How to use RSS feeds
Currently the Northwestern University Library has two official RSS feeds that you can subscribe to from these sites:
In
the Spotlight -
Northwestern University Library News
Library
Briefings - Northwestern University Library's faculty newsletter
What is RSS?
RSS is an document you can download from the web which describes website content, news, and resources from a specific website. Users of RSS can have up-to-date content from websites delivered to them and viewable via a news aggregator. A news aggregator is a type of software which is specifically tailored to receive these kinds of RSS feeds.
The XML coding within an RSS feed allows for the retrieval of a web source's content. Essentially, the feeds can contain a summary of the new content on a web site or anything else a website creator desires to share. For example, a company could send out a feed containing information about new product offers, new shareholder information, etc. Popular news sources and blogs (web logs) typically have RSS feeds, such as Wired News, Reuters, and ABC News. For more general information about RSS see RSS For Non-Techie Librarians or and ABC News's explanation of RSS.
Why is RSS useful?
RSS saves time. Instead of remembering to visit a favorite Website, the news or information you want comes directly into your computer at whatever interval you want. In addition, most RSS feeds contain only links, headlines, or brief synopses of new information. That means that the small amount of data found in an RSS feed can be sent to any XML-compatible device, a cell phone, pager, or handheld computer, without a lengthy download process. This also provides a way for you to receive customized information without having to reveal personal information about yourself.
How can you get a news aggregator to start receiving RSS feeds?
Many RSS aggregator/feed reader programs are free or cost very little, and are easily to download and install. Some popular RSS aggregator software programs are NetNewsWire for Mac, NewzCrawler for Windows, and AmphetaDesk for Mac, Windows, and Linux--among many other programs you can download and try out. Web browsers such as Firefox and Safari have the built-in ability to read RSS.
You can also perform a search for RSS feed readers on a web browser such as Google or Yahoo to find other RSS programs. Additionally there is a web-based one you can use for free called Bloglines.
Once you have downloaded
your news aggregator you can put news feeds into your news aggregator.
You can
do this by
right-clicking
(or control-clicking on the Mac) on the RSS icon, which is commonly
found at the bottom or in the sidebar of a web page (
, or 
),
then
copying the shortcut/link location and pasting it into the news aggregator.
You can also subscribe to a particular news feed in order to get news
updates from a particular site.
Example of a News Aggregator/Feed Reader: NetNewsWire
Many news sources have RSS feeds. A particularly useful site is Moreover.com, which maintains a large list of news feeds. Additionally, it may be useful to go to websites that you frequently visit and see if they offer RSS feeds.
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