About RSS

Notices for the track record, newsletter and curent positions, and other Global Pennystocks^® news.

What is RSS?

We all have favorite Websites we visit for the latest information, but keeping up with what's new can be a chore. The Website may not yet be updated with new content, so you may visit multiple times to see if there is any new information.

Wouldn't it be great if the latest information could automatically come to you whenever there was something new? That is exactly what Really Simple Syndication (RSS) does! RSS automatically delivers to you Website information when it is updated.

RSS is used by organizations both large and small to notify you of the latest developments.

Click here for a sampler of who is using RSS

How do I use RSS?

You need two things in order to use RSS.

RSS Feed Address: Just as a Website address calls up a Web page full of content, an RSS feed address calls up Website content—but this type of content is readable by a special program.

RSS Reader Program: By running a program, called an RSS Reader, the RSS feed is automatically checked and any updated information is noted.

Once an RSS feed address is entered in, the RSS Reader will periodically check for updated information and note how many new/unread entries there are. From there you can read headlines and their summary paragraphs. If a story interests you, the complete story may be called up.

You can have the RSS Reader follow feeds from many sources and alert you with the latest information whenever there is something new.

Click here for more on using RSS

Parts of a Typical RSS Reader

A typically RSS reader consists of three window panels, although some programs may combine the panels in order to save screen space.

The first panel lists all the RSS feeds you receive (more about adding feeds later.) Depending on the features of the program, there may also be folders here to help organize and categorize your feeds. Clicking on a feed shows its headlines in the second panel.

The second panel lists headlines ordered with the newest at the top (reverse chronological order.) Clicking on a feed shows content in the third panel.

The last panel, depending on how the feed was designed, will either show a summary paragraph for that headline or the full story itself. If a summary shows then clicking a link here will display the full story page in your Web browser (although some RSS programs may contain a mini-Web browser and show the Web page.) RSS feeds from newspapers usually show a summary paragraph, as papers depend on ads being seen on the Website along with the full story. RSS feeds from Blogs show the full story, as Bloggers consider RSS as an alternate distribution medium for their thoughts and ideas.

Being Alerted to Updated Information

An RSS reader alerts you to updated information in two ways. The first is in the listing of feeds you subscribe to—a number next to each feed indicates how many unread headlines there are in each, and this number increases when new information is added. The second is when new entries are placed in bold atop a feed's headlines list (previously read headlines are unbolded and older entries move toward the bottom of the list.)

The feed file is periodically read by the program. Thirty minutes is the usual amount of time between checks, although this period can be adjusted in the RSS reader's preferences.

Adding a Feed to an RSS Reader

Many Websites you currently visit have RSS feeds — just look for the icon.

The process of adding a RSS Feed to a reader is called "subscribing", although unlike its meaning in the print publishing world, subscribing to an RSS Feed is free. This only needs to be done once per feed.

Websites do not yet have a single standard way to subscribe to an RSS feed, so there are several ways to do it (you need only choose one.) The best method depends depends on how a Website displays its RSS feed. Click the image on the left to learn several ways of subscribing to an RSS feed.

From then on the RSS Reader will read the feed, usually every thirty minutes, and note updated information. Your computer must be on and the reader program open in order for it to work.

RSS Readers are available for many types of computers. The current programs you use may already have RSS capabilities, like Web browsers or e-mail programs. You can also use RSS on the go with reader programs for the iPhone, Blackberry, Windows Mobile phones, and PocketPC devices.

Click here for recommended RSS Readers

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