By using a special reader, you can get regular information
-- including news and newsletter subscriptions -- from multiple web sites, all
in one place. No more running from site to site to see if there are updates you
are interested in. TopFive now announces our daily topics via RSS feed.
RSS feeds are coded in "XML" (eXtensible Markup Language) and are thus
not readable by ordinary web browsers or e-mail programs;
you "subscribe" via a special reader called an aggregator. Some aggregators
are "plug-ins" for web browsers or e-mail programs like Outlook, and allow you to
subscribe to the feeds that interest you without having to give any
information to the publisher (such as your e-mail address). The method of how
you subscribe depends on what aggregator you have, but it's as simple as clicking
(or right-clicking) on the orange "RSS" or "XML" box you see on a web site.
Why are we offering such a feed? One word: spam. Slimy
subhumans are making e-mail
a hostile environment.
Here are some places to get you started on RSS (links will open in new windows). The aggregators shown here
are reported to properly render TopFive's feed. (If you know of a reader which renders the feed correctly and is
not shown here, please let us know.
- If you use MS Outlook (not Outlook Express) an excellent integrated
reader is NewsGator.
- BottomFeeder
has versions for Windows, MacOS and various flavors of Unix.
- A stand-alone progrom for Macintosh (OS-X): NetNewsWire
- Another interesting web-based aggregator is Bloglines.
- Bradbury Software's FeedDemon
is a very good aggregator.
- AmphetaDesk has
versions for Mac OS 7-9, Mac OS X, Win95, Win98 and higher, and Linux.
- SharpReader works within the
.NET framework.
Lastly, you can find some very good basic reading on RSS (and RSS feeds out the wazoo!) on Lockergnome's
RSS Quickstart Guide.
