What is RSS?

RSS stands for Really Simple Syndication. It's an easy way for you to keep up with news and information that's important to you, and helps you avoid the conventional methods of browsing,searching and bookmarking. Maybe most importantly, RSS offers an alternative to cluttering up your inbox and risking spam with email subscriptions.

RSS can be utilized to dynamically display content from any source on public Webpages, personal homepages (such as iGoogle or My Yahoo) or aggregated in client software such as Outlook.

RSS is written in the Internet coding language known as XML (eXtensible Markup Language), as is universally designated with this icon:

Older icons that designate an RSS feed include: and

What is Podcasting?

Podcasting is a type of RSS feed that contains links to MP3 audio files.

Learn More

• Of Zen And Computing | A non-technical explanation of RSS
• Software Garden | What is RSS? A basic tutorial introduction to RSS feeds and aggregators for non-technical people
• Six Apart | About Feeds
• About.com | Getting News Faster and Better: RSS News Feeds
• PROBLOGGER | What is RSS?
• InformationWeek | Getting Started with RSS
• Robin Good | A Guide to Really Simple Syndication Benefits, Best Uses and Applications
• You Tube | A unique dramatized explanation of RSS for the non-technical: RSS Unleashed