How Do RSS Feeds Give Complete Control?

Is this a technical subject?

It could be…but not here. (If you want the technical versions then do some searching.)

Using RSS is easy.

RSS is even called Really Simple Syndication. It’s a syndication of articles and it’s really simple. It’s an Internet technology standard that allows fast, busy people to receive easy updates of website content. You might already know this…but basically, here’s the gist of it—first you subscribe and then you receive new content automatically in your feed reader. The best part though: you can turn it off with one click.

I don’t know all the programming details, but I know it works easily and really simply. I use it to keep up with several blogs.

How Do RSS Feeds Give Me Complete Control?

Here’s the real point…

RSS Feeds give you complete control of articles you receive…through your feed reader.

You might already have a feed reader, and not even realize it. If you use Opera Browser (and I recommend you do) then you have RSS ready to go. Opera is also the fastest browser out there (well I think so…).

If you use the Firefox browser, you can also receive RSS feeds from your tool bar by using the Live Bookmarks function. If you’re dedicated to Internet Explorer, get the latest one to use RSS.

Home page services like My Yahoo or My MSN, have RSS capabilities too. News, weather, and stock quotes that appear on your personal page get there through RSS. You can also add content from blogs that use RSS to provide updates (like Real Taijiquan). Some other web-based tools are dedicated to feed reading only.

If it sounds complicated, it is because there’s just a lot of options. But every way you choose, you’ll have the same convenience that email subscriptions, without any of the terrible consequences of giving out your personal email address to shady folks.

Sounds good. So how do I subscribe to a Feed?

First of all, look for the subscription or feed options (some bloggers make this tough for some strange reason). If it’s tough to find on a webpage, look in your address bar; some browsers put one there if it’s available for that website or blog. You might see a variety of icons, and there are lots of variations. This is a normal RSS icon:

Unlike getting website updates or e-zines by email, RSS feeds give you absolute, 100% complete control over this stuff. You never have to reveal your email address. And, if you want to stop receiving content, you don’t have to ask to be “taken off the list.”

One click, and poof… the subscription is gone.

Plus, since there’s no email address involved, there’s no way a publisher can sell, rent, or give away your email to other publishers, advertisers, or spammers.

That’s right…

No spam, viruses, phishing, or identity theft. And best of all—no reason to put yourself at the mercy of the publisher’s intentions. No need to suffer through legal jargon or privacy policies. And you don’t need dummy or guerrilla e-mail accounts “just to be safe.”

Again, if you don’t like the content, you can make it disappear as fast as you can flip a switch…with one little click.

Pretty cool, huh? Try mine…