Web Design, Internet Marketing, E-commerce, SEO Blog | Las Vegas, NV

Yesterday I was at a meeting discussing internet marketing and the different forms of communicating with clients. One of the things I mentioned was RSS and how much I personally prefer RSS feeds as a way of keeping track of multiple news/content sites I am interested in. So, to expand on this one step further, I thought it would be a good idea to educate readers out there about what RSS is and how you read RSS Feeds.

What is RSS?

RSS stands for Really Simple Syndication. It is an XML-based format for content distribution on the Internet. You’re probably saying “Great…but what does this mean and why should I care?” Well, RSS is an excellent way to receive communications and updated content or news articles without ’searching’ for it or giving your email address to have it come to you.

How does RSS Work?

RSS are XML Feed Links that a website creates which houses the content or news information they want you to read. If you are interested in this particular content, you would ’subscribe’ to their RSS feed simply by clicking the RSS Link, not by email. The main difference between an RSS Feed Link and an Opt-in Newsletter is, the RSS Feed is simply a syndicated link that ’sends’ you the information to a feed reader that you browse through daily. You do not have to give out your email address as you do when you opt-in to an email newsletter. This is a great way to keep your email address private at the same time gathering the news and information you want from other websites. (RSS is not a replacement for email. As email is a two-way communication and RSS is a one-way syndicated feed.)

What is a RSS Feed Reader?

To be able to read RSS Feeds, you will need a software program that will make it easy to subscribe, read and manage your feeds. There are many free RSS feed reader programs available for download online. My personal favorite happens to be FeedDemon. FeedDemon allows you to read your RSS feeds on your desktop or online with their parent company NewsGator Online Product. This way I can synchronize my feeds to the web and always be able to access the feeds wherever I go. That being said, you may like one of the many other free readers out there, so don’t be afraid to try them out.

Simplified Steps to Reading a RSS Feed:

Here is a quick step by step on how to get started using RSS.

1. Download a free RSS Reader Program and install it onto your computer.

2. Subscribe to your favorite RSS Feeds (like our netmouser blog feed) by clicking on RSS links from your favorite websites. Or, if you prefer, you can search for feeds by going to RSS Feed Search Engines or by using your feed reader program’s search function (if it has one.)

3. Open Your Feed Reader daily, sit back and catch up on all your favorite news and information by having it sent directly to your RSS reader. No more hunting down every single website you like and searching their sites for the news or content you want to read. Now, it comes to you…in the form of an RSS Feed.

Should my company have a RSS Feed? What are the benefits?

Yes. Absolutely. But only if you promise to commit yourself to providing new, quality content to your users on a regular basis. Just like every other internet venture, you must show your audience (site visitors) that you care about keeping your website updated with fresh content.

Some of the benefits of RSS you will receive is:

1. Ability to index your RSS Feed in Feed Directories or Feed Search Engines, which can bring you more site traffic.

2. You can attract quality site traffic who is genuinely interested in your company and offerings.

3. If your feed is in the form of a blog, then your blog can bring you more visibility in search engines based on search queries matching your blog’s content.

4. RSS is growing and it is another way for you to use web 2.0 techniques to gain visibility with your customers.

I hope this helps to clarify what RSS is and why it is such a neat technology to start using. If you have any questions about RSS that I might have missed, let me know and I will be happy to address them.

SUCCESS… No glitches!  Thanks for crossing your fingers for me!  I just hope others will have the same success I did.

Has Engadget found the computer geek’s dream jeans? Dreamed up and designed by Erik De Nijs, these über-geeky pants boast a built-in keyboard that’s apparently Bluetooth-enabled. Beyond that, you’ll also find sewn in speakers, a pocket made especially for travel mice of all flavors and a “joystick controller” strategically located just behind the front zipper (saywha?).

Being a Microsoft Vista user myself (my company provided me with a Vista Laptop), I have to admit I am a little fearful of the Vista SP1 update. Why? Because you never know what is going to happen when you update your computer…let alone a VISTA computer.  (I’m sure all other Vista users who tried to install a pci-e video card in their desktop knows what I mean.)  

Well, Microsoft says SP1 fixes these problems of driver compatibility and support. I sure hope so.

According to Microsoft, SP1 is a rollout of software updates that fix bugs and glitches in Vista and is seen as a milestone that will inspire many customers– especially those in the business market– to adopt the OS.

Microsoft has acknowledged problems with application compatibility and lack of driver support, among others, that customers have had with Vista. It says SP1 and other updates that the company continues to make should remedy these problems.

So…to all you Vista users out there. Backup your drive and cross your fingers! I know that’s what I will be doing.

