Grazr OPML viewer begins public alpha test

I've been hinting about Grazr for a while now, but I didn't post anything explicit because it wasn't open for public testing. Mike Kowalchik, Grazr's author, has now opened up his website to allow anyone to try an Alpha version of the product with any OPML file, and to put a copy on their own web site. Here is an example of Grazr with a sample OPML file:



Grazr uses Javascript, so if you don't see a really cool OPML viewer here, your web browser or aggregator isn't displaying Javascript output. You may have to change your browser preferences. You can also experiment with different OPML files on the Grazr site, as well as create a script to run your own copy of Grazr. If you want to see the raw OPML that is being displayed above, it is here.

The dimensions of Grazr are flexible, and you can shrink the text size, so you can also put one on your side navbar. James Corbett has been using it on his Eirepreneur blog for a while to display his Open Irish Directory. This form factor makes a great reading list widget, because your visitors can actually do feed grazing right on your web page. The term grazing may still be foreign to many people, but basically Grazr is a very capable RSS aggregator. There are still a number of cosmetic issues to improve, but that is why this is still an Alpha version. If you want to make suggestions for improvements, I'm sure Mike will be glad to get the feedback. Here's an example of Grazr with my Tech.Memeorandum dynamic reading list:

I've been helping Mike with the design of Grazr for a while now, but I have no financial relationship with the product or any of Mike's efforts. This is true of all the OPML products I'm working with, and actually all other products and websites. I don't believe in blogging as an independent observer and taking money or equity positions at the same time. There is nothing wrong with writing a company blog, however, such as Mike's own blog, or the blog of any other company employee, as long as that is the clear position of the blogger. For now, I'd rather remain independent, so I'll avoid any financial relationships. When I decide to join a startup or become an investor in one, I'll probably stop this blog and start a new one. At the very least, I'll make my new situation known and change the focus of my writing.

Any product based on the idea of feed grazing owes a debt of gratitude to James Corbett for inventing the term and promoting the concept. James has been a big supporter of Grazr and the rest of the OPML community.