So Google decided to pull the plug on Google Reader on its second massive spring cleaning.

http://googleblog.blogspot.ca/2013/0...-cleaning.html

So how do you guys feel?

I'm devastated of course, it relied it heavily and it works ubiquitously on the web, no app, no what so ever, just works perfectly. They cited that it's being pulled because of decline usage, I beg differ of course, judging from reactions on the net thus far.

Probably it's going to be somehow integrated with Google+, my guess to promote Google+ further.

the problem with google+ is that they don't have decent api's for it so you can't make apps.

I feel devastated too. Been using greader g
for 4 years...now it will be gone..

It sucks... I use it. Still using iGoogle, and that also will be gone.

Also blog post says they're shutting down CalDAV. So there's no standard way to access Google calendar soon? Looks like Google is gravitating away from standards to their own protocols, which is annoying in all possible ways.

Yeah, CalDAV will only be assessable by whitelisted developers. What the hell?

Others are encouraged to use Google Calendar API. https://developers.google.com/google-apps/calendar/

What is Google Calendar API, how come something as simple as calendar can get so complicated with Google. Suddenly Outlook.com seemed more attractive than Google set of offerings.

kai_en,

Its now a choice between the admittedly evil M$ or purportedly "dont-be-evil" Google

One year ago, I told Tomi Ahonen that Microsoft is actually the lesser evil compared to Apple and Google. Google in particular is a sleeping evil

Indeed many people would actually agree with that sentiment

All these recent "spring cleaning" by Google has a lot to do with the fact that Android is now the de facto smartphone platform of choice and command substantial amount of market share, Google is doing all it can to crush any potential competition including closing access to its multiple services (Do you know Google News API is also being pulled soon?) via once publicly available API or standard channel (like CalDav).

Android has shifted Google's emphasis to be "Google Everywhere" to "Google everywhere via Android", it's a fine line but it explained a lot of these recent behaviors.

I beg to differ because I don't see the difference between the two. What exactly is the difference between Google using their own proprietary calendar protocol and not Caldav and Microsoft using their own proprietary calendar protocol and not Caldav? If anything Google is becoming more and more like MS day by day. If this is considered "evil" then I don't see how it is "more evil" than the person whose practices you are slowly leaning towards.