Do these logos look familiar?
Are you very confused about what they are for? I can help.
If you see these logos on a website it means that it supports ‘RSS’.
What can RSS do for me?
The main benefit of using RSS is that you will be notified when a webpage is updated.
Examples of this include, someone posting a new entry on our blog, someone updating content on our website, or even someone posting new topic on our Forum. Basically, RSS allows you to find out when new content is added to a website.
Normally, if you were interested in determining if a website has been updated with new content, you would have to visit that website over and over again. RSS solves this problem.
How does it work?
When you see those logos in image above, they are usually linked to a webpage or file. This URL is sometimes called a feed or RSS feed.
Examples of feeds or RSS feeds:
http://feeds.feedburner.com/IntersectionOnline/
http://rss.cnn.com/rss/cnn_tech.rss
http://www.loudthinking.com/index.rdf
The website that provides the RSS feeds will update their feeds every time they update content on their website.
Next, in order to use this RSS feed, you will need a RSS reader. What a RSS reader does is checks the feed several times per hour. Instead of you checking a website many times for updates, an RSS reader will check for you and notify you if there is any new content.
There are a number of RSS readers to choose from. Some of them are installed to your computer and some are run online.
I recommend FeedReader for beginners, because I found it easy to use and more importantly, free. You may also want to consider using Bloglines if you want to keep track of your RSS feeds online.
How do I set it up?
1. Every website that supports RSS, will have a logo that links to a URL (or feed)
2. Copy this URL and add it to your RSS reader.
3. Once you have done that you will be subscribed to that feed.
4. Your RSS Reader will notify you when new content is added to the webpage.
5. You can read the new content in your RSS reader, or access the content directly on the website. The choice is yours.
Review:
1. Websites that support RSS will provide you with a URL.
2. Add the URL to your RSS Reader.
3. Your RSS reader will notify you when new content is available.
Please post any questions you have regarding RSS feeds below.
Don’t forget to subscribe to our blog.
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12:14 am
Thanks for providing this article. I have been interested in the new “Web 2.0″ type thngs that have been going on. Until now, I didn’t really understand an RSS feed. I think it’s time to go get a reader and digg in.
11:48 am
Hi Partridge Family Man,
I am happy to hear my post helped you understand what RSS was about. If there was anything in my post that you found confusing or you believe could be further clarified, please do not hesitate to let me know. Thanks for the comment.
8:36 pm
Sorry, I Still don’t understand just what the RSS does. HELP!
9:40 am
Hi Kimverly,
Thank you for commenting. Was there something in particular or more specific I could help clarify? Thanks.
-Daniel
11:31 am
Exactly how do I add my rss field of a blogger blog to My MSN and My Yahoo?
9:16 am
Hi Karl,
Instructions on how to add a normal RSS feed to My MSN or My Yahoo, can be found at the following web addresses:
http://rss.msn.com/more.armx
http://my.yahoo.com/s/rss-faq.html#addrss
If you wish to subscribe to your FreshBooks’ system RSS feed. You will need to use a secure reader. I am not sure if Yahoo and MSN support both secure and password-protected feeds. However, FeedReader works great. Instructions on how to add your FreshBooks system RSS feed can be found at the following web address:
http://www.freshbooks.com/blog/2006/08/23/how-to-add-your-rss-feed/
Cheers,
-Daniel
2:27 pm
Hi, the RSS feed feature in your product seems neat, except, what would the feed tell you? As a customer, what would I use my feed in Freshbooks for?
I know all about RSS, I just don’t follow what the feed will tell me about my Freshbooks account (which I just set up and have not yet used).
Thanks,
Anita
3:35 pm
Hi Anita,
Good question. The RSS feed can actually be very useful, it provides information on all of your FreshBooks recent activity that you would see when you log into your account on your home tab.
Information such as whether someone paid an invoice, created a support ticket, or a created a new invoice is all streamed to your RSS reader without you having to log into your FreshBooks account.
Let me know if you have any other questions.
- Levi
1:05 pm
[...] You’ll find there are blogs that you’ll come back to again and again – the experts. This might go without saying, but why not cut out the middle man and add them to your feed reader? [...]
6:07 pm
I still don’t understand about RSS thingy and find it very confusing! Daniel, do you enjoy using it? Oh yes, I forgot to send you a video link re that annoying mini form! LOL LOL
It would be great if you add a video to train us how to add RSS!