RSS FAQs

Q: Why use RSS?

There are a number of reasons to use RSS:

• You select what news you want. RSS allows you to select the type of news and information you receive from Web sites.
• You determine when you get your news. Once you download your news reader, you can customize it to fetch the news every five minutes or every hour, depending on how you want it.
• Cut down on SPAM. Because RSS requires you to download a news reader, you aren't subscribing to e-mail lists, which can increase your risk of getting unwanted SPAM e-mail.
• You aren't providing any Web site or service with personal information. RSS providers never know who is signing up for their news feed.

Q: What is an RSS feed?

A Web feed (also referred to as a news feed or syndicated feed) is a method used for providing subscribers with frequently updated content. A single feed can display either a summary of an added news item or a headline. If the item interests you, just click and go directly to the source.

Q: What is an RSS reader?

An RSS reader (also referred to as an feed reader, news reader or feed aggregator) is a Web-based application that collects and consolidates Web content in a way that is easy to skim periodically throughout the day.

Q: What are the benefits of receiving information via RSS?

• Efficiency - Timely news and information are automatically there when you need them.
• Breadth - Headlines from the Web sources you care about are consolidated.
• Organization - Sources can be displayed in order of importance and/or time.

Q: Where can I get more information about RSS?

The following Web sites provide more detail information about RSS technology:

XML.com - What is RSS
Technology at Harvard Law
RSS - Wikipedia