Can someone explain RSS to me?

***Cosmonautical*** · 05-13-2010, 01:27 AM

I need something to aggregate webcomics for me, looking them up individually eats up a huge chunk of my free time. I'm assuming that's what RSS is for without having looked up much about it and strangely never seen any explanations for it beside going out of my way, and I'm incredibly forgetful when I don't make use of knowledge.

It's been a while since I looked up a site about it, and I thought to myself "HEY THIS IS WAT WEB FORUMS IS FOR" so I'm making a topic about it.

So how does this crap work?

Kargath · 05-13-2010, 07:05 AM

What Is RSS? RSS Explained - www.WhatIsRSS.com

RSS is merely one particular format of syndicated feeds - a technology for describing a list of content. They're used for webcomics, blogs, and they're also what powers podcasts.

To use a syndication feed, you need a feed reader. Many of these are available for free.
Firefox and IE8 have the ability to read RSS feeds natively. Firefox can add them straight into the browser as "Live Bookmarks", or you can choose to add it to a specified reader.
A better way is to use a feed aggregator, a feed reader that can pull multiple feeds at once and display them mixed-in or as separate simultaneous panels.

I personally use the web-based aggregator My Yahoo! for all my RSS feeds. This has the advantage of letting me view them anywhere.

Usually you either automatically add feeds (like Firefox can help you with) or copy the link.
If a page doesn't have an obvious syndication link, look in your address bar - Us the Robots has no link on its page, but you can subscribe using the orange RSS icon in your browser.

***Ace Mercury*** · 05-13-2010, 07:47 AM

I use Google Reader, myself. If you already have a Google account, you already have an Reader account.

Anyways, whenever you see a wibsite and you want to keep track of it, click on the RSS icon and add the URL. New items are now like e-mails sent to your RSS reader. New items accumulate in your items box until you view them. You don't have to keep visiting the original site now; whenever the original site updates, it should update its RSS feed, which should send a message to your RSS reader.

Most of the time, your RSS reader will have the full content that was updated (e.g. the comic strip). Like, pop open this URL: xkcd.com. Each new comic is a new entry. Lots of sites, though, just tell you that they've updated, and then feed you a link to the original site (so you can see their adverts and stuff).

I think the e-mail analogy is best. It's just like an old-school e-mailing list, except it's just for sites you subscribe to. Get your feet wet with a few sites, then start exploring stuff like customized RSS feeds and filtering if'n you be interested, matey.

Kargath · 05-13-2010, 07:56 AM

I'd disagree with Ace on the email characterisation. Unlike an email distribution list, old content is often pruned off an RSS file, so you do need to check your aggregator reasonably regularly. (I seem to be fine with once a week or so with My Yahoo!).

***Ace Mercury*** · 05-13-2010, 08:46 AM

Google backs everything up for all eternity. If I wanted, I can check RSS feed contents from the land before time; I just hit "View All Items", and it's like the Matrix when Neo says he needs guns, lots of guns.

Any stand-alone RSS reader worth its salt will also store a local copy of stuff you haven't read. Just have it running in the background, pulling feeds.

05-13-2010, 01:27 AM	#1
*Cosmonautical* Join Date: Aug 2002 Location: I rub my tilde all over your asterisk Gender: Posts: 28,100 Thanks: 2,151 Thanked 5,338 Times in 2,433 Posts	Can someone explain RSS to me? I need something to aggregate webcomics for me, looking them up individually eats up a huge chunk of my free time. I'm assuming that's what RSS is for without having looked up much about it and strangely never seen any explanations for it beside going out of my way, and I'm incredibly forgetful when I don't make use of knowledge. It's been a while since I looked up a site about it, and I thought to myself "HEY THIS IS WAT WEB FORUMS IS FOR" so I'm making a topic about it. So how does this crap work?

05-13-2010, 07:47 AM	#3
*Ace Mercury* Marshmallow Knight ☆ Supermod Join Date: Jun 2000 Location: Southern Ontario Gender: Posts: 23,274 Thanks: 568 Thanked 3,297 Times in 1,582 Posts Blog Entries: 1	I don't know why I started talking pirate at the end of my post. I use Google Reader, myself. If you already have a Google account, you already have an Reader account. Anyways, whenever you see a wibsite and you want to keep track of it, click on the RSS icon and add the URL. New items are now like e-mails sent to your RSS reader. New items accumulate in your items box until you view them. You don't have to keep visiting the original site now; whenever the original site updates, it should update its RSS feed, which should send a message to your RSS reader. Most of the time, your RSS reader will have the full content that was updated (e.g. the comic strip). Like, pop open this URL: xkcd.com. Each new comic is a new entry. Lots of sites, though, just tell you that they've updated, and then feed you a link to the original site (so you can see their adverts and stuff). I think the e-mail analogy is best. It's just like an old-school e-mailing list, except it's just for sites you subscribe to. Get your feet wet with a few sites, then start exploring stuff like customized RSS feeds and filtering if'n you be interested, matey. Last edited by Ace Mercury; 05-13-2010 at 08:10 AM.

05-13-2010, 07:05 AM	#2
Kargath et in Arcadia ego Join Date: Jul 2001 Gender: Posts: 8,334 Thanks: 1,226 Thanked 780 Times in 488 Posts	What Is RSS? RSS Explained - www.WhatIsRSS.com RSS is merely one particular format of syndicated feeds - a technology for describing a list of content. They're used for webcomics, blogs, and they're also what powers podcasts. To use a syndication feed, you need a feed reader. Many of these are available for free. Firefox and IE8 have the ability to read RSS feeds natively. Firefox can add them straight into the browser as "Live Bookmarks", or you can choose to add it to a specified reader. A better way is to use a feed aggregator, a feed reader that can pull multiple feeds at once and display them mixed-in or as separate simultaneous panels. I personally use the web-based aggregator My Yahoo! for all my RSS feeds. This has the advantage of letting me view them anywhere. Usually you either automatically add feeds (like Firefox can help you with) or copy the link. If a page doesn't have an obvious syndication link, look in your address bar - Us the Robots has no link on its page, but you can subscribe using the orange RSS icon in your browser.

05-13-2010, 07:56 AM	#4
Kargath et in Arcadia ego Join Date: Jul 2001 Gender: Posts: 8,334 Thanks: 1,226 Thanked 780 Times in 488 Posts	I'd disagree with Ace on the email characterisation. Unlike an email distribution list, old content is often pruned off an RSS file, so you do need to check your aggregator reasonably regularly. (I seem to be fine with once a week or so with My Yahoo!).

05-13-2010, 08:46 AM	#5
*Ace Mercury* Marshmallow Knight ☆ Supermod Join Date: Jun 2000 Location: Southern Ontario Gender: Posts: 23,274 Thanks: 568 Thanked 3,297 Times in 1,582 Posts Blog Entries: 1	Google backs everything up for all eternity. If I wanted, I can check RSS feed contents from the land before time; I just hit "View All Items", and it's like the Matrix when Neo says he needs guns, lots of guns. Any stand-alone RSS reader worth its salt will also store a local copy of stuff you haven't read. Just have it running in the background, pulling feeds.