What Are RSS Feeds

RSS Feeds. RSS also known as rich site summary or real simply syndication, arrived on the scene a number of years ago, but was only recently embraced by webmasters as a means to effectively syndicate content. RSS Feeds provide webmasters and content providers an avenue to provide concise summaries to prospective readers. Thousands of commercial web sites and blogs now publish content summaries in an RSS feed. Each item in the feed typically contains a headline; article summary and link back to the online article. Benefit to the Webmaster: As the web has become more crowded webmasters have been striving to provide fresh and up to date content...

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RSS & How to Use It -- Part 2

Welcome to part 2 of the article that aims to give you just enough information to help you understand RSS and start using it. Part 1 gave you simple instructions on how to read and subscribe to an RSS site feed, part 2 will give you simple instructions on how to publish your own. Firstly, which websites can benefit from a site feed? Well, pretty much all of them. If you provide a service, you could use a site feed to announce amendments and upgrades. If you sell stuff, you could use a site feed to announce new products and special offers. And if you own a website or web log that is regularly updated with news of any description, a site feed is virtually a necessity. Site feeds may not be exactly commonplace at present but don't doubt for a moment that their popularity is growing. If you get...

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RSS & How to Use It (part 1)

Have you ever read an article, intended to explain RSS in simple terms that, begins well, but soon descends into confusing jargon or information overload? If so, take heart, I was in the same place a few months ago. Often the best way to understand something, is to use it. RSS is no exception. So rather than try and create a definitive explanation of RSS, this article will tell you how to use it. I guarantee once you've done so, everything will that much clearer. If a website you visit utilizes RSS, there are a number of ways it will communicate this. The most common way is to show a little orange button with the letters XML. Alternatively, you may see words such as "ATOM", "RSS", "Site Feed" or variations on these. What they have in common is that they will link to a webpage that, in most...

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Is a Blog Right For Your Business?

Lemmings are cute, but dumb. If you tell them to jump off a cliff, they will. Just like the people who start blogs because everyone is doing it. Guess what happens after a little while? The blogs die. In managing a list of many Web sites, most of which are blogs, I deleted countless sites from the list because the sites and blogs no longer existed. The people ran out of steam or had no reason to start them in the first place. How do you know when a blog is right for your business? Learn why people start blogs, how they find their niche and how blogging tools can be used for more than blogs. Some people like to read blogs, others like to read newsletters, still others like to rely on feeds and some read a few or all of them. No matter the method the information is distributed, each medium...

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What Is This RSS, XML, RDF, and Atom Business?

It's been a long day at work and you're in no mood to cook dinner or go out. Time to count on the reliable pizza delivery guy. The order is called in and he promptly arrives with smokin' hot pizza within 30 minutes as promised. If it were only that easy with a picky family where no one can agree on the same restaurant for dinner. One wants Mexican, another wants Chinese, and another wants a burger and Mexican. Instead of running to three different places, you call a delivery service that goes to all of them and brings it to you. What could be easier in getting a meal without cooking it or fetching it? RSS, XML, RDF, and Atom are the food delivery guy of the Internet. The content they deliver is mixed and cooked elsewhere on the Internet just like the meal isn't made on your door step and...

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Feed The Need: 5 Ways To Use RSS To Boost Your Business Or Organizational Success

RSS (it stands for Really Simple Syndication, among other things) is a relatively new technology that allows anyone who creates frequently changing web content - news, blogs, current events, etc. - to deliver their messages to interested readers with no fuss, no muss and best of all - no spam! Currently, RSS is being used by content-rich sites (mainly blogs and news centers) to keep readers up-to-date on newly published posts or breaking stories. But RSS can do so much more. Many businesses and organizations are failing to truly exploit the amazing properties of this technology - and in doing so are leaving on the table innumerable opportunities to create even greater value, sales and traffic for their company, product or service and the market share it represents. Below are just a few of...

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Blog Reflection

I still consider myself to be a blog writing novice but as I've got a few entries under my belt I can tell you about an unexpected bonus of this journaling process. A lot of people think that blog writers are just people who are tooting their own horns blabbering on self-righteously about what they believe to be true in life. On the contrary, for me writing a blog has helped me to reflect on my experiences that I may have otherwise have forgotten if I hadn't written them down. It has become a process of self-actualization, whether others have read my thoughts has become less of a priority for me. When I read over my past entries I am surprised to hear about thoughts, ideas, and wisdom that is quite relevant to my present experiences. It's like I already knew some of the solutions to my problems...

