Malina Amidovski / Michael Christensen / Chukwuebuka Kade
RSS – (Rich or Really Simple Syndication) is a method to receive information from the internet in a chosen and controlled way by the user.
It is a software program and/or a web browser plugin that allows the user to automatically receive information from different websites, blogs, news groups, podcast, etc…. It does this by allowing users to create a personalized “RSS Feed”.
This feed would be a list of websites, blogs, podcast that the user frequents coupled with what type of information the user would like to acquire. The RSS program/plugin will automatically scan for updated information from the sites they choose for the information that they specified. It then only sends the requested information thus allowing the user to better control the information they receive, saving time and money.
RSS was originally created for Netscape by Dan Libby, Ramanathan V. Guha, and Eckart Walther as a way to streamline news/information gathering. It was started approximately March 15, 1999. There is some debate over the ownership of RSS itself, and that issue is still largely outstanding. With no one group able to claim ownership of RSS.(Target, 2018)
RSS was a dying format in the early 2000’s and was almost completely removed from most web browsers and sites by 2013. In the late 2010’s RSS started to see a bit of a resurgence and a mild bump in usage. With some claiming that the alternatives for RSS are not robust enough. (Hölzle, 2013) Although RSS made a bit of a come back it is far from its glory days and sees mild to moderate use in todays online landscape. (Barret, 2018)
You can simply find an RSS from your web browser if you can’t find this button, search for a link labeled "RSS Feed" or something similar. Once you open the feed page in your browser, click "Follow this feed" or an equivalent option. Then, hit the "Follow" or "Add" button to subscribe. Once subscribed, your RSS reader will automatically update with new content from the website. This allows you to stay informed without manually checking for updates. You can use an RSS reader like Feedly, Inoreader, or a browser extension to organize and read your feeds in one place. Some RSS readers also let you receive notifications or email alerts for new posts. There is a free version called Feedly that lets you follow up to 100 feeds and store them in up to three folders (Krasnoff, 2024) Most individuals use Feedly to build their RSS.
RSS feeds are highly beneficial because they allow you to effortlessly subscribe to your favorite newsletters, blogs, and news sources. With an RSS reader, you can conveniently access updates in one place without having to visit multiple websites manually. This makes it easier to stay informed about the latest news, articles, or podcast episodes in real time. “Subscribing to feeds is super-easy, too: the links for RSS feeds are invisibly embedded in web-pages” (Doctorow, 2024). Subscribing to your favourite feeds are just one simple button away. It is super simple, just go to that embedded web page and click the news letter you want to subscribe to, it is that simple! Additionally, RSS feeds help reduce clutter in your inbox by eliminating the need for email subscriptions while ensuring you never miss important updates from your preferred sources.
1. Feedly - How It Works: Feedly is a popular RSS feed aggregator that allows users to subscribe to news websites, blogs, and other online content sources. It collects updates from multiple sources and presents them in a single, easy-to-read interface. Users can categorize their feeds, save articles for later reading, and even integrate Feedly with other apps like Evernote or Pocket.
2. Inoreader - Inoreader functions similarly to Feedly but with more advanced filtering and automation features. Users can subscribe to RSS feeds, organize them into folders, and receive notifications when specific keywords appear in new articles. Inoreader also allows for offline reading and supports integration with third-party tools like Zapier for workflow automation.
Both tools help users streamline their content consumption by automatically pulling updates from multiple sources, eliminating the need to visit each website individually.
Sinclair Target., (2018), "The Rise and Demise of RSS", twobithistory.org, (https://twobithistory.org/2018/12/18/rss.html)
Urs Hölzle., (2013), "A second spring of cleaning", Google, https://blog.google/inside-google/company-announcements/a-second-spring-of-cleaning/
Brian Barret., (2018), "It's Time for an RSS Revival", Wired, https://www.wired.com/story/rss-readers-feedly-inoreader-old-reader/
Barbara Krasnoff., (2024), "The top five RSS readers for keeping up with your news feeds", The Verge, https://www.theverge.com/24036427/rss-feed-reader-best
Cory Doctorow., (2024), "You should be using an RSS reader", Medium, https://doctorow.medium.com/you-should-be-using-an-rss-reader-76aed31151f9
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