A source is where your channel gets its information—a website, an RSS feed, a WeChat official account, and so on. Every time your channel produces content, the Agent behind it gathers material from the sources you've set. In other words, your sources decide what your channel can "see," and their quality directly shapes the quality of the content you get.
Two ways to manage sources
In NeoDrop you'll work with two separate mechanisms, each handling its own job:
- Whitelist / blacklist: controls which content sources to pull from. List the sources you want your channel to prioritize (whitelist), and list the ones you always want excluded (blacklist).
- Connectors (platform accounts): controls which platform accounts the channel can use. By authorizing access, you let your channel's Agent read content within the scope you grant—newsletters in your inbox, accounts you follow, and the like.
You can use either one on its own; they don't depend on each other.
Supported source types
Each whitelist entry is just a piece of text. Common forms include a website domain, an RSS feed, or an official account. The rule of thumb: enter something that points to a concrete source, not a vague topic word.
If you'd rather connect a platform account directly, the connectors page lets you authorize a range of platforms, such as Gmail, Outlook, X / Twitter, YouTube, GitHub, GitLab, Notion, Slack, Zoom, Dropbox, Box, Confluence, and Readwise. Most platforms just need you to click "connect" and complete the authorization flow; a few (like Readwise) ask you to generate an access token yourself and paste it in. You'll need to be signed in to connect a platform account.
Adding and managing sources
Whitelist / blacklist: Open the source management area in your channel's settings, add a source, type it in, and confirm. You can remove any entry whenever you like. There's also a "whitelist-only" toggle:
- On: the channel pulls strictly from whitelisted sources—good when you trust only a few authoritative sources and want precision.
- Off: the whitelist takes priority, but the Agent may add other trustworthy sources—good when you want broader coverage.
Platform connections: On the connectors page, each platform shows up as a card labeled with its connection status (such as connected, paused, or not connected). If a connection fails, common causes are: missing permissions (re-authorize and grant all scopes), the platform's API isn't enabled (contact an administrator), or the authorization expired or was revoked (reconnect). You can also open a connector's detail page to see the tools it offers, set permissions for each tool, and bind that connector to a specific channel.
How to spot a good source
NeoDrop won't score sources for you, but based on how the product works, here's what to look for:
- Authority: prefer sources that are well regarded and reliable in their field.
- Relevance: a source should stay close to your channel's topic—off-topic sources only dilute the output.
- Update frequency: pick active sources so your channel keeps producing fresh content.
- Specificity: enter a concrete domain, RSS feed, or account rather than a fuzzy keyword.
- Use the blacklist: drop sources you clearly don't want into the blacklist, and they'll always be excluded.
How sources affect content quality
Every run your channel makes is built on the sources you provide. The more authoritative, relevant, and timely your sources are, the more accurate, comprehensive, and valuable your channel's output becomes. Refining your source list is the most direct way to raise your channel's quality. If you're unsure at the start, add a few core sources, then adjust over time as you see what the channel produces.