San Francisco — Search engine giant’s unrelenting effort in offering the best of products and services is again set to launch the Google Reader API — that is possibly just months away from being released to the public.
Web-cracker and blogger Niall Kennedy — recently posted on his site several details covering the earlier undocumented Google Reader API. However, so far there is no official confirmation, but Kennedy claims that he has received confirmation from Google that his documentation about Google’s online feed aggregator is, in fact, very accurate.
Moreover, Kennedy also stated that, Jason Shellen, Project Manager on the Google Reader team, informed him that Google intends to release a feed API “soon,” perhaps within the next month.
The Google Reader application is regarded among RSS fanatics as one of the most excellent feed aggregators available today. By utilizing AJAX front-end along with JavaScript technology, Google Reader is capable of loading data published all through the web using one simple, user-friendly application.
According to Google’s Shellen, Google in fact developed their feed API first and then built the feed reader application second as a demonstration of what could be done with the underlying data.
Although Google Reader is reasonably popular now, if a Reader API becomes accessible in the future, a third-party developer could develop a better feed reader than Google’s. As Kennedy notes, a Reader API would reduce the barrier of entry for new aggregator developers. With an API, he says, “the hard work of understanding feeds in various formats and states of validation, allowing developers to focus on the interaction experience and other differentiating features.”
RSS feed reading is certainly an area that needs more development — we even put it on our social media predictions and desires list for 2009. With this glad tiding RSS enthusiast can hold their breath to see what Google and other third-party developers come up with in the New Year.