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Supreme Being
Group: Administrators
Last Login: Today @ 11:26:39 AM
Posts: 1,953,
Visits: 16,290
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Have you seen this image ( or  ) on the message forum lately?
That is an RSS feed. If you click on the RSS image in the forum you'll see a page with a bunch of XML code. An RSS feed is like a bookmark or a favorite, it's just a link to another web page. What makes RSS feeds special is that they automatically update. This lets you get a feed from your favorite news site, blog, or message forum and read the headlines quickly. If something looks interesting just click the link (like you would with any other bookmark or favorite) and the page will open in your browser. This saves you the hassle of going to the site itself and scanning through a set of pages to read the latest forum topics or headlines. You can open your RSS feed and check them out directly.
How to setup RSS feeds in Firefox
If you have Firefox, RSS functionality is built in. Firefox calls this feature Live Bookmarks. Here's how to use it:
1. Right click the RSS link that you want to use as a resource.
2. Select Copy link location from the pop-up menu.
3. Now open the Bookmarks menu and choose Manage Bookmarks...
4. This opens the Bookmarks Manager which shows you all your bookmarks.
5. Highlight the folder in your bookmarks where you want the RSS menu to appear.
6. I have an M-TEC folder in my bookmarks so I'll highlight that.
7. Next open the File menu and choose New Live Bookmark.
8. A Properties window will open.
9. Right click the Feed Location: field and choose Paste. This will put in the link to the RSS feed that we copied earlier.
10. You can use the Name: field to name the bookmark anything you want. I'll name mine Break Room Forum.
11. You can type a description of the bookmark in the Description field. I won't bother with that.
12. Click OK and X out of the Bookmarks Manager.
That's all there is to it. To use the RSS feed just open your bookmarks to the location where you created the Live Bookmark. Hold the cursor over the name of the Live Bookmark and a fly-out menu should appear with a list of links. If you right clicked the RSS feed next to a forum name that list will contain the titles of the latest topics in that forum.
How to use an RSS feed if you don't have Firefox installed
This one is a little more tricky. Internet Explorer 6.0, the version that comes with XP by default, doesn't have RSS capability. However, the beta for IE7 is reported to handle RSS very nicely. Given that situation there are three ways you can go:
1. You can use IE7 beta or wait for IE7 to be released and then upgrade.
2. You can get a plug-in for IE that will add the RSS functionality.
3. You can download an RSS reader and use that separately from your browser.
Here's an article from Microsoft that talks about RSS and gives a link to some of their recommended RSS readers: http://www.microsoft.com/windows/rss/default.mspx
Here's a link to an IE toolbar program that allows you to view feeds:
http://www.diodia.com/feedstoolbar.htm
This is a standalone program that lets you view feeds:
http://www.feedreader.com/
Both of the above are free.
The basic procedure for getting an RSS feed into the software is the same. Right click the RSS icon and choose Copy Shortcut. Then go to the place in your RSS software where you can add a new feed. Paste in the link. Save your changes or click OK and test it out.
Mike DeTuri
M-TEC Technology Instructor
http://www.deturi.com
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Supreme Being
Group: M-TEC Graduate
Last Login: 7/28/2010 6:35:42 PM
Posts: 113,
Visits: 3,524
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| Thanks Mike! I use My Yahoo! as my home page and there is a way to add RSS Feeds there too. Click on Add Content and there is a tiny link to add RSS by URL beside the FIND CONTENT button.
Gayla
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