RSS (Really Simple Syndication, Rich Site Summary) feeds allow you to see when a web site of your choice has updated the content on the selected page, as soon as it is published, without having to go to the website. The feeds are simply web pages which are designed to be read by computers.

How do I use the feeds?

Firstly a news reader is needed. This software checks the feeds and lets you read the updated content. There are many different readers available and new ones are appearing all the time. Some are based within your web browser others are downloadable pieces of software. You need to choose one which is compatible with your computer, mobile, Blackberry etc. A source of information about RSS readers is The RSS Compendium, which has a list of readers organised by platform, http://www.allrss.com/rssreaders.html.

Once you have chosen your reader all you need to do is visit the site you want to receive content from, click on the RSS button and drag the URL, or cut and paste it, into a new feed in your newsreader.