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What is RSS? RSS stands for Really Simple Syndication. It is a format for syndicating news and the content of news-like sites, including major news sites like CNN amd BBC, as well as personal weblogs and webpages. RSS is based on XML (eXtensible Markup Language), the specialized Web page language that provides structured data to Internet-based applications. If you looked at an XML file with your browser, it would look like raw code, but when viewed through other programs, it provides the basis for a variety of information flows across the Web. Individual users can get headlines and summaries along with links to the places where the stories originate. News aggregators are very popular in the weblogging community, as they allow users to be able to keep up with their favorite weblogs by checking their RSS feeds and displaying the new items. Also, web sites can present updated data and a summary of what is new Syndication means you don't have to visit each site individually to see what's new -- you simply scan headlines or brief article summaries and click to read the full text. That’s the "really simple" part. And it’s "really simple" for publishers to make their content accessible this way too. Because RSS is a relatively new format, not all sites currently syndicate their content in this way as of yet. However, many notable mainstream news sites already do offer RSS, and every day the RSS offering grows. For example, mainstrem news sites such as the Christian Science Monitor, the BBC, and CNet's News.com use RSS to syndicate their news headlines and summaries. Other sites use RSS to alert customers of new products or upcoming events. Downloadable (Client-side) Readers Client-side readers are typically constructed as standalone programs or extensions to existing programs such as web browsers and are available for various operating systems. You must download and install them before you can use them. FeedReader is a lightweight open-source RSS reader that supports RSS and ATOM formats. It works under all versions of Windows. NewsMac is a versatile RSS reader for Mac OS X that lets you view news headlines and story descriptions before you have to even touch your web browser. You can easily add any news website or weblog to NewsMac that offers an RSS feed. Straw is a desktop RSS reader for the GNOME environment. Its aim is to be a faster, easier and more accessible way to read news and weblogs than the traditional web browser. Who uses RSS? RSS has gained in popularity especially with publishers and users. For publishers, RSS is a way to present structured information. For users, RSS is a tool for getting content where, when and how they want it without surfing those websites they usually visit. Webmasters using RSS are seeing increased traffic to their sites. With RSS, they now have the ability to gather and distribute news in a more timely fashion. How does RSS work? Instead of your searching the Internet for information, RSS brings it right to your computer, in the format that you desire, where, when and how you want it. You typically download and install an RSS newsreader or aggregator, then subscribe to your favorite websites from a directory list of thousands. The program collects news in the background at user configurable intervals and warns with a little popup in the system tray that there is a new message arrived. When you sign on, you will see the most recent updates for each channel where you subscribed. Once you are signed on, you will see headlines, a summary, and sometimes the entire story and a photo or two. You can even click on a link and delve further into the site and go to the original source. Many programs run inside Web browsers while others are standalone programs. How to install RSS reader? The Firefox Browser has an RSS feed already installed. If the website has an RSS feed, you will see an icon on th right-hand side of the URL. Just click on it and add it to your bookmarks folder. Step 1: Download RSS reader. The program is available at these websites: - Mozilla Firefox Browser (http://www.mozilla.com/firefox/) | - Mozilla Thunderbird (www.mozilla.com/thunderbird) | - RSS Reader (www.rssreader.com) | - RSS Bandit (www.rssbandit.org) | - Sharp Reader (www.sharpreader.net) | Step 2: RSS XML file created by publisher is called the feed, which is the container into which messages are sent. The XML file has a URL associated with it, just like any other Web page. Step 3: After the publisher adds entries to the XML file, the recipient will get messages with three parts: headlines, a summary and a message body. The headlines and the summary are added directly to the XML file, along with an entry date. The message body is an HTML file that is referenced in the entry. |
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