Original link: https://xlog.app/api/redirection?characterId=10¬eId=1825
Recessions are everywhere, and that’s normal. People naturally prefer short-term consumption. However, one weird trend that I’ve been having trouble with is people ditching RSS in favor of Newsletter in some places.
Essentially, email is a private, two-way communication mechanism, while RSS is an open, one-way communication mechanism. It doesn’t make sense to use email for private updates and article feeds, RSS is a more natural choice. Forcibly applying these features to email can cause many problems. These problems make me feel that Newsletter is like a tyrant who is incompetent but desperately trying to prove himself, unable to achieve the desired effect of publishers, and excessively infringing on users’ choice and efficiency.
Five Deadly Sins #
Closed Restrictions #
RSS is an open protocol that allows users to self-subscribe and pull RSS feeds of websites of interest to get the latest updates and articles without the permission of others. Users can also freely choose the content they want through the personalized settings of the reader, and can use multiple channels to receive notifications, and even use Telegram Bot to subscribe.
Newsletter is the subscription information pushed by the publisher to the user’s private mailbox. The whole process depends on the platform side, and the channel is closed throughout. This kind of closure greatly limits the user’s right to choose, and the user is forced to receive fixed information through specific channels and specific formats under the permission of the platform.
cumbersome and inefficient #
In contrast, RSS is more concise and efficient. Feeds can be managed centrally, and the process of categorizing, favoriteing, subscribing and unsubscribing is also very simple.
Newsletter, on the other hand, mixes all kinds of mail together, which is very scattered and difficult to manage. It’s hard to know exactly what content you’re subscribed to, and when it’s going to pop up. Moreover, the content formats are also various, and it is very confusing to view and read, so you cannot bookmark an article, let alone convenient third-party integration.
Information Overload #
Newsletter is difficult to effectively classify and filter content, and it is mixed with all normal mail, requiring manual effort and effort. This can easily lead to problems of information overload and spam.
However, RSS can be easily classified and filtered. For unimportant content, you can also mark all unimportant content as read with one click, and you will be relieved instantly, without pressure at all.
Long update period #
Although the update of RSS is not real-time, it is usually measured in hours. Self-built services such as RSSHub can even update every minute. In contrast, the update cycle of Newsletter, measured in days or even weeks and months, obviously lags behind a lot.
Privacy and Security Risks #
The openness of RSS is reflected in the fact that it does not require users to provide personal information, thus ensuring better privacy and security. However, Newsletter requires at least one email address, which increases the risk of data leakage or misuse. What’s more, emails may contain malicious links or attachments.
There are also some advantages #
While I’m critical of the Newsletter’s inefficiencies and limitations, I do admit that it has its merits, and there is some justification for its popularity, especially in a seller’s market for some publishers. Newsletter gives them more control and clicks, makes it easier to know who subscribes to their content, and calls attention to users more strongly with email notifications.
However, from a user’s point of view, I must make it clear that I prefer RSS. I’m not willing to give up my own choice and efficiency to cater to the publisher’s need for control. In my opinion, the power to obtain information should rest in my own hands, not other people or institutions. So, I’m here to say no to Newsletter.
This article is transferred from: https://xlog.app/api/redirection?characterId=10¬eId=1825
This site is only for collection, and the copyright belongs to the original author.