NewsFlash

What NewsFlash is

NewsFlash is a free Linux desktop program designed to complement an existing web-based RSS reader account. It brings feeds into a desktop reading workflow with notifications, fast search and filtering, tags and keyboard shortcuts. Its content grabber can download and extract full articles in many cases, leaving them available to read for as long as the user likes. The grabber checks for website-specific rules first and uses Mozilla Readability when it has no custom rule; it does not bypass paywalls. Listed backends include Miniflux, local RSS, Fever, FreshRSS, NewsBlur, Inoreader, Feedbin and Nextcloud News. The project's README says Feedly's API secret has expired. Flathub is identified as the official package source, with x86_64 and aarch64 architectures listed. The README also marks Alpine, Nix and Snap packages as unsupported and cautions that they may be outdated. To migrate local RSS feeds, the project recommends exporting an OPML file from FeedReader and importing it into NewsFlash. Users can report issues through the GitLab tracker.

Who it suits

NewsFlash suits Linux users who already have a web-based RSS reader account and want desktop reading features. It may also suit local RSS users migrating feeds with an OPML export.

Limits

The content grabber cannot get around paywalls. Alpine, Nix and Snap packages are unsupported and may be outdated.

Getting started

1. Open the NewsFlash GitLab project or Flathub
2. Install the official Flatpak package
3. Choose a supported service backend or local RSS
4. Sign in to the existing RSS reader account
5. For local migration, import an OPML file exported from FeedReader

Verdict

NewsFlash adds desktop reading and article extraction to supported RSS accounts, and it is free to use. Check the listed backend status and package guidance if you rely on Feedly or a non-Flathub package.