Though I do not consider myself overly technologically savvy, I do, however, find RSS (Really Simple Syndication) interesting, but not yet useful for me. I do appreciate the way that RSS can cut down on scanning through dozens of websites just to find the information you need, and only to find it might not even be there at all. As a civilization of people who need technology at the touch of a button and the patience of a two year old in church, it makes sense to have some type of application that gives you the information when it's posted; not you looking for it when it's not.
At the moment, I simply have no need for RSS. Because my brother is currently stationed in Iraq with the US Army, I do not watch, read, or listen to the news. They either tell you too much or too little, and neither is what I, with a family member on the front lines, need to hear. However, as a soon-to-be educator, I can see the usefulness of RSS within the classroom. If my class is doing a project on a particular subject and we find helpful websites or blogs that go along with that project, it would be nice to have the websites' or blogs' latest version or information to help my students.
Feed For All: RSS Feed Creation Tool website lists pros and cons to using RSS. I've listed my personal top three, as found on the website.
Pros
1. Saves Time-RSS feeds save time. RSS subscribers can quickly scan RSS feeds, without having to visit each and every website. Subscribers can then click on any items they are interested in, to get additional information.
2. Opt-In- The RSS subscriber chooses what they want to see, and what information they wish to receive. Knowing they have full control, and that they do not have to provide any personal information to subscribe, they will be more likely to opt-in.
3. Timely- RSS feeds are timely. RSS feeds will automatically update themselves any time new information is posted, so the information your subscribers receive via their RSS reader or news aggregator is timely.
Cons
1. Not Widely Adopted Yet- Outside of technical circles, RSS has not yet been widely adopted. While it is becoming more and more popular, it is still far from being a mainstream technology.
2. Content Can Easily Be Copied- Content contained in an RSS feed can easily be copied and replicated, regardless of whether you want it to be or not. Few aggregators respect the copyrights of content contained in an RSS feed.
3. Tracking Subscribers Is Difficult- It is very difficult to accurately track the number of subscribers who read an RSS feed or the items contained in an RSS feed. This is due in part to the fact that at its heart, RSS is all about achieving the widest syndication possible.
With all new technologies, there will be those that work well and the users who love it and worship it (i.e. the iPhone) and there are those technologies that consumers just can't find a use for and it soon falls out of use (i.e. the iPad). While I don't personally have a need for an RSS account yet, maybe one day soon I'll jump on the bandwagon and RSS everything from Wolf Blitzer to Perez Hilton.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Kelly,
ReplyDeleteI agree with you about RSS not being very useful for me personally. As I said in my post, I spend enough time on the computer without the added incentive of a constant news feed. I also liked the pros and cons website that you found. The balanced information was helpful. It helps me see both the good and not so good about RSS. As for RSSing Perez Hilton, I think that might make you throw your computer across the room!
Kate
Kelly,
ReplyDeleteFirst, I'd like to say that the "two year old in church" was both accurate and hilarious! Like you, I have no need for RSS -- an occasional check of CNN and MSN are enough to keep me informed on what I want to know. I think the fact that we're so surrounded by news and constant updates is part of the reason why RSS doesn't seem applicable or effecient; I feel like I've already found things out before checking the feed. Like Kate, I thought it was neat how you showed both sides. Nice!
I like how you simplify the pros and cons of RSS feeds. I often think that people, including myself, make things more complicated than they need to be. So with words like yours, it makes things easier for simple-minded folk like myself to better understand what is going on around us. I look forward to your other entries this semester.
ReplyDeleteJLC iii