RSS (Really Simple Syndication), also referred to as a “newsfeed”, is a standardized format used to publish items on a website that are frequently updated like blogs, audio, and video.
What does it look like?
Click here to see the RSS feed for my site. As you can see, an RSS feed is a list of information that was recently added to the website.
Why use an RSS reader?
Are there websites/blogs that you enjoy reading? In order to stay up-to-date on their new content, you would have to bookmark them all and remember to visit each one to see if there is any new content.
RSS readers make it easy to keep up with information you care about. Simply subscribe to the website’s RSS feed , and you will be notified of any updates made to the website. There are options to subscribe to a feed using your email, but that can clog up your inbox. Using a reader keeps the updates neatly organized by website, and it’s user-friendly.
Setting up a RSS reader
Google Reader is a popular choice. I prefer it because I have an iPhone app that synchs with it, so if I mark articles as read on one, it updates it on the other. There are several readers available (just do a search for “RSS feed reader”), but I will use Google Reader as my example.
If you don’t already have a Google account, you will need to make one. Then go to Google Reader to see what it looks like.
Subscribing to feeds
Now you need to subscribe to a few sites to test it out.
Go to a website you like and look for the RSS symbol. There are many different icons that represent RSS; look for the words “Subscribe” or “RSS”.
Click on the RSS icon, select “Subscribe”, and choose your reader of choice (Google reader in this example). Now you are subscribed to the website’s feed. You may also manually add a subscription to Google Reader if you have the URL for the feed.
Go back to the Google reader. The website should appear in your subscription list along with a few recently updated articles/posts. Now that you are subscribed, you will automatically receive updates from that website. Google reader looks a lot like an email program, making it a familiar, user-friendly format to view RSS feeds.
Save time with a RSS reader
The RSS reader is a great time-saver since the information comes to you. Each time you log in to the reader, you will see your subscriptions are updated to include the newest information. In minutes you can scan the headlines to see if anything interests you.
I found a great article with tips on decluttering your RSS reader. Read it here.
Did you know you can send your Twitter “favorites” to your RSS reader as a feed? Find out how here.
Now isn’t that easier than going from website to website looking for information?
