December 3rd, 2008How To Use RSS – Beginners Guide
RSS (Really Simple Syndication) is a new way to surf the web, which puts the user in the center rather than the sites he surfs. It increases the efficiency of using the internet and multiple the number of sites read and with less time spent. Read this short guide to familiarize yourself with this tool and get started easily.
What is RSS
Put simply, RSS means that a website has the ability to update its readers with new content it publishes. It does so by using a certain code structure that allows a user-side program (called “RSS reader”) to read its content. This new content is the site’s feed.
Why is it good
With RSS, there is no need to look for new content in your favorite websites. Instead, this content comes to you. So now, Instead of going to ten different sites just to find out that half of them have not changed, you only need to open your RSS reader and see the new content from the half that have.
RSS helps coping with today’s information overload by enabling users to scan through hundreds of updates from hundreds of sites in minutes. I, for example, scanned through 7,873 updates in 467 sites just in the past 30 days. It dramatically improves your web reading efficiency by preventing the need to go through different sites, waiting for them to load, watching advertisements, rereading things already read and so on.
How to use it
Here is how to get started:
- Get an RSS reader. I recommend Google Reader, but you can use any one of dozens of RSS readers available, such as these: www.blogs.com, www.newsgator.com, www.netvibes.com, www.bloglines.com. Some web browsers (like Firefox and Maxthon) as well as Outlook 2007 has it built in.
- Subscribe to feeds. This sign
(or alike) indicates that the site is RSS compatible. Click it to be directed to that site’s feed. Usually you will only need to click a button to automatically add the site to your reader. Sometimes, you’ll need to subscribe manually by copying the feed address from the address bar and pasting it into your RSS reader. - Read your feeds. Whenever you feel like, open your RSS reader to read new content form your favorite websites. If you didn’t read them for a period of time – it’ll just be waiting there for you, so that nothing is missed.
 |
Enjoyed this article? Subscribe to email updates, RSS, or  twitter to receive more productivity, Internet, and social media tools and best practices! you can also learn what is RSS if you don’t know it.
|
Related posts:
