The New York Times launches its digital subscription packages today at 2 p.m. Eastern time.. That means web visitors can normally read 20 articles free each month, while users of NYT mobile apps can access just the "Top News" section, before needing a complicated subscription. But there are work-arounds and ways to move beyond "normally" and read the paper of record for free.
Shouldn't important news, gathered by professionals, sometimes at the risk of their very lives, be paid for? Yes, it should, and web-based advertising on its own, generated for masses of free readers, isn't quite enough to fund the paper's efforts at the moment. But many of us may never need paywall article work-arounds at the rate of 20 articles per month, and those that do may only need it for one or two important reads.
And the general consensus and hope among many on the web is that the Times' model will be simplified, so that, given the choice between using a minor annoyance to access an article and paying a minor, not annoying subscription plan, those who find themselves hitting "the wall" each month will choose the latter. In the meantime, there are work-arounds that the Times is aware of, but chooses not to affect its paywall structure.
Note: Generally, if you're a fan of using the Times' apps on your iPad, iPhone, Android, BlackBerry, or Kindle device, you'll need to start using the web-based Times to read articles for free, using the same recommendations we're outlining for full browsers here. There's no easy tweak to work around a proprietary product that's no longer free—though the simplest and cheapest way to get access to the Times on your device is (sadly) a "Weekender" paper subscription.
The Bookmarklet: NYTClean
This one's easy and universal, even if it requires one extra click for every article you hit on the web. Head to this page on the Euri.ca Blog, click and hold on the "NYTClean" link in the middle of the page, and drag it up to your bookmarks toolbar. Whenever you arrive at a "stopper" page on the New York Times' web site, asking you to subscribe, hit that "NYTClean" bookmark in your toolbar, and you'll be redirected to a free version of the page. It's a small bit of web scripting and URL tweaking, and it works.
The User Script: NY Times Paywall
>Want to automate the process of sending yourself to the exact same page you're being asked to subscribe to before reading? Install the NY Times Paywall user script from UserScripts.org. If you're using Firefox, install Greasemonkey, then click the "Install" button on that script page. If you're using Chrome, go ahead and just click "Install" as well. Safari users can install Greasekit to manage user scripts, and Opera users have manual means of installing user scripts. We haven't fiddled with IE 9, but the Trixie add-on has previously worked with Internet Explorer to allow user script installation.
The Manual Solution: Using Twitter Feeds (Even If You Don't Use Twitter)
Like the Wall Street Journal, the Times is giving considerable leeway to readers arriving from a link obtained through a search, a blog, or a social media service like Twitter or Facebook, with the idea of holding onto surges of traffic coming from fast-spreading stories. So if you're in need of a quick fix, go ahead and type "new york times elizabeth taylor" into Google or another search engine to find the Times' obituary for the screen queen, for example.
But the Times may put limits on certain search engines, while they seem more enthusiastic about their Twitter presence. Luckily, Twitter users can subscribe to any of more than 250 Twitter accounts the Times offers, covering almost every section, notable writer, blog, and other content. If you don't use Twitter, you can still benefit from the Times' love of social media.
Click over to any Times Twitter feed, and the page will contain an RSS feed. Some browsers pick up the feed automatically and give you a subscription option; others, like Chrome, might require an extension. In any case, you can copy the page URL—http://twitter.com/#!/thelede, for example—and paste it into the "Add Subscription" section of an RSS reader like Google Reader. Some browsers also feature built-in feed readers you can utilize to keep a folder of "Live Bookmarks" updated. And if a nerdy RSS reader is not your thing, either, note that many social-smart apps like Flipboard for iPad or Pulse for Android can import Google Readers' RSS feeds, Times-via-Twitter-work-arounds and all, and make them into a kind of reverse-engineered magazine.
Got more suggestions on getting access to the Times online? Found that paying for the Times isn't quite the hassle you expected? We're all ears in the comments.
http://www.nytimes.com/twitter