I remember back in school when we had to do term papers, I'd have a hell of a time just trying to find information for the project. Going to the library was a pain in the butt because it was a research effort in itself just to find out how to find the material I wanted to find!
Now, with "Everything 2.0," my problems are a little different... I have too much information and really need help just trying to keep up with it all.
I can talk about managing e-mail but, no, we don't want to go there today...
Why RSS is Cool.
But! Now RSS is another matter. I love RSS! I don't know why more folks don't use it. It's a great way to get information from different web sites that I like and have that information come to me, instead of the other way around.
On the upside, my sense is that more folks are tuning in to the value of RSS as a tool to help manage "Information 2.0" overload. I think I can say that because the subject of too much information comes up at least once or twice a week. (Am I right?) And, when folks talk about having to remember to go to such-and-such favorite site to keep up with the changes, or fret about missing new postings from their many favorite blog, news sites, and so on, I bring up the question of RSS.
Usually the first repoonse is "Huh? What's that?" Or, "I've heard of that. I've been meaning to look into it."
Then the second response I usually get down the road from some of those same folks is: "I clicked the RSS button, but I wasn't sure what to do after that." Or, "I clicked it and got a bunch of nonsense code..."
RSS in Plain English.
If that rings true for you or someone you know, then take a look at the video above about "RSS in plain English." It's a great video from these guys I love at Common Craft.) I summarized some key points below.
Key points from the video:
- You should first have an account on one of the many FREE newsreader services. I'd recommend one that's hosted online so you can always access it from any computer. I use Newsgator but I think many folks will do just as well with Google Reader.
- When you click the little RSS icon from a favorite web page with content you want to subscribe to (e.g.,
), you'll usually see one of three pages. (The video identifies two. And those are good enough.)
- For the quick "how to," fast forward to about 2:20 in the video. (But the lead-in is also worth sitting through.)
- Shameless cross-sell: You can practice with your first RSS feed by using the feed from the icon above. (I think... though I can't be sure... it might possibly be this blog's feed... though I'm not sure... maybe...)
Once you've set up your RSS newsreader, I think you'll agree it probably ranks up there with "Sliced Bread 2.0" for managing Information 2.0 overload. Oh by the way, not only will you be able to rely on your newsreader as a one-stop-shop for updates from your favorites web sites and blogs, but you can also use it to subscribe to updates on Google keyword searches. (Why is this important? Read "Who's talking about you?", which I posted on another blog over at RealBlogging.)
