What is RSS?
RSS (Really Simple Syndication) is a family of web feed formats
used to publish frequently updated works—such as blog entries,
news headlines, audio, and video—in a standardized format.
An RSS document (which is called a "feed", "web feed", or "channel") includes full
or summarized text, plus metadata such as publishing dates and authorship.
RSS feeds benefit publishers by letting them syndicate content automatically. A
standardized XML file format allows the information to be published once and
viewed by many different programs. They benefit readers who want to subscribe to
timely updates from favorite websites or to aggregate feeds from many sites into one place.
How do I use RSS?
RSS feeds can be read using software called an "RSS reader", "feed reader", or "aggregator", which
can be web-based, desktop-based, or mobile-device-based. The user subscribes to a feed by
entering into the reader the feed's URI or by clicking a feed icon in a web browser that
initiates the subscription process. The RSS reader checks the user's subscribed feeds regularly
for new work, downloads any updates that it finds, and provides a user interface to monitor
and read the feeds. RSS allows users to avoid manually inspecting all of the websites they
are interested in, and instead subscribe to websites such that all new content is pushed onto
their browsers when it becomes available.
