What is RSS? A Quick Tip to Keep Up with Information which is important to you

RSS (which has a few variations in meaning but commonly accepted as “Really Simple Syndication”) is a way of bringing information from various different frequently updated websites such as blogs, news headlines, audio and video into a standard format which can be read in a “News Reader” (also known as RSS Reader, News Aggregator or Feed reader) program or application. Similar to the idea of an email inbox, a News Reader places excerpts from sources you select into one common location.

If you follow a few websites regularly, such as friends’ blogs, specific newspapers, certain people on twitter, Youtube channels, eBay product searches or anywhere you see an icon similar to the one on the right, you can stop visiting those sites regularly, and bring the information to you. The information is only bought to your “inbox” when the main website is updated, so you can save time visiting websites to check if they have been updated.

There are many different free News Reader software available, you may already have one but not use it. At least since Microsoft Outlook 2002, and the same generation of Microsoft’s Outlook Express have had News Reader’s built in. Here are some instructions from Microsoft on how to set Microsoft Outlook and Microsoft Outlook Express Newsreader up.

Some of the other popular free online Feed Readers are Google Reader at http://www.google.com/reader/ and Bloglines at http://www.bloglines.com

There are many more free RSS reading software if you would like to look for yourself at Lifehacker Australia’s Best RSS Newsreaders roundup at http://www.lifehacker.com.au/2008/05/best_rss_newsreaders-2/

Once you have chosen your RSS Reader, and installed it to your computer or registered for its online service, you can start adding subscriptions to information from the internet. When you see the RSS icon similar to the above or some wording which says “Subscribe to RSS feed” or similar, click on the icon and follow the instructions. The website current feed will be added to your feed reader, and all future updates, so make sure to check your Feed Reader regularly.

Internet: Useful Tips: RSS In Plain English

If you would like some further information on using RSS Readers, then please drop a comment below, or contact Cairns Computer Help directly.

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