RSS. What’s in a name?
August 22, 2005
Really Simple Syndication is already revolutionising the delivery of all kinds of internet content. Shame that has nobody ever heard of it. I spend more time explaining those three little initials than any other aspect of social media technology.
Fortunately the message is beginning to percolate to mainstream media, some of whom are doing a good job of spelling out the benefits to their readers.
Forbes magazine was enthusiastic last week while, Time Europe’s illustration (yesterday) of a dog fetching the latest news from the innards of your computer was probably worth a thousand words. But it’s still a confusing concept.
Despite typically voluble resistance, Microsoft seems committed to rebranding the concept as a "webfeed". And it’s an elegant-enough solution, as this is the same shorthand many of us use.
However just to throw a spanner in the works, earlier today Google launched the latest version of its desktop search engine. Download it, activate the sidebar and you’ll find a module dedicated to retrieving your latest "web clips". Any other suggestions on a postcard to Yahoo, Sunnyvale, Ca.