What is RSS?                                                                                       

What is RSS?
Why should I subscribe to a SOLS RSS feed?
How do I subscribe to RSS feeds?
Where can I find other feeds?
More articles on RSS

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What is RSS?

• RSS is a web site news feed.  (The acronym itself stands for Rich Site Summary or Really Simple Syndication).  Instead of visiting a web site to find out what is new on that site, this information is sent to you via an RSS reader or aggregator, which may be a separate piece of software, or may be built into your email or browser.
• At present, the "SOLS news" and "Library News" on the home page is all that is available in RSS at SOLS.

Why should I subscribe to a SOLS RSS Feed?

• The SOLS RSS Feed is a simple way to keep libraries up to date on events at SOLS, and events of general interest to public libraries.  Subscribing to our news feed means that you don't have to visit our web site to see what is new in the "news" section.  The RSS feed will alert you when new items are posted, and it will also archive older news items.
• The feed is just one of many ways we communicate information to our libraries.  We will also continue to offer electronic discussion lists (listservs) and an electronic newsletter, SIGNAL.

How do I subscribe to RSS feeds?

You have three options for subscribing to and reading RSS feeds - browsers, RSS readers, and email:

1. Using a browser: The easiest way to subscribe to a feed is to "bookmark" it in your browser.  This only works if you have a relatively new browser such as Internet Explorer 7.0, Firefox 2.0, or Netscape 8.1.2.  To find out your browser version, go to the "Help" drop down menu - then click on "About (Name of Browser)" e.g. "About Internet Explorer."
   
   On newer browsers, the RSS feed is previewed on screen when you click on a link to the feed.  You can often identify an RSS feed on a web site by one of these graphics, which link to the feed :     .  You can browse it on screen, and are given the option to subscribe to the feed as a bookmark.  To learn how to do this, read our step by step guide on reading RSS feeds in Internet Explorer 7.0.
   
   If you click on the feed and you see a lot of code or gibberish on screen, you probably have an older browser.  This means you'll need to use a separate RSS reader to read feeds.  Read on to learn about RSS readers...
   
    
2. Using an RSS reader:  If your browser can't support RSS, you'll need an RSS reader.  These are also know as RSS "aggregators". 
The easiest to use are web-based readers.   These are web sites where you register - once registered, you can subscribe to and read RSS feeds.  Portals such as Google, MyYahoo, and MyMsn also offer readers. 

Want to try a reader out?  Read our step-by-step guide for subscribing to Bloglines.

Where can I get other readers?  Try RSS Readers, which is a comprehensive list of readers.  You might also want to read Choosing an RSS reader - Chris Sherman, Executive Editor at Search Engine Watch, reviews different readers.

 
3. Using email to read RSS feeds: 
There aren't a lot of easy options for getting RSS feeds via email, but here are a few suggestions

• These new service seem to be the easiest. Try Feedmyinbox.com or SendMeRSS.com
  
• There are also alert services that can send you email alerts when an RSS feed is updated.  Have a look at http://allrss.com/rssreadersemail.html for a complete list of email alert services.  In some cases, you will still need an RSS reader in addition to the alert service.  
• Some browsers also have add-ons that will sent you alerts when RSS feeds are updated (e.g. Firefox - look up "Live Click" in their Add-ons section at https://addons.mozilla.org/)
• Some newer email programs, such as Outlook 2007, allow you to subscribe to RSS feeds and have them display in email.  Read more about how to do this at http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/outlook/CH100622171033.aspx. 

Where can I find other feeds?

• There are quite a few search engines that specialize in searching RSS feeds, and many feed readers offer a search service as well.  Feedster, and Search4rss are some of the more popular search engines, but for a comprehensive list of RSS/Blog search engines, try http://allrss.com/rsssearch.html
.

More articles on RSS

• RSS for Non-Techie Librarians.  From LLRX - Describes how feeds work and why librarians might want to read them.
• RSS for Non-Profits - From Techsoup.org.  A good overview of why RSS is important, and how to start reading RSS feeds.
• RSS in Plain English - A short video aimed at "people who could save time using RSS, but don’t know where to start.”
• RSS Readers - A comprehensive list of readers
• Choosing an RSS reader - Chris Sherman, Executive Editor at Search Engine Watch, reviews different readers.
• Making an RSS feed - Danny Sullivan, Editor-in-chief of Search Engine Watch, demonstrates how to create an RSS feed.
• RSS for Lib - A website/blog focusing on "innovative ways libraries use RSS".