Nearly every blog and many websites employ an RSS feed. RSS stands for Really Simple Syndication. An RSS feed is a standardized database file that contains information about the articles on a website, but you don't really need to know that. An RSS reader is an application that will interpret the information in an RSS feed. An RSS reader will collect the information from several RSS feeds allowing you to track several different blogs and websites in one place and mark which stories have been read.
I prefer a web-based RSS reader from Google called Reader. I like a web-based reader because it allows me to read from different computers while maintaining a common read list. I prefer Reader from Google because it is free and works pretty well.
If you are using Firefox skip the following paragraph.
My setup begins with the Firefox Web Browser. Firefox is the leading competitor to Internet Explorer in the browser market. Firefox is available for free at http://www.firefox.com. Although Internet Explorer 7 is a huge improvement over Internet Explorer 6 I still prefer Firefox.
Google Reader is located at http://www.google.com/reader. If you already have a google account you can sign in. If you do not have a google account click the "Create an account" button and follow the instructions. Google reader will have a few welcome screens. I don't remember what they are, but it's not important.
This is where Firefox really makes it easy. To subscribe to the RSS feed of your chosen blog simply go to that blog. You should see a little orange box on the right side of the address bar. When you click on that box Firefox will display a preview of that feed along with an option to subscribe to the feed with the program of your choice. Use the drop down box on the line that says "Subscribe to this feed using" to select Google. Then put a check in the box next to "Always use Google to subscribe to feeds." Then click on the "Subscribe Now" button. Google will present you with a page asking whether you want to add the feed to your Google home page or to Google Reader. Click on the Google Reader button and you'll be brought back to Google Reader now subscribed to the RSS feed of the blog. Simply go to all of the blogs that you regularly check and click on the orange RSS icon on the right side of the address bar.
If you really don't want to use Firefox, you can still use Google Reader. It's just a bit more complicated. Internet Explorer will similarly indicate that an RSS feed is available by displaying an icon in the address bar. It is then up to you to locate on the page the link to the RSS feed. It will usually be indicated by the word feed or by an RSS logo or sometimes by an ATOM logo. Simply right click on the link and select copy link location. Then go back to Google Reader and select the "Add Subscription" link on the left side. Then right click and paste the feed link into the text box that appears. Repeat for every feed to which you wish to subscribe.
RSS feeds aren't only found on blogs. Many sites will use an RSS feed to update changes to the site or for news stories etc. For example http://www.lds.org uses an RSS feed. So does ESPN and most news sites. If there is any site that you frequently visit simply check the right end of the address bar to see if they have an RSS feed.
Once you have subscribed to the feeds from the blogs you regularly visit, Google Reader becomes your one stop to see if there are updates on any of them. It's much nicer to go to one place and get all of the new posts than to go to several different websites with only one or two of them having fresh content.
If any part of this could be clearer or needs further explanation please let me know and I will update it. Thank you.
I prefer a web-based RSS reader from Google called Reader. I like a web-based reader because it allows me to read from different computers while maintaining a common read list. I prefer Reader from Google because it is free and works pretty well.
If you are using Firefox skip the following paragraph.
My setup begins with the Firefox Web Browser. Firefox is the leading competitor to Internet Explorer in the browser market. Firefox is available for free at http://www.firefox.com. Although Internet Explorer 7 is a huge improvement over Internet Explorer 6 I still prefer Firefox.
Google Reader is located at http://www.google.com/reader. If you already have a google account you can sign in. If you do not have a google account click the "Create an account" button and follow the instructions. Google reader will have a few welcome screens. I don't remember what they are, but it's not important.
This is where Firefox really makes it easy. To subscribe to the RSS feed of your chosen blog simply go to that blog. You should see a little orange box on the right side of the address bar. When you click on that box Firefox will display a preview of that feed along with an option to subscribe to the feed with the program of your choice. Use the drop down box on the line that says "Subscribe to this feed using" to select Google. Then put a check in the box next to "Always use Google to subscribe to feeds." Then click on the "Subscribe Now" button. Google will present you with a page asking whether you want to add the feed to your Google home page or to Google Reader. Click on the Google Reader button and you'll be brought back to Google Reader now subscribed to the RSS feed of the blog. Simply go to all of the blogs that you regularly check and click on the orange RSS icon on the right side of the address bar.
If you really don't want to use Firefox, you can still use Google Reader. It's just a bit more complicated. Internet Explorer will similarly indicate that an RSS feed is available by displaying an icon in the address bar. It is then up to you to locate on the page the link to the RSS feed. It will usually be indicated by the word feed or by an RSS logo or sometimes by an ATOM logo. Simply right click on the link and select copy link location. Then go back to Google Reader and select the "Add Subscription" link on the left side. Then right click and paste the feed link into the text box that appears. Repeat for every feed to which you wish to subscribe.
RSS feeds aren't only found on blogs. Many sites will use an RSS feed to update changes to the site or for news stories etc. For example http://www.lds.org uses an RSS feed. So does ESPN and most news sites. If there is any site that you frequently visit simply check the right end of the address bar to see if they have an RSS feed.
Once you have subscribed to the feeds from the blogs you regularly visit, Google Reader becomes your one stop to see if there are updates on any of them. It's much nicer to go to one place and get all of the new posts than to go to several different websites with only one or two of them having fresh content.
If any part of this could be clearer or needs further explanation please let me know and I will update it. Thank you.
I was just asking Cam about RSS feeds and he was telling me he didn't know much about them. Then I click on your blog and there is is. Thanks!
ReplyDeleteYou're welcome. If you decide to try Reader out, I'd appreciate knowing if any part of my guide is confusing.
ReplyDelete