What is RSS and how do I use it?
RSS is an easy way to keep track of the latest listings from your favourite websites in one convenient place.
RSS stands for Really Simple Syndication and allows you to see the latest listings and have the latest news and features delivered directly to you, rather than clicking from site to site.
How do I start using RSS feeds?
To start using RSS you need an RSS Reader. This is a piece of software that checks RSS feeds and lets you read any new articles that have been added to them. There are many different versions, some of which are accessed using a browser, and some of which are downloadable applications. Browser-based news readers let you catch up with your RSS feed subscriptions from any computer, whereas downloadable applications let you store them on your main computer, in the same way that you either download your e-mail using Outlook, or keep it on a web-based service like Hotmail.
Once you have chosen a news reader, all you have to do is to decide what content you want to receive in your news reader, by finding and subscribing to the relevant RSS feeds.
If you click on the button you can subscribe to the feed in various ways, including by dragging the URL of the RSS feed into your news reader or by cutting and pasting the same URL into a new feed in your news reader. Most sites that offer RSS feeds use a similar orange RSS button, but some may just have a normal web link to the feed.
Some browsers, including Firefox, Opera and Safari, automatically check for RSS feeds for you when you visit a website, and display an icon when they find one. This can make subscribing to RSS feeds much easier. For more details on these, please check their websites.
How do I get a news reader?
There are several readers available, many of which are free. The BBC suggests a number of News Readers, such as :
Windows Readers
- Newz Crawler
- FeedDemon
- Awasu (Free)
Web-based Readers
- Google Reader (Free)
- Bloglines (Free)
- Yahoo! News (Free)
Browser
How do I get News from this site?
You can subscribe to RSS feeds one of the following :
- Dragging the orange RSS button -
- into your RSS Reader - Dragging the URL of the RSS feed into your RSS Reader
- Cutting and pasting the URL of the RSS feed into your RSS Reader
- If you use an online RSS Reader such as Firefox or Bloglines, clicking on the appropriate button to subscribe to the RSS feed.
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