RSS (file format)

RSS is a family of XML file formats for web syndication used by (amongst other things) news websites and weblogs. The abbreviation is used to refer to the following standards:

Related Topics:
XML - Web syndication - Website - Weblog

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

• Rich Site Summary (RSS 0.91)
• RDF Site Summary (RSS 0.9 and 1.0)
• Really Simple Syndication (RSS 2.0)

The technology behind RSS allows internet users to subscribe to websites that have provided RSS feeds; these are typically sites that change or add content regularly. To use this technology, users are required to download an aggregation service, which presents new articles in a list, giving a line or two of each article and a link to the full article or post. Unlike subscriptions to pulp-based newspapers and magazines, RSS subscriptions are free.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

The RSS formats provide web content or summaries of web content together with links to the full versions of the content, and other meta-data. This information is delivered as an XML file called RSS feed, webfeed, RSS stream, or RSS channel. In addition to facilitating syndication, RSS allows a website's frequent readers to track updates on the site using a news aggregator.

Related Topics:
XML - News aggregator

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

 
RSS (file format): Usage ►