RSS: What It Means for You and Your Business


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Really Simple Syndication (or RSS) is a method of news distribution that circumvents the whole problem of spam and email viruses. Vendors and blogs use it to alert users to new content. Email, of course, has its place on the Internet and would never be replaced by RSS. But for certain types of content, RSS is a superior communication medium.

RSS feeds are secure because they are selected by the end user, making spam a non-issue. Subscribers choose only the feeds they wish to read, and content providers provide only the feeds their audiences would find useful. RSS users are also able to repost content from other websites.

What Exactly Is an RSS Feed?

RSS is a file format created in a simple markup language called Extensible Markup Language (XML). It consists of directories of web pages containing news and information. The content is periodically accessed at set intervals and then consumed by users at their convenience.

The format itself is simple. The feed is enclosed in the XML file and contains the title, the URL, and a description of the web page, as well as the content itself in HTML. Content providers should authenticate their feeds before submitting them to engines to ensure they do not contain invalid characters. RSS feed subscribers then view the feeds either by aggregating them on their own website or by downloading a standalone RSS feed reader.

Make the Most of Your RSS Reader

RSS feeds exist for almost every type of content, including news, job listings, blogs, personals, show biz, and classifieds. They allow you to receive hourly or daily updates without actually checking the websites themselves. When a headline catches your attention, just click it to read the full content on the original website.

Get an RSS Reader

Many free downloadable RSS readers are readily available on the Internet. Google the term to find one you like. Paid RSS applications range in price from about $20 to $30 and vary in the features that they offer, but most offer tools not available in free RSS readers.

There are two types of RSS readers: standalone and plug-in. Each has unique capabilities and mainly differ in how they are accessed. The standalone RSS reader resides on your desktop, while the plug-in is incorporated in existing applications such as Internet Explorer and Microsoft Outlook. One disadvantage of plug-ins is that repopulating your feeds can overload your browser if a lot of folders emails, bookmarks, and toolbars are open at once.

Set Up a Standalone Reader

Launching a standalone RSS reader on your desktop gives you a toolbar and window panes to work in, similar to Microsoft Outlook. The left side of the window displays the channels or RSS feeds you are subscribed to, which can be organized into categories and folders.

The right side is where you browse titles and read some or all of the content. If not all of an article’s content is displayed, you will see a link that takes you to the full page. Alerts to fresh content are sent either by email or pop-up windows.

Add Channels

Upon setting up your standalone RSS reader, you will notice that some channels are pre-loaded. You will like some of them but not all. To add your own channels, simply copy the URL of the website you want to add. Once you have several that you like, you can start organizing them into categories.

Customize Your Feeds

When you first install your standalone reader, spend some time poking around and familiarizing yourself with its features. Different standalone apps have different features. For example, if you subscribe to a lot of feeds, you can quickly get buried in content and lose track of articles you want to read. However, most feed readers have search functionality and labeling tools that help you find the articles that interest you.

As blogging becomes more dynamic, RSS feeds will become more flexible. Humans naturally want to consume information, which is why RSS readers will continue to be valuable as long as they evolve.

One more thing, remember to subscribe to our RSS feed on the top right-hand corner of this page.

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24 comments
  1. Pingback: Anonymous
  2. Definitely considering implementing an RSS feed on my company’s website. Since I work for a technical job search we often update our opportunities list on a daily basis and after reading this article I can tell it would be a big help. Thank you for the post.

  3. I simply want to mention I’m all new to weblog and definitely savored your website. More than likely I’m going to bookmark your blog . You absolutely have tremendous article content. Thanks a lot for revealing your web page.

  4. I’ve been surfing online greater than 3 hours lately, but I by no means discovered any fascinating article like yours. It is beautiful price enough for me. In my view, if all site owners and bloggers made just right content as you did, the net will probably be much more useful than ever before.

  5. I experimented with taking a look at your blog with my blackberry and the design does not seem to be right. Might wanna check it out on WAP as well as it seems most cell phone layouts are not really working with your website.

  6. It seems to me that this web site doesnt load on a Motorola Droid. Are other folks having the same problem? I enjoy this blog and dont want to have to skip it any time Im gone from my computer.

  7. Wanted to drop a remark and let you know your Feed is not functioning today. I tried adding it to my Yahoo reader account and got absolutely nothing.

  8. I was basically wanting to know if you ever considered switching the design of your website? Its well written; I enjoy what youve got to say. But maybe you can add a a bit more in the way of content so people could connect with it better. You have got an awful lot of wording for only having one or two pictures. Maybe you can space it out better?

  9. Have you considered including several social bookmarking links to these sites. At the very least for twitter.

  10. I have learn several excellent stuff here. Definitely value bookmarking for revisiting. I wonder how so much attempt you set to create one of these magnificent informative website.

  11. Jesus Christ there is plenty of spammy feedback on this website. Have you actually thought about trying to get rid of them or putting in a extension?

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