What is RSS

RSS stands for Really Simple Syndication or Rich Site Summary; syndicating means republishing an article that comes from another source such as a website.

An RSS is a means of publicizing updates about websites. It may or may not include a summary and photos of the latest posting. But those that provide summaries i.e. Rich Site Summary allow users to scan the article so that they can decide later on if they want to access the website source. The RSS feed usually contains the title of the topic originating from the website.

Benefits of RSS

1. It gives you the latest updates

2. It saves on surfing time.

3. It gives the power of subscription to the user.

4. It lessens the clutter in your inbox since RSS doesnt use emails to send update.

5. It is spam free.

6. Unsubscribing is hassle-free.

7. Can be used for advertising & marketing


Disadvantages of RSS

1. Some users prefer receiving email updates over an RSS feed.

2. Graphics and photos do not appear in all RSS feeds.

3. The identity of the source website can be confusing. Since RSS feeds do not display the actual URL or name of the website.

4. Publishers cannot determine how many users are subscribed to their feed and the frequency of their visits. Moreover, they would not know the reasons why users unsubscribe which could be important in improving their advertising.

5. RSS feeds create higher traffíc and demands on a server. Most readers still prefer the whole update over a brief summary of the entry, thus they still access the site.

6. Since it is a new technology, many sites still do not support RSS.