RSS feeds

If you regularly visit a lot of websites to get the latest news, reviews and updates you could make your life a lot easier by subscribing to RSS feeds. RSS stands for Really Simple Syndication and is a very easy way for news headlines, blog posts and new content from a large number of sources to be distributed to a lot of people.

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Using RSS feeds

By subscribing to an RSS feed you can effectively bring the latest updates from all your favourite websites together into one place. With the help of an RSS feed reader you can create your own up-to-the-minute online magazine filled with content that suits your interests and needs.

Get an RSS feed reader

RSS feed readers, also known as content aggregators; can be add-on programs for browsers or online portals that gather content from websites to which you’ve subscribed. Whenever you’re online they will check for updates to your subscribed feeds and present them as a list of headlines and summaries. Simply click on a summary to be taken to the full story online. To keep things simple a number of search options mean the feed need only display the most recent or unseen updates.

If you use a program to read your feeds then you can also set it to display pop-up desktop alerts when any new content becomes available.

Internet Explorer 7 and Opera both incorporate their own RSS readers while Firefox also uses popular online RSS feed readers such as Bloglines, My Yahoo and Google Reader.

How do I subscribe?

Internet Explorer 7 incorporates an RSS feed reader. An RSS icon on the navigation bar turns orange whenever you visit a site that has an RSS feed available. Simply click on the icon to preview the feed. If you want to subscribe click on Subscribe to this feed, then confirm your subscription. This feed will now be available in the Feeds section of IE7’s Favorites Center.

If you are using a different browser or an additional program look out for an orange icon or a button saying either RSS or XML when you visit websites. This indicates that an RSS feed is available. Click on the RSS icon on the website to preview the feed then follow the instructions to subscribe.

In the case of online RSS feeds simply log into your account and click on a button to Add or Search for an RSS feed. When you have the web address for a feed simply type it into the reader and click on Add to save it to your favourites list.

Can’t read an RSS feed?

RSS feeds are created using a code called XML. If you’re using Internet Explorer 6 or an older browser to surf the web then you might not be able to access RSS feeds properly. Instead you’ll probably only see the gobbledegook of the underlying code. If this happens you should first update your browser to the latest version, such as Internet Explorer 7.

If you have an up-to-date browser and still can’t see the RSS feeds you may need to change the following setting:

1. To ensure XML feeds can be read in Internet Explorer 7 go to Tools then select Internet Options.
2. When the Internet Options window is open go to the Content tab. At the bottom of the window is the Feeds section click on Settings.
3. The Feeds Settings window lets you adjust your RSS settings, such as how frequently your feeds are updated. To ensure you can read XML feeds in the browser check the box marked Turn on Feed Reading View.
4. Click OK to confirm changes then click OK again to exit Internet Options before restarting Internet Explorer 7.
5. Now when you check your RSS feeds they’ll appear clearly.
   
   

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