News Feed Help

What is RSS?

"RSS" stands for Really Simple Syndication and sometimes Rich Site Summary. RSS is a standard for publishing regular updates to web-based content. Using this standard, Web publishers provide updates, such as the latest news headlines or weblog postings. You use RSS reader applications (or one of a growing number of online services) to collect and monitor your favorite sites in one place (RSS content from a publisher, viewed in one of these readers, is often called a "feed").

RSS makes reviewing a large number of sites in a very short time possible while permitting instant distribution of content updates to an audience.

How do I Get Started?

If you want to collect and browse feeds you have many choices, but there are two primary categories of feed reading applications: installable desktop programs and online services. There are many desktop applications for Windows and Mac OS system users, some are free and others require a small purchase price.

A few desktop RSS Readers* include:

• BottomFeeder (Windows, Mac OS and others, FREE)
• NetNewsWire Lite (Macintosh, Free)
• NewsMonster (Windows & Mac OS, Free)
• NewsGator - Read Directly from Microsoft Outlook ($19.95/yr)
• FeedDemon (Windows, $29.95)

Many more can be found online by searching Google for "rss+reader"

If you prefer to use an online service to track and manage your feeds, you have the advantage of being able to access your feed updates anywhere you use a web browser (and in some cases, on mobile devices). Also, any upgrades or new features are added automatically. The trade-off comes in different features and slightly slower performance versus desktop systems. NewsGator, Bloglines, and new RSS content capabilities in My Yahoo! are probably the three best-known examples of web-based feed reading services.

Once you have feed reading software, look for the "feed available" icon ( ) on a web site. It indicates a feed of content is available. In most cases simply click the icon and you'll be presented with options for adding the site's feed to your feed reader.

*Links are provided for informational purposes only and are not an endorsement of any company, service or software