Really Simple Syndication: A Technology That Does Justice to Its Name

RSS (the meaning of the acronym has changed from RDF Site Summary to Rich Site Summary to Really Simple Syndication) (Wikipedia 1) was created in 1999 by programmers at Netscape Labs. Subsequent to the release of its original version (0.90), RSS development took divergent and confusing paths. On the one hand, Netscape continued to develop RSS technology through version 0.91. On the other, Userland Software, an entirely separate company, simultaneously developed the same technology using different specifications but the same version numbers. For a time, there was chaos. However, Netscape eventually left RSS by the wayside and responsibility for the technology’s maintenance and evolution fell squarely on the shoulders of Userland Software (RSS-Specifications 1). In 2003, shortly after releasing RSS 2.0, Userland Software bequeathed ownership of that version’s specifications to the Berkman Center for Internet and Society (Harvard Law 1).

So what is RSS? Well, it’s an “XML-based format for content distribution” (RSS-Specifications 2). But if you’re here and you’re asking, that probably doesn’t tell you much at all. I’ve always had a favorite analogy for describing RSS. If you’ve ever watched the West Wing, you’ve almost certainly witnessed a scene in which Leo (the Chief of Staff) hands Jed (the President) his morning briefings. Essentially, those briefings synopsized everything important that had happened in the United States government since the morning before. They came from the Deparments of Justice, Defense, and Treasury. They came from the National Security advisor and state and local governments. They came from everywhere, and the number of staffers and officials involved in composing the final briefings was enormous. Consider RSS that staff. If you give it the opportunity. RSS will pair down information from all of your favorite websites into neat little feeds of headlines and summaries.

The way it works is simple. Webmasters provide information in the form of RSS feeds. Consumers then subscribe to those feeds using RSS readers (or, in the lexicon, aggregates), providing them with a streamlined condensations of website content. For those interested in utilizing RSS technology, the first step is obtaining a reader. There are a lot of options, but they all fall into one of two categories. Either they’re client programs which have to be downloaded and installed (e.g. Vienna, Mindity, Netnewsreader), or web-based programs which can be accessed through the websites that host them (e.g. Google Reader, Newsgator Online). Both have their advantages so choosing one is really a matter of preference. If you’re still having trouble deciding, the website Webagon offers a comparison of features for a number of different readers (Webagon 1).

Personally, I’ve been using Netnewsreader to monitor a boat-load of RSS feeds since 2003. Virtually every summer I end up working on a Democratic political campaign, often in a public relations capacity, meaning it’s always been imperative that I be up to date on current events. Prior to the advent of RSS I spent hours sifting through the contents of 10-20 different websites for relevant stories. Nowadays I’ve got a setup in Netnewsreader that provides me with all of the updates I need in an easily accessible format. If I were to offer one caveat to people who are considering using RSS to stay on top of the news, it would be to use primary sources. Subscribe to the AP Wire, or Reuters, or United Press International. One of the problem’s I often ran into subscribing to RSS feeds from sites like Breitbart or Drudge Report or the Huffington Post was that the sites themselves were actually summaries. That meant that I was getting a summary of an article from one of those sites in my RSS aggregator, which linked to that site’s complete summary of another article, which in turn linked to the article itself at AP or the New York Times. Subscribing to primary sources helps cut out that middle man and save time.

RSS is amazing. It’s simple, practical, free, and unreasonably easy to use. Really, there’s no excuse for not having an aggregator configured if you rely on the internet for your news. So hop to it already.


Unknown Author. “Web-application Comparison Engine.” Retrieved from Webagon on April 13, 2008.
http://webagon.com/comparison?filter0=2614&filter1=**ALL**&filter2=**ALL**

Unknown Author. “RSS 2.0 at Harvard Law.” Retrieved from the Berkman Center for Internet Technology on April 13, 2008.
http://cyber.law.harvard.edu/rss/rss.html

Unknown Author. “History of RSS.” Retrieved from RSS-Specification on April 13, 2008.
http://www.rss-specifications.com/history-rss.htm

Unknown Author. “RSS” Retrieved from Wikipedia on April 13, 2008.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RSS

Second Life

According to its creators (the good folks over at Linden Labs), Second life is a fully immersive 3-D virtual world “entirely created by its Residents” (Linden 1). While it is often classified as an MMORPG (massive multiplayer online role playing game), Second life is less about users interacting with their environments than it its about allowing users to create their environment. Interaction between users is certainly remains a cornerstone of Second Life, but fighting and direct competition aren’t emphasized, because in spite of having some whimsical elements, Second Life is intended to live up to its name. It’s supposed to simulate an alternative life to the user’s own, and that’s precisely what’s made it so overwhelmingly popular. Since its inception in 2003, Second Life has grown exponentially. As of March 2008, over 13 million accounts have been registered with Linden Labs, and over 38,000 on average log in every day (Wikipedia 1_.
But Second Life has evolved in terms broader than simple numbers. Over the past 5 years, users have constructed a world that simultaneously parallels and deviates from our own. Presently, two countries have government-endorsed and funded embassies in Second Life (Sweden and the Maldives). Reuters has its own news desk to cover happenings in the Second Life universe (ironically, it broke the story about Philip Rosedale, the former CEO of Linden Labs, being fired) (Reuters 1). Harvard offers supplemental instruction in Second Life classrooms. The Second Life economy, based on its currency of Linden Dollars (which can be exchanged for US dollars) and its Lindex stock market average has bloomed into a commercial entity that has proven quite profitable for real estate moguls in SL. At the same time, Second Life is peppered with individual tributes to the world of Star Wars and other fiction (Wikipedia 2).
My own experience in Second Life was a bit overwhelming. I quite literally bumbled my way through Orientation and Help Islands, due in large part to the poor quality of my internet connection. Afterwards I navigated my way to some of the “Hot Spots” recommended by the Second Life website, namely a stunning reproduction of Mayan-era Mexico. I did my best to interact with my fellow Second Life users, but the perpetual lag I experienced made things a bit cumbersome. Nevertheless, it was an enticing experience, and the scope of opportunities and endeavors being undertaken in Second Life was certainly awe-inspiring. So much so that it got me a little worried. I know that personally, there are plenty of occasions when problems in my life come to a head, and there’s a nagging voice in the back of my mind telling me to just run away from it all. To escape and start over. I’ve never humored that voice, and thankfully so. The thing about Second Life is that it’s so realistic I could see it tempting me to do so. After all, what’s the point in working my tail off and starving for four years to get my name on a psych diploma when I could be an advertising magnate in Second Life?
That’s not to say I wouldn’t take a class if it were offered on Second Life. I think Second Life could offer a nice compromise between the convenience of online classes (such as this one) and traditional lectures. Though I can imagine myself being constantly tempted to wander off and explore.


Reuters, Adam. Rosedale to Step Down as Linden Lab CEO. Retrieved April 6, 2008 from Reuters—Second Life
http://secondlife.reuters.com/stories/2008/03/14/exclusive-rosedale-to-step-down-as-linden-lab-ceo/

Unknown Author, Second Life. Retrieved April 6, 2008 from Wikipedia
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Second_life

Unknown Author. What Is Second Life? Retrieved April 6, 2008 from Linden Laboratories
http://secondlife.com/whatis/