RSS Mini Guide

Learn how to use RSS feeds or Really Simple Syndication to your advantage with my RSS mini guide. An alternative way to access news and updates on your favourite websites.

RSS is everywhere! On news sites like CNN or the BBC (often called newsfeeds), on blogs like mine at www.Diabetic-Dieting.com/blog, on upcoming films and theatre productions, etc. So learn how to use it to your advantage with my RSS Mini Guide to using RSS feeds.

One of the main benefits is that you can access fresh info on your favourite sites, almost immediately after it's been updated in bitesize chunks; a bit like Twitter.

It also means that you don't actually have to go to the site to access the updates. Instead you could group the RSS feeds of all of your favourite websites in some of the best RSS readers. Something I'll show you how to do in my RSS Mini Guide below.

You need some sort of RSS reader to use RSS feeds. Below is my RSS mini guide on the best RSS readers that are Free to use.

This is a bit of a cheat because e-mail isn't really an RSS reader. Some sites/blogs like mine give you this option when you enter your e-mail address into a box.

In exchange you'll get an HTML or plain text e-mail with recent news and updates from that site/blog. Simple.

Ever noticed a small orange RSS button (like the big one at the top of this page) in your address bar? That means that the site that you're on has a RSS Feed and your browser can read it.

Browsers like Mozilla Firefox, Opera and even newer versions of Internet Explorer have built in RSS readers.

Method 1) Click on the RSS button in the address bar to subscribe to the RSS feeds, follow the on-screen instructions and your ready to go.

Method 2) Go onto the blog of your favourite website and Right-click on the RSS button (that might look like the one on the left of the page under the NavBar) and open in a new window.

Based on ease of use, how easy it is to integrate RSS feeds and the extra features of each web based RSS Reader MY top 5 RSS readers are:

Method A) Go to a site/blog with an RSS reader box like the one on the left of this page under the NavBar. Left click on the RSS reader that you want to use...

...Which will redirect to that RSS browser and ask you if you want to sucbscribe to the RSS feed. Accept and the feed will be displayed in your RSS reader.

Method B) Takes a bit more time but is necessary if there is no RSS reader box (like the one under the NavBar).

Sign in/Register to your RSS reader (My yahoo, Google, etc) then, depending on the reader, near the top of the page click on (Add Content, Add a Subscription, Add Feeds, etc).

You'll then get a box where you can search* for the feed or type in the specific feed.

Then in a new tab/window go to the site/blog you want to subscribe to and right click on the RSS button (either in the address bar or on the page) and select copy.

Go back to your RSS reader and in the box you saw earlier paste what we just copied (the URL of the feed). The RSS feed should now appear. Accept and the feed will be displayed in your RSS reader.

*Bare in mind that some RSS feeds will not display in the search results of an RSS reader becasue it works a bit like a search engine. For new or niche RSS feeds, you may need to copy and paste the exact URL of the feed as described in Method B).

This works in a similar way to the RSS readers above with the main difference being that it is installed to your hard drive and can be accessed off-line.

Everytime you run the RSS reader on your computer/laptop and access the internet, it will often, automatically update all of the RSS feeds that you have subscribed to.

There are loads of funky and unique RSS readers to download but the best free versions in my opinion are:

Follow the instructions on each page to download and install, then follow Method I).

Method I) Similar to Method B) run the RSS reader that you downloaded and installed. Now depending on the reader you installed, Right-click (control-click for Mac users) on the orange RSS button on the site/blog that you want.

Then, select Copy Shortcut ("Copy Link to Clipboard" on a Mac), and paste that URL into your RSS Reader. Accept and the feed will be displayed in your RSS reader.

Now that you know how to use RSS feeds why not use one of the options above to subscribe to this site? Act fast, just like Really Simple Syndication! :^)

Return from the RSS Mini Guide to the Diabetic Dieting Blog

Or use the NavBar (Navigational Bar on the left of the page) for more options.

Your simple guide to RSS feeds and the best RSS readers