RSS is an XML file format for content syndication.

RSS stands for RDF Site Summary but is also known as Rich Site Summary or Really Simple Syndication.

A web site that frequently updates certain types of content can choose to have this content available via RSS. This is commonly known as an RSS feed or RSS channel. A web site can have one or more RSS feeds available.

To access an RSS feed, you need software called an RSS aggregator or an RSS feed reader or a news reader. Aggregators and readers exist as web browser plugins/extensions or as standalone web or desktop software. Some browsers (including Firefox, Safari and Opera) have built-in functionality for subscribing to and viewing RSS feeds. Your RSS reader will check the subscribed feeds regularly for any updated articles and will typically display summaries containing an article title, brief description and a link to the full article.

One benefit of subscribing to RSS feeds is that it enables you to keep up to date with essential content that you choose to read without being distracted by irrelevant information. You can subscribe to feeds from many different web sites to have all the web sites' new content together in one convenient location.

More information

More information on RSS can be found on the W3C web site.

Read more about RSS at CITEC.