Journalism jobs and news from Holdthefrontpage.co.uk

'What is RSS?' ... and how to use the HTFP news and jobs feeds

An RSS feed is a summary of the most recently updated headlines, with direct links to any content you're interested in reading in greater detail.

There are a number of suggested meanings for 'RSS', but it's most commonly referred to as 'Really Simple Syndication': an easy way to manage your favourite news sources.

If you don't currently use RSS, you will probably be used to visiting several different websites to check whether they have been updated with new content you're interested in. With RSS, you let a program check those websites automatically, see at a glance a summary of the latest stories on each, and read more on any of them with just one click.

There are several ways of receiving RSS feeds, and the technology is moving forwards and adapting very quickly. The main method is to download a program called a 'reader' or 'aggregator'. You can then set up this program to receive RSS information and browse headlines and story summaries without opening a full connection to the originating website.

Alternatively, some newer web browsers already have this built in, to detect whether the website you are viewing offers an RSS feed, and then let you create a constantly-updated list of links in your 'bookmarks' menu.

How do I set up RSS?

If you're new to RSS, we recommend choosing a free feed reader from the programs listed further down this page.

Once your reader is downloaded and installed on your computer, you will be able to add feeds that you want it to check. The best way to get the feed address is to copy it, and then paste it when your reader prompts you for the feed location. The program can then fetch new articles from this address whenever you like.

How do I get feeds from this site?

If you already have a feed reader, the next step is to add a new feed location. The following RSS feeds are available for this site:

NEWS: http://rss.holdthefrontpage.co.uk/holdthefrontpage/newstoday.rss

JOBS: http://rss.holdthefrontpage.co.uk/holdthefrontpage/jobstoday.rss

To add either of these feeds to your reader, simply highlight the address and copy it. Then, in your feed reader, follow the instructions to add a new feed and paste the address when prompted to do so.

You only need to add the feed to your reader once; it will then remember the address and fetch new articles whenever the feed is updated.

How often are your feeds updated?

The news and sits vac feeds are updated whenever there is new content on Holdthefrontpage.

Some news reader programs will allow you to specify the period at which you want them to check again for new content. Others will update automatically as new content is received.

This list contains links to some of the most popular RSS feed readers and these stand-alone programs offer support for most RSS feeds:

MyFeedReader
Cost: Free
Platforms: Windows

Feed Reader
Cost: Free
Platforms: Windows

SharpReader
Cost: Free
Platforms: Windows

Feed Demon
Cost: $29.95
Platforms: Windows (requires Internet Explorer 6)

Pheeder
Cost: Not stated
Platforms: Mac OS X

NetNewsWire
Cost: $24.95
Platforms: Mac OS X

Straw
Cost: Free
Platforms: Linux (GNOME)

BlogBridge
Cost: Free
Platforms: Windows, Mac OS X, Linux

Lektora
Cost: Free
Platforms: Windows, Mac OS X, Linux

Plugins and Extensions

These feed readers work within your browser.