For anyone who is looking for a great, free email program…I highly recommend Mozilla Thunderbird. I’ve been using it for years now and it keeps getting better and better.

Some Key Features of Mozilla Thunderbird

Keep Your Vital Information Organized
Thunderbird 2 features many new enhancements to help you better manage your unruly inbox, and stay informed. Thunderbird 2 scales to the most sophisticated organizational needs while making it easy to find what you need.

Advanced Folder Views

Thunderbird 2 offers a variety of ways for you to organize and display your folders, whether by favorites, recently viewed or folders containing unread messages. As always, you can also set up RSS and newsgroup folders to stay on top of news and your interests. Thunderbird 2 also allows you to maximize your message view pane by opting for a folder drop down menu instead of the traditional sidebar.

Message Tagging

Thunderbird 2 allows you to “tag” messages with descriptors such as “To Do” or “Done” or even create your own tags that are specific to your needs. Tags can be combined with saved searches and mail views to make it easier to organize email.

Message History Navigation

Thunderbird 2 offers message history navigation that allows you to click “forward” and “back” much like in your Web browser. You can now quickly toggle between messages and folder views.

Improved Search

Thunderbird 2 features a find as you type pane that speeds up searches within displayed messages. Thunderbird also offers quick search, which starts showing search results as soon as you start typing in search terms.

Saved Searches

Do you find yourself searching for the same subject or message content over and over? Thunderbird 2 saves you time by allowing you to store this search as a folder. Rerunning the search is just a matter of clicking on the saved search folder in the folder pane.

Stay Informed

Thunderbird 2 has been updated to provide more informative and relevant message alerts containing sender, subject and message text for newly arrived messages. Folders provide a pop up summarizing new messages in that folder.

Easy Access to Popular Web Mail Services

Thunderbird 2 makes it even easier to integrate and use various Web mail accounts from one inbox. Gmail and .Mac users can access their accounts in Thunderbird by simply providing their user names and passwords.

Secure and Protect Your Mail

Mozilla has bolstered Thunderbird’s acclaimed security and privacy measures to ensure that your communications and identity remain safe. It’s like having your own security guard online.

Phishing Protection

Thunderbird protects you from email scams which try to trick users into handing over personal and confidential information by indicating when a message is a potential phishing attempt. As a second line of defense, Thunderbird warns you when you click on a link which appears to be taking you to a different Web site than the one indicated by the URL in the message.

Robust Privacy
Thunderbird 2 offers improved support for user privacy and remote image protection. To ensure a user’s privacy, Thunderbird 2 automatically blocks remote images in email messages.

Cutting Out the Junk
Mozilla has updated Thunderbird’s popular junk mail folders to stay ahead of spam. Each email you receive passes through Thunderbird’s leading-edge junk mail filters. Each time you mark messages as spam, Thunderbird “learns” and improves its filtering so you can spend more time reading the mail that matters. Thunderbird can also use your mail provider’s spam filters to keep junk mail out of your inbox.

Open Source, More Secure
At the heart of Thunderbird is an open source development process driven by thousands of passionate, experienced developers and security experts spread all over the world. Our openness and active community of experts helps to ensure our products are more secure and updated quickly, while also enabling us to take advantage of the best third party security scanning and evaluation tools to further bolster overall security.

Automated Update

Thunderbird’s update system checks to see if you’re running the latest version, and notifies you when a security update is available. These security updates are small (usually 200KB - 700KB), giving you only what you need and making the security update quick to download and install. The automated update system provides updates for Thunderbird on Windows, Mac OS X, and Linux in over 30 different languages.

Get Your Mail, Your Way
Thunderbird allows you to customize your email to suit your specific needs whether it’s how you search and find messages or listening to music right out of your inbox.

Outfit Your Inbox
Thunderbird users can increase Thunderbird’s functionality and appearance using hundreds of add-ons. A Thunderbird add-on can let you manage contacts, place voice over IP calls, listen to music, and keep track of birthdates all from your inbox. You can even change the appearance of Thunderbird to suit your tastes.

Message Templates
Thunderbird 2 allows you to easily set up message templates to save you time – especially if you have to send the same mail message repeatedly.

Add-ons Manager for Extensions and Themes

The new Add-ons Manager improves the user interface for managing extensions and themes, making it even easier for you to customize Thunderbird 2. Install, uninstall, enable and disable your add-ons in a single place.

Add this Calendar Extension to Thunderbird and really rock!

Mozilla Lightning - This is Mozilla’s Calendar and Task Program that keeps getting better and better with each release. For those of you who like the all encompassing email client that allows you to track appointments and tasks…this extension is for you.

Download Mozilla Thunderbird for Free!