RSS: Web Feeds with An Attitude
The term “RSS” stands for Really Simple Syndication: you see it everywhere on the Web – look for that bright orange icon (we’ve modified it a little with the Aplus.net colors for our blog – to the right). RSS is a handy tool for subscribing to, or publishing, regularly updated content on blogs, Web sites and multimedia. You’ll also sometimes see “Atom” listed, an alternative and rival Web feed format.
If you aren’t already taking advantage of RSS/Atom feeds, you should be. They’re an incredibly efficient way to check for updates on your favorite sites and keep up with topics of interest to you. I use RSS to keep up with news about a neighborhood in New Orleans, my hobby of listening to acid jazz and similar music genres, and industry mentions of my company, Aplus.net. A friend of mine keeps track of leading trends in SEO.
You can “subscribe” to as many blogs or news sites you like, using an RSS reader or aggregator – and these can be desktop-based, Web-based or utilizing a mobile device. Typically, these Web feeds or channels will generate an RSS document or window, which in turns displays headlines, excerpts, metadata (sources, dates) and links to full-text articles. Several options are available, nearly all of it freeware. For desktop readers/aggregators, check out FeedDemon for Windows or NetNewsWire for Mac OS X. Three choices in Web-based software include: Bloglines, for reading syndicated feeds; Netvibes is a personalized start page organized into tabs, with built-in modules that include an RSS/Atom reader. And Google Reader is becoming more and more popular.
Equally important to utilizing RSS/Atom as a consumer or business owner is that Web feeds can also enhance your ability to publish content and drive more traffic to your site/blog – and extend your reach online. Most of the major blog platforms – TypePad, WordPress, Blogger – provide free access to RSS publishing tools. These include FeedBurner, a feed management provider to help you promote, deliver, and monetize your content on the Web, and FeedBlitz, which allows users to automatically send new post notification emails to readers via a blog’s RSS feed. Another good resource is Feedzilla, which offers free RSS news feeds and widgets for Web sites.
For more information on RSS, Atom, news feeds, aggregators and how to use them, check out What Is RSS?
I have being knowing a little about RSS so thanks for the links and sharing.