ratbastid

I've just recently gotten into RSS aggregation and reading my favorite websites by their data feeds instead of inside my browser.

This is AMAZING stuff. It's like freebasing information. It's like mainlining data. It's like skimming the blogosphere at an altitude of 10,000 feet, dipping my toes only where it's interesting.

One sort of bummer thing is that there don't seem to be any really good RSS readers for Linux. I'm REALLY surprised about that, but it seems to be true. I'm using one called BottomFeeder that's sort of so-so. I've also played with AmphetaDesk, but I don't want a browser-based tool--the whole point is to be freed from the browser.

numist

I have code for a fark rss parser that uses MagpieRSS that I wrote with ncv`Leviathan if you are interested. Most RSS stuff is web based anyway. If your interested in the code, PM me.

Otherwise, you can always read the XML, but it may be impossible to avoid the browser completely, as it is the primary tool for accessing such things over the internet.

cheerios

what is RSS???

sailor

I set up an RSS reader on my website to grab the feed from a website I was reading for coverage during the actions in Iraq. It worked pretty well, and helped take the strain off their servers.

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arch13

A nice but breif tech explanation for you cheerios
LINKY

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ratbastid

Good reference for what it is, but it doesn't say much about what it's for.

So there are all these websites out there. Ranging all the way from Slashdot and CNN.com to the tiniest little personal blog. And they have available on their servers an XML-formatted version of their headlines and stories, conforming to the RSS spec.

You've got a piece of software on your desktop that downloads the RSS feeds from your 50 favorite sites and displays them quickly and efficiently without your having to fire up a browser. You can read news, blogs, etc VERY quickly and stay right up to date on news and events. The stories are typically displayed as clickable HTML, so you can dig in for more info easily.

I surf Slashdot, Boingboing, Metafilter, CNN, a couple of personal tech news sites, several prominent personal blogs (Lessig, mainly), "what's new" at ThinkGeek, the local weather, etc all in about five minutes.

panmunjom

I pull three RSS blog feeds into the Republicans Abroad Korea site. (See the right column.)

Parsed via PHP. Neato.



pmj.

Redlemon

I haven't tried it yet, but I probably should. Can anyone recommend a RSS client for WinXP? I looked at download.com, but there are so many and I'd rather take advice. Freeware is preferred.

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cradeg

more infos on this please, looks really interesting

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Ganguro

im going to be feeding my site to people via rss soon, but i didnt know there were standalone rss readers. interesting..

Silvy

What I'd like is a CNN-type ticker line that runs along the bottom line of my desktop feeding me RSS feeds.

As of yet I still have to find one. Any ideas anyone?
Btw: Linux is preferred

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cheerios

I'm confused... so, you have a client that downloads formatted XML instaed of HTML? and this is different from using a browser how? looks like same church different pew kind of differences here to me... same overriding concept.

arch13

It's like running a news ticker or stock ticker at the bottom of your screen. It downloads a traget and preselected peice of information that the user specifies (for example telling the program "download all cnn headlines about politics") and runs it along the bottom of your screen. The data format used for fast network transport is xml because it's a lean standard where the maker can define the meaning of elements via the DTD.
Ones like being in church, the other is like hearing the sermon on the radio and going into the cathedral only when you hear something that interests you.

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ratbastid

cheers, when I'm back at work tomorrow I'll post a screen shot so you can get a feel for how it works. It is really just a different interface on the same data, but the interface makes all the difference.

cradeg

Feedreader
feeddemon
List ot Good RSS Readers

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For every human problem, there is a neat, simple solution; and it is always wrong.
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arch13

Fraid' i can't help you on nix Silvy, but i just downloaded this to try out for windows. Feel free to try it out to. That way we can have two opinions on it to give people a better idea of it's usability as a "true" news ticker.
http://www.rssnewsticker.com/

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ratbastid

Here's what my RSS reader looks like this morning:

<img src="http://www.danray.net/bottomfeedershot.png">

arch13

hey ratbastid, where are you getting you local weather rss feed from?
I've found the noaa weather alert feed for emergency's but not a feed for just the weather by the hour.

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ratbastid

http://www.rssweather.com

You can customize your feed for location, update frequency, etc. I haven't seen what it does when there's a special weather alert, but it seems to update me periodically when sky conditions change or when the temp changes by some threshhold of degrees.

arch13

Sweet.
You might want to look at the list of noaa feeds for bad weather alerts. They don't update unless an advisory is put out for your local.

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Silvy

Thanks I will try that later tonight or tomorrow and re-post with my opninion!

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Redlemon

I'm presently playing with a (wait for it...) web-based RSS aggregator. Sounds like an oxymoron, but I think I like it, it'll allow me to check from work or home and have the lists be up-to-date.

www.bloglines.com

I'm up to 40 feeds already.

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cheerios

ok, I follow... dunno that I'd bother, but I at least understand a bit better...