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This system requires that subscribers manually subscribe to the feeds they choose to read. One simply cannot just enter an email address and hit a subscribe button, attached to an autoresponder.
RSS feeds require an aggregator to read them, similarly to the way a browser reads HTML on a web page. As a result of this necessity, absolutely no one can be subscribed to a feed without consent. This makes the reader 100% responsible for the acceptance of the content to which they have subscribed. The receipt of feed content can never be unsolicited, nor can it be redundant. One cannot have more than one active subscription to a particular feed.
Rather than having to open an over-flowing mailbox, to find the information you are looking for, RSS acts as a special delivery agent, placing the content right next to your toast and coffee. Feeds are delivered straight to the desktop of the subscriber via the aggregator, providing the subscriber with freshly updated information, as it is refreshed by the source [publisher].
The subscriber receives the most recent headlines available, not a bulky periodical, and from there, can choose which articles they want to read, by clicking on that particular headline. When the reader finishes reading the feed, they just exit the program. There is nothing to store, nothing to delete.
Because RSS is set up as a dynamic, interactive system, publishers can allow, and often encourage, reader comments. This fascillitates dialogue between authors and readers, in real time. It invites the reader to express opinions, or ask questions. It provides readers with access to their mentors, that is non-invasive, yet direct.
One consideration to keep in mind is that not all RSS feeds are created equal. Not all aggregators can read all feeds. This is not a case of one size fits all. There are several different versions of RSS feeds, and they are completely different from each other, not mere upgrades of the previous.
More on RSS versions. . . http://www.quikonnex.com/channel/item/6775
Does this mean that one must carry several different aggregators to read various feeds? Not at all. The folks over at Quikonnex.com, Jim Gray and Carolyn Peltier, have, in their mastery of code, developed their own aggregator, QuikView, that will read all RSS feeds, regardless of version. They offer their 'channel viewer' free of charge to anyone wanting to receive information via this medium. If you want to learn about and utilize RSS in your communications, these are the people to follow. They are not your run of the mill gurus, Jim and Carolyn are the ones writing the code and manipulating it to meet their vision. Believe me, these two are not short sighted individuals either.
Quikonnex provides its members with audio and video training, weekly workshops, one-to-one live support, and a forum that is filled with knowledge. Cost of membership: FREE.
RSS is certainly the new generation in communication. There is a learning curve involved, but isn't that true of anything? We all had to learn to connect to the Internet, surf the web and use email. Learning how to use RSS is no different.
Copyright © 2004 The Trii-Zine Ezine http://www.ezines1.
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