Commentary: RSS offers real simple syndication
Generally called Real Simple Syndication, RSS feeds broadcast- updated Web content to computers through an easy interface.
Just this fall, the Web site Search Engine Watch discussed the adoption rate of RSS feeds by Internet users. The article pointed out that as many as 27 percent of Internet users are actively using RSS feeds as part of their online browsing.
However, only 4 percent were aware that they were doing so.
The article credits the popularity of services like MyYahoo and MyMSN that allow users to aggregate feeds without even realizing that's what they are doing. These sites allow users to select the types of news they are interested in, for instance the Ravens, the stock market and the AL East. Then, headlines for those subjects appear on the person's MyYahoo or MyMSN home page.
The same functionality, which the 4 percent are using, can be used with a simple software program called an aggregator, such as programs called NewsGator, Feedreader and many others. These simple programs allow users to subscribe to a Web site or blog's RSS feeds. The process is as simple as hitting the RSS or XML buttons that are becoming more common on sites like CNN.com, NYTimes.com and locally at BaltimoreSun.com.
These aggregators look for the latest headlines published in RSS on the subscribed sites and deliver those headlines to the user's computer, much like a very simple Web browser.
RSS will continue to grow in popularity as browsers like Mozilla Firefox and Microsoft's upcoming Internet Explorer 7.0 incorporate RSS into their standard offerings. In fact, the current version of Firefox automatically aggregates headlines from the BBC International Web site.
To learn more about RSS, visit allrss.com, or NYTimes.com, which offers a simple explanation of exactly how to utilize this new, upcoming technology.
Larry Fiorino, the founder and chief executive of G.1440, a Baltimore-based e-solutions firm, writes this column, Web Sightings, every week for The Daily Record. The opinions expressed are Mr. Fiorino's and not necessarily those of The Daily Record. He can be reached at 410-843-3800.
Author: Larry Fiorino
Previous article: 14 September 2007
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