What is RSS?

RSS (an abbreviation for Really Simple Syndication) is a family of Web feed formats used to publish frequently updated content in a standardised format.  This might be blog entries, news headlines, audio and video.

An RSS document (which is called a "feed", "web feed" or "channel") includes full or summarized text, with links back to the original article.  It also gives information like publishing dates and authors.

Why are RSS feeds useful?

Web feeds benefit publishers by letting them share content automatically. They benefit readers who want to subscribe to timely updates from their favourite websites or to aggregate feeds from many sites into one place

What do I need to be able to look at the feeds?

RSS feeds can be read using software called an "RSS reader", "feed reader", or "aggregator".  These readers can be installed on your computer desktop or they can be web-based.  Most modern browsers have the RSS readers built in.

The RSS reader checks whatever feeds you are subscribed to and can display the latest feed content on demand.

If you use a browser is capable of working with RSS feeds you should see a symbol similar to the one on the right somewhere in the browser tool bar when you visit a site that provides an RSS feed.