Northwest Florida State College
Northwest Florida State College Home PageLTech Home PageSubscribe to the LTech RSS Feed
D2L | Distance Learning | Student Resources | Faculty Resources | College Websites | Home | Florida Distance Learning Consortium   
Collage of students reading and computing

RSS Feeds                                                  


RSS feeds automatically send updated information straight to your desktop.  Sites offering RSS feeds can be identified by a small button that says either RSS or XML.  However, if you simply click one of these links, you will most likely get a page full of code in your browser.  To properly read the feed, you need an RSS reader.
The simplest way to get a reader is to use Microsoft's Internet Explorer 7.0 Browser, which has a built in reader.  It is free and available at http://www.microsoft.com/windows/downloads/ie/getitnow.mspx
 
A tutorial on using RSS with IE7 is available here.
 

 
There are two main types of RSS reader.  Standalone applications are simply programs that process RSS feeds for you.  The advantage of a standalone is that it is a new application that you can add RSS feeds as needed.  The disadvantage: it's another application to have open on your desktop.  The other type is the plug-in or add-on.  This application works within an existing program such as Microsoft Outlook or Internet Explorer.  The advantage of having RSS work with an existing application is that since most users have Outlook or IE open already, the reader becomes a new component of that application.  The disadvantage is that if you have a lot of e-mail folders or bookmarks already established, you can easily overload your application with multiple feeds of new information.
 
Standalone reader
When first launching a standalone reader, most often you will see a toolbar and three window panes arranged much like the preview mode in Microsoft Outlook.  The pane on the left side typically displays RSS feeds, or channels, to which you are subscribed.  These are normally organized into categories or folders.  The upper-right panel typically shows a list of articles within the selected channel, and the article's content is then displayed in the lower-right panel.  To change channel groups, simply click the drop-down box at the upper left beneath the menus.  Usually a brief description appears in the lower right; if so, click the link in the article to load the complete text.  Some standalone applications can be configured notify you via e-mail every time there's a new article on a topic you have selected.  Most, however, will display a small dialog or pop-up window over the taskbar informing you of the channel, the title, and the URL of the new article.
 
Add-on reader
Add-on readers that plug into existing applications such as Outlook and Internet Explorer typically include a column for channels and a display area for a headline, a brief description, and a URL.  Outlook readers make it easy to organize your channels in convenient folders along with your e-mail.  They usually display only the headlines and summaries within the e-mail application; they open an instance of Internet Explorer to display the full articles.  Internet Explorer readers, on the other hand, automatically display a chosen article within the browser.  The downside is that the channel column can take away much of the browsing space and/or replace the Favorites bookmark collection.
 
Add channels and channel groups
The best policy is to read and follow the help menu directions supplied with your RSS reader. There are, however, some general procedures that apply to all readers.
Most RSS readers come preloaded with a many channels, obviously you will want to add your own. Most programs allow you to create new channel groups to organize your channels.  To add a channel, for example, go to the LTech home page and click the XML/RSS logo image.  Right-click or use CTRL+C to copy the URL from the address bar of your browser, which should show a page full of XML code. Go back to your RSS reader, choose the category where you want to put the new subscription (Business, Education, Entertainment, etc.), and select New or New Channel from the File menu.  In most cases, the URL you copied should automatically be pasted into the URL field in the New Channel wizard.  If not, you can cut and paste the URL yourself.
border