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RSS is a Life Raft, Saving Us from a Sea of Useless Information

One of the main problems with the Internet these days is the fact that there is so much information out there; it can be quite hard to find the particular knowledge that you're looking for. It can often feel like you're surfing waves of thick chocolate fudge sauce and your honeycomb board has a crack that's getting wider by the second. Over stimulus is the issue here; you wanted to read opinions from music enthusiasts about music, and every second blog article had to do with new punk hairdo trends and which band has the coolest tattoos. How can we find only the content we're looking for without getting bogged down in miscellaneous information that erodes both time and patience? The answer is in context. There's now a way to sift through the cacophony of babble and wisdom to find exactly...

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Writing Good Blogs

There's a lot of blogs out there on the Web, most of which don't entice one to go back regularly to read updates. What is missing from these on-line journals that would essentially make them 'good' blogs? Well, the answers in life usually come down to simplicities. So let's look at the problem like we were children. Children don't complicate life with miscellaneous information, and when they speak they tell you straight to the point exactly how they feel and think about a subject. First of all, we should ask the questions," Why do blogs exist? And what are they here for?" Well, in an ideal world 'good' blogs would help people connect, sharing knowledge and feelings about issues in life. As they are journals written by individuals we would hope that they'd be readable and open to comment...

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Blog Problems

What in the world is up with the world of blogs? Blogs are meant to be this great new technology where people can share their ideas and interests with others around the globe. As far as I'm concerned the state of blogs is one of chaos, confusion, and anti-interactivity. The other day I decided to do some research on the Web and try to connect to some blog writers out there that interested me. Let me tell you it was not an enjoyable task as I had envisioned. I spent four painful hours surfing through around a thousand on-line journals, and I found only a few that interested me. What are we doing out there people? First of all, just getting to a blog can be a pain in the arse. For example, you type in the words 'Philosophy blogs' and a whole bunch of sites come up. Some are conglomerate sites...

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Writing Quality Blogs

Writing?Blogs?Blogs are on-line journals where people express themselves through writing. Writing?Writing is the process where one puts down words of a language on a format that others can read. This process has not been around very long, to use one of my writing teacher's favorite sayings, "Writing has only existed for one day in the one year that humanity has existed." Speaking and thinking come much easier than writing. These processes just flow out naturally like a river of consciousness; sometimes we hardly have to think about doing them. Anyone and everyone can write words down on paper but that doesn't mean it's 'good writing', myself included. Like most things in life, our society already takes writing for granted which is proving to expose more of our ignorance. Writing is a new form...

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Software Piracy

SOFTWARE PIRACY We regularly hear reports about the cost to the software industry of software piracy, but are the claims to be taken at face value? Statistics are notoriously biased towards what the author is trying to say. Types of Software: There are three basic types of software, although these do have their own subsections, as will be discussed later: 1. Commercial software, purchased with a licence for one or more computers. This generally is coupled with some form of support and regular updates to patch errors etc. Sometimes a new version of the software is offered at a reduced rate as "update". This type of software is generally relatively expensive and is often designed to cover specific industrial purposes. The big exception is the various sets of "office" software, which are designed...

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Cisco CCNA Certification: Becoming A Truly Valuable CCNA.

I've been active in the Cisco Certification track for four years, working my way from the CCNA to the coveted Cisco Certified Internetwork Expert title, and during that time I've conducted job interviews and casual conversations with hundreds of CCNAs and CCNA candidates. The CCNA is an exciting beginning to your Cisco career, but just having the certification simply isn't enough. A recruiter or interviewer isn't going to be impressed just with the cert; you've got to have some real-world knowledge to back it up. I've been down that road myself, and sat on both sides of the CCNA job interview table. With that in mind, I'd like to offer to you some tips on becoming a truly valuable and employable CCNA. Get some hands-on experience. I know the trap well; you can't get experience until you...

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Software Companies: Generate New Revenue Streams and Decrease Costs with Custom e-Learning Content

It's no secret that software companies operate in a very competitive space where rivalry is increasingly fierce and where profit margins can be razor thin. New, smaller software companies are sprouting up each month and the leading software companies continually make strong advancements forward leveraging massive cash flow reserves. This cycle makes it difficult for the mid-sized software company to compete because (a) they don't typically have the cash flow necessary to take giant leaps forward in the industry and (b) because they need to continually move forward to stay ