Resources on utlizing Media Websites like the Financial Times

As part of a project to better access and utilize subscription content from media websites like the Financial Times, I identify and share web urls for interested users to put in spreadsheets or other web apps to access content.

An example of this is in a github repository I created using web urls from the Financial Times.

Why is this Useful?

Media websites have a lot of valuable information on a variety of topics so being able to experiment with different models of accessing them can be useful to subscribers.  In this case, subscribers can be readers who access a group subscription via a library or university, or members of a company or organization. Being able to quickly access information a reader wants can help with productivity as well as the perceived value of the subscription content, since in some cases, it can cost up to $900 annually to access.

How do I do it?

I put the web urls of different topics in a spreadsheet or other format, and share that with my website users. I will create different formats to share the information, some of them for purchase like a book, and others via social media like YouTube.

Why do you do it?

I think organizing information in ways that suit a particular user can best be done by that content user themselves, if they want to experiment with different methods. If I have a method or idea that makes accessing information more useful and convenient, I want to share it.

A subscription content website, like a newspaper's digital website, is typically organized based on topics and categories of information that is based on what is determined valuable for readers. Websites can organize that information by importance, time or other factors and they also include a search function so readers can find more information by a keyword or search term.  

By taking the url links out of that website template, I enable users to put them in any format that is useful for them. In this way, I make it more useful by saving time for subscription content users to find information on topics they want over time.