[dba-Tech] Let's talk about RSS

Stuart McLachlan stuart at lexacorp.com.pg
Thu Mar 1 21:35:38 CST 2007


On 1 Mar 2007 at 21:40, Susan Harkins wrote:

> I'm interested in RSS -- but I want to make sure I know what I'm getting
> into before I go any further. 
> 
> I understand what RSS does, basically. I'm wondering, does it send a notice
> that a particular site has published new content or does it actually send
> the new content too? 
> 

Just a notice.

> I visit a lot of sites regularly and if RSS isn't going to tell me what the
> new content is or where it is, I don't think it's of much use. If it sends
> me the new data or a synopsis and a link, that would be mega helpful. 

That's exactly what it does.

The required elements for an RSS feed are:
Title - the name of the feed
Link - the URL of the website
Description - phrase or sentence describing the channel

There are  a number of optional elements than can be included in the 
feed.  See http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss for all the gory 
details.







More information about the dba-Tech mailing list