RSS: What is it? Why bother?
Wednesday, May 11, 2005
CCNA INFORMATION SYSTEMS COORDINATOR
RSS (really simple syndication) is still a mystery to many, but to others, it’s the only way they read the news. Or at least, it is one of the more important methods of finding out what news is new.
Who’s on the wagon?
In the past few weeks, many Canadian media outlets have just started to offer so-called RSS feeds as part of their regular news delivery. CBC and The Globe and Mail each offer several feeds, each based on a different topic, such as national news, sports, health or business news. Some members of the Canadian Community Newspapers Association have also added feeds, including the Mississauga News, which has feed for each of its classified sections. Users can subscribe, for example, to the feed for used cars, and will be notified immediately of any new classified that may be of interest to them.
What exactly is an RSS feed?
An RSS feed is just a list of headlines and links, often with a short story description, and which are provided in a machine-readable list. Machine-readable sounds complicated, but all it really means is that the list conforms to simple standard, and is stripped of all visual design elements since only a machine will be reading it. Other programs, called news aggregators, present the headlines in a readable fashion.
At this time, RSS feeds do not replace websites. Instead, the reader clicks on the headline that interests them, and they are directed to the on-line version of that story. Newspapers still get to choose what ads to display and how the page is laid out, since the reader visits the newspaper’s website to read the story.
Why bother?
So if the news gets read the exact same way, why bother with RSS at all?
By signing up for RSS feeds, readers know immediately when and what new stories are available from a variety of hand-selected news sources. Like a message indicator on your cellphone, or the flag on a mailbox, RSS feeds tell you that new stories are available without making you go to the source and check repeatedly.
For smaller newspapers, this means readers can avoid the frustration of returning to a site that never seems to change, while small publications can still work on a weekly, or sporadic, publication schedule.
Custom news wire
RSS is just the modern incarnation of a ticker tape or teletype machine, autodelivering the news as it becomes available, but like so many other technologies today, RSS caters to the individual reader, since users can customize their feeds, and have them delivered directly to their personal computer or hand-held device. Though it has yet to prove its staying power, RSS is spreading like wild fire, and even small newspapers can take advantage of this newest delivery method.
In the next issue of The Publisher: a step-by-step guide to adding RSS to your newspaper’s website. It’s easier, and cheaper, than you think.
A sample RSS feed for The Publisher
RSS stands for really simple syndication. Below is an example of what an RSS feed for The Publisher might look like. Keep in mind that the text below is meant to be read by a computer program, which would then display the list of headlines in a more user-friendly manner. Don’t panic: most people never write this kind of code, either. There are many cheap or free programs out there what will create these feeds for you. Then you simply put a link to your feed on your website, and you’re done!
<rss version=”2.0”>
<channel>
<title>The Publisher</title>
<link>http://www.communitynews.ca/publisher/publisher.asp</link>
<description>The trade newspaper for the community newspaper industry in Canada. A publication of the Canadian Community Newspapers Association.</description>
<item>
<title>Key players of our industry meet</title>
<description>Les Hebdos du Quebec hosted a meeting in Toronto, that saw 22 industry leaders meet to establish mutual goals.</description>
<link>http://www.communitynews.com/news/details.asp? contentID=1760</link>
<author>Nancy Leggett-Bachand</author>
<pubDate>Wed, 11 May 2005 15:18 EDT</pubDate>
</item>
<item>
<title>RSS: What is it? Why bother?</title>
<description>RSS is still a mystery to many, but for others it’s the only way they read the news. Small publications should learn what RSS is, and how to use it to reach more readers.</description>
<link>http://www.communitynews.com/news/details.asp? contentID=1761</link>
<author>Tiffany Conroy</author>
<pubDate>Wed, 11 May 2005 15:18 EDT</pubDate>
</item>
</channel>
</rss>
Ways to use RSS
CBC News – For every province and for selected topics, like international or health news, CBC has RSS feeds. More information is available online at www.cbc.ca/rss The web site also has a good primer on RSS feeds and some recommendations about news aggregating programs.
Get stock quotes – Use RSS to keep up to date with your investments. Subscribe to feeds that will display whatever financial data you need.
Weather reports – Use an automatically updated service to keep track of weather forecasts in your area.
Get the news from multiple sources – By subscribing to different feeds from mainstream news sources, you can see the different angles they take on stories. Use this for international news or for following your favourite sports team.
Software updates – Stay current with updates to software by subscribing to feeds that will notify you when there is a new version or critical update for programs that you use.
Shop – Use RSS to track items on E-bay or for classified browsing, such as the RSS feeds used by the Mississauga News. RSSbargain.com lets you specify products that you are interested in.
Blogs – Many people are using personal weblogs (blogs) as a news source. Most of these digests, which often feature links and commentary, are equipped with RSS feeds built into them so that it's easy to keep up to date with new posts.
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