In this time of serial cancellations getting a free, or what amounts to a free, subscription to an academic journal would be a veritable boon. Wish no mre! Many of our database vendors allow users to create virtual subscriptions. There are some limitations--there are always limitations--but it is still a cool service.
To aquire the Google Reader, you need to set up a Google account, which is free. If you have a G-mail account, or an I-Google page, then you have a Google account. If not, go to Google and look in the upper right hand corner of the page. There you will see a link to set up an account. Once you have set up an account, the Google Reader will be one of the default services (like Sites, Docs, etc.) to which you have access.
The remainder of this tutorial will assume you have the Google Reader or some other RSS reader--there are a number to choose from.