Learning the Basics of RSS
What is RSS?
You probably have seen this three-letter acronym in the course of
your internet surfing. RSS stands for Really Simple Syndication or
Rich Site Summary; syndicating means republishing an article that
comes from another source such as a website.
An RSS is a means of publicizing updates about websites. It may or
may not include a summary and photos of the latest posting. But
those that provide summaries (thus Rich Site Summary) allow users
to skim through the article so that they could decide later on if
they want to access the website source. The RSS feed usually
contains the title of the update
originating from the website. It is also usually the link to the
website source.
What are the benefits of RSS? RSS gives benefits to both readers
(users) and web publishers.
1. It gives you the latest updates.
Whether it is about the weather, new music, software upgrade, local
news, or a new posting from a rarely-updates site learn about the
latest as soon as it comes out.
2. It saves on surfing time.
Since an RSS feed provides a summary of the related article, it
saves the user's time by helping s/he decide on which items to
prioritize when reading or browsing the net.
3. It gives the power of subscription to the user.
Users are given a free-hand on which websites to subscribe in their
RSS aggregators which they can change at any time they decide
differently.
4. It lessens the clutter in your inbox.
Although your email address will be required to enjoy the services
of online RSS aggregators, RSS does not use your email address to
send the updates.
5. It is spam free.
Unlike email subscriptions, RSS does not make use of your email
address to send updates thus your privacy is kept safe from spam
mails.
6. Unsubscribing is hassle-free. Unlike email subscriptions where
the user is asked questions on why s/he is unsubscribing and then
the user would be asked to confirm unsubscribing, all you have to
do is to delete the RSS feed from your aggregator.
7. It can be used as an advertising or marketing tool.
Users who subscribe or syndicate product websites receive the
latest news on products and services without the website sending
spam mail. This is advantageous to both the web user and the
website owner since advertising becomes targeted; those who are
actually interested in their products are kept
posted.
What are the drawbacks of RSS? The disadvantages of RSS use are
brought about by its being a new technology and some
user-preference concerns.
1. Some users prefer receiving email updates over an RSS feed.
2. Graphics and photos do not appear in all RSS feeds. For
conciseness and ease of publication, RSS feeds do not display the
photos from the original site in announcing the update except for
some web-based aggregators
3. The identity of the source website can be confusing. Since RSS
feeds do not display the actual URL or name of the website, it can
sometimes get confusing on what feed a user is actually
reading.
The information about RSS presented here will do one of two things:
either it will reinforce what you know about RSS or it will teach
you something new. Both are good outcomes.
4. Publishers cannot determine how many users are subscribed to
their feed and the frequency of their visits. Moreover, they would
not know the reasons why users unsubscribe which could be important
in improving their advertising.
5. RSS feeds create higher traffic and demands on the server. Most
readers still prefer the whole update over a
brief summary of the entry, thus they still access the site.
6. Since it is a new technology, many sites still do not support
RSS.
How do I start using RSS? There are two things needed: an RSS feed
and an RSS aggregator or reader. The RSS feed comes from an
RSS-supported website. There are also websites that provide a list
of RSS feeds of different websites. An RSS aggregator is used to
read the RSS feed from the source website. It scans and collects
data on latest RSS feeds from the worldwide web.
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