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What Is RSS?

AIDSinfo now offers the information in our weekly Newsletter through RSS feeds. You can subscribe to our feed by clicking and downloading the file (http://aidsinfo.nih.gov/rssXMLFiles/rss.xml).
What Is RSS?
RSS stands for "Really Simple Syndication." RSS is a new way to publish information online. At the heart of the technology is Web coding called XML. XML has been widely adopted by the global online community over the past few years.
The XML code for RSS describes a "data feed." Essentially, the feeds contain any Web content a creator wants to share
Any online surfer—or another Web site—can pick up the RSS feed with the appropriate Web software and display the content automatically wherever they like. By subscribing to an RSS feed, users automatically receive updated content
What Do I Need to Receive RSS Feeds?
First, you need a feed reader. Searching for "RSS feed readers" with any major online search engine (such as Google or Yahoo) will retrieve a slew of software options, many of which are free or low cost. Internet Explorer 7 and Firefox have built-in feed readers that can be used for this purpose.
Once you've obtained a feed reader, subscribing to an RSS feed is as simple as looking for the appropriate XML code. Most Web sites, including AIDSinfo, indicate an RSS feed with a small orange box or button labeled "RSS" or "XML."
Click the button and your Web browser typically goes to a page of XML code. Just copy the Web "address" or URL of that page of code and plug it into your feed reader. The software will then automatically retrieve and display the content contained in the XML.