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Introduction to RSS

Monday, November 17, 2008

by Travis LaFleur

RSS stands for Really Simple Syndication. It provides an easy way to get updates from your favorite sites on your terms and at your schedule. 

You’ve probably seen those links that promise to “Send me an email when there is an update to this web page (or when this web page changes).”  This feature is handy, but it also comes with drawbacks. Unless you are vigilantly checking your email, your in-box can become quite cluttered and unruly—filled to the brim with email updates—which you will have to sort through manually (a time consuming proposition) or, perhaps more common, simply just delete them. 

RSS, however, solves many of these problems. RSS is a bit like the 21st Century version of those email links.  RSS saves you time by automatically categorizing updates you receive and presenting them in a way that’s relevant to you—all while saving your inbox from unnecessary clutter. 

To give you a better idea of how RSS works, here’s a RSS video from a group called Common Craft (one of our favorite sites) that explains RSS in plain English:

You can subscribe to RSS feeds using web-based software (like Google Reader), a standalone desktop programs (such as FeedDemon), or just your browser. If you want to give RSS a try without a spending a lot of time up front, your best bet is to use your browser.