What is this icon?   

This icon indicates that the article is available for rss feed download (sometimes also known as a "podcast").

What is RSS?

RSS (Rich Site Summary) is a format for delivering regularly changing web content. Many news-related sites, weblogs and other online publishers syndicate their content as an RSS Feed to whoever wants it.

RSS feeds can be automatically downloaded to your computer on a regular basis using a type of program called a "feed reader".

When the RSS is called a Podcast, it is referring to feeds of audio broadcasts in mp3 format. Applications such as iTunes will allow you to synchronize RSS podcast feeds with your iPod, Podcasts can also be fed into other types of mp3 players. 

What do I need to do to read an RSS Feed?

RSS Feed Readers and News Aggregators Feed Reader or News Aggregator software allow you to grab the RSS feeds from various sites and display them for you to read and use.

Why RSS?

RSS solves a problem for people who regularly use the web. It allows you to easily stay informed by retrieving summaries of the latest content from the sites you are interested in. You save time by not needing to visit each site individually. You ensure your privacy, by not needing to join each site's email newsletter. The number of sites offering RSS feeds is growing rapidly and includes big names like Yahoo News and Amazon.com.

What do I need to do to read an RSS Feed?

RSS Feed Readers and News Aggregators Feed Reader or News Aggregator software allow you to grab the RSS feeds from various sites and display them for you to read and use.

A variety of RSS Readers are available for you to use, and many are free. Once you have your Feed Reader, it is a matter of finding sites that syndicate content and adding their RSS feed to the list of feeds your Feed Reader checks. Many sites display a small icon with the acronyms RSS, XML, or RDF to let you know a feed is available. Here are a few popular feed reader programs you can use to get rss feeds:

• Internet Explorer 7 & Firefox Web Browser -  Windows
• Safari & Firefox Web Browser - Mac
• Feed Reader - Windows
• iTunes - Mac/Windows
• News Gator - Windows
• Shrook - Mac
• amphetadesk - Windows/Linux/Mac
• Visit  Podcasting News for a more extensive listing

Published Thursday, Dec. 21, 2006