. #
  • How many of you could have picked this list blind-folded….6mn ago :p cullect/1: http://culld.us/551830 #
  • @misc, tell me more about your podcatcher thoughts. The more I think about current state, I’m disappointed. We went down the wrong path. #
  • @pfhyper – re:links – that’s why 1 reason @cullect auto-expands shortened urls. #
  • @pfhyper – yes, yes CL has feeds. #
  • @Element_guy, press pot + microwaved water has been my routine for the past week. Not sure the water gets hot enough, but more flavorful. #
  • uncov’s report of the Crunchies makes me happy & sad. cullect/1: http://culld.us/564437 #
  • @jamuraa & @pfhyper – I went off on hashtags a while ago. not sold on their usefulness #

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First Crack 105. Coffee Review – Grand Cru Kenya: Mamuto, Kirinyaga

This podcast kicks off a new monthly coffee review series at the First Crack Podcast.

This month, I’m reviewing: George Howell’s Terroir Coffee: Kenya Mamuto Kirinyaga

First, it took me a while to tweak the grinder back for a good press pot. In that time, the time was ticking on the coffee itself. Lesson learned for February.

This is a great bean, Andrew called it his favorite bean in the past 3 months. In the press pot I tasted heavy blueberry and banana notes with a trace of cherry and just a whiff of cocoa.

In the Mocha Brew, the cup was sharp and thin, very little flavor or mouthfeel. So, while I had two cups in front of me, I avoided that one.

Special thanks to my wife and Andrew Kopplin at Kopplin’s Coffee for inspiring this series and selecting this month’s coffee.

Listen to Coffee Review – Grand Cru Kenya: Mamuto, Kirinyaga [7 min].

Elsewhere:
CoffeeReview.com: Kenya Mamuto Kirinyaga – 96 points

Twitter Updates for 2008-01-20

  • just looked at flickrfan.org. Decided it’s not what I’m looking for. I want the same thing….just an arbitrary RSS feed, not tied to flickr #
  • wait, I was thinking too hard. iPhoto -> ‘Subscribe to Photocast’ . Then flip over to Front Row and let it ride. Now to change the music. #
  • all these cold weather football games might make me not only a football fan, but a Packer fan as well. No, I don’t want to talk about Faurve #
  • @arik reminds us – making To-Do Lists isn’t doing To-Dos cullect/5: http://culld.us/552793 #

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Twitter Updates for 2008-01-18

  • @geniodiabolico – from articles I already have, and anything that comes in on going. @cullect gets new feeds from new subscriptions. #
  • Did you know @cullect has a built-in url shortener (a la tinyurl)? – http://culld.us, an example: http://culld.us/540074 #
  • @DeRushaJ, I agree. It’d be great if the response was more approachable, but, we all (you, me, big brands) have our quirks. #
  • @DeRushaJ – I watched the theater price Good Question tonight. The question was good. Was there an answer? #
  • is watching the mercury drop. down 3 degrees F since I work up. Fun! #

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Eight Stupid Things

Bex asked me for 8 things;

  1. I took the left-brain/right-brain dominance test Bex referenced and it said I, “you focus on details until they manifest themselves in a unique pattern and only then work with the ‘larger whole'” and recommended I be a design consultant. 🙂
  2. Climatically, I’m the most comfortable between 42°N and 52°N. I don’t know about S.
  3. I long for a day when the Beatles won’t be overexposed.
  4. The smell of sage reminds me of The 24 Hour Christmas Flu.
  5. Reading to my son reminds me of high school forensics
  6. My first reaction to not finding something quickly: eliminate all the clutter
  7. I only recently came to terms with the number of books I own that I’ve never read.
  8. My comfort in leaving things unread extend to feeds. But you already knew that. 🙂

Twitter Updates for 2008-01-16

  • is pretty sure ‘looming recession’ doesn’t actually exist. Like predicting the weather 6 mnths out. Sure, winters are colder than summers. #
  • @cullect stat-o-the-day: 703 recommendations, 4140 feeds, 497086 items #
  • couldn’t sleep, got outta bed just to buy a domain name for a crazy @cullect spinoff idea. #
  • @jamuraa – yes, breaking is helpful. Can you elaborate on what happened? I don’t see anything odd in the logs. #
  • is re-installing Acrobat Reader. This isn’t improving my impression of Adobe. #
  • @fred_beecher – I completely agree. Unfortunately, a couple of vendors I have don’t feel the same. #
  • @jamuraa – ok. I got a peak at the issue you were having, filed the bug report and killed all the offenders. #

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