RSS FEEDS

RSS feed stands for ‘Really Simple Syndication, it is a simple XML format used to syndicate mostly news headlines. This are page that allows one to browse and read headlines form a web sit without going into the websites. This headline attracts the reader and can help them decide if they want to read the news or not. It can be also called News feeds, or web feeds. It is currently used for a number of applications, including news heading syndication, weblog content distribution and exchange of other timely information such as software release notes. RSS feeds are useful for regular Newsreaders who most of the times like to quickly read and keep up with multi news sources. Content such as Blogs, Podcaste, video, image distribution and online news can all be distributed by RSS. RSS feeds are also used by major Internet portals such as Google, AOL and Yahoo for their users to personalize and get information they want delivered to them an example is My Yahoo where ones Avatar can be created to socialise with other users through chatting (Messenger) or playing games (Xbox Live). Web browsers such as Firefox, Safari and Opera makes it easier to add or remove RSS feeds. They also have the built in capability to add this feeds by simply clicking on the icon that appears in the address bar of a browser, this bookmarks the site and connects the RSS feed on the page one is using.

There care some popular programmes developed for reading feeds such as NewzCrawler, FeedDemon, NetNewsWire, while some web-based services that create a personalized Web page for featuring headlines of all these feeds are; GoogleReader, Bloglines and NewsGator.

Some websites can create and publish RSS feeds, either for free or for a particular fee and can also be paid by advertisers. Creating a feed is easier than creating a Podcast. Computer and Internet are the basic things needed.
· Text coloured grey is required, however does not need to be modified and can be ignored.
· Text coloured red is an explanation of the feed and should not be included in an actual feed.
· Text coloured blue should be replaced with ones own data

The value of using an RSS reader is for one to be able to read content from dozens or more sites all in one place without having to visit all the sites. Some early users mainly online journalist tried to attract it customers into their sites by giving them, a brief headline and making them come into their website to read the main story and if possible respond to adverts and divert to other things of interest. This wasn’t seen as RSS feeds

The Google Reader Blog reported that the Guardian is the “first major newspaper in the world” to have full text RSS feeds. Because they have no intention of attracting a user into their site but are aiming to giving them they news they want in brief.

How is RSS feed useful to Media?
RSS feed has always been in existence in the good old news papers, example are they brief news that looks more like a head line, not more than 30 words or even less. Some news in the papers before the Internet, were just headline which explains a situation. Today, the Internet has made RSS more obvious, brief, short and simple, all one need to do is click and news from a particular site is periodically download and presented to them. Almost all media companies are based online today, they find it easier to reach to their customers and with programmes such as RSS feed can always reach a customer. RSS was formally known as RDF before changing to RSS.

Reference:

Columbia Journalism Review. (2009). [online] (last update 17 December 2009) at
http://www.cjr.org/feeds.php

Publishing. (2009). [online] (lat updated 29 October 2008) at
http://publishing2.com/2008/10/29/guardian-launches-full-rss-feeds-first-media-company-not-to-suppress-rss-adoption/

RSSboard (2006). [online] at
http://www.rssboard.org/rss-mime-type-application.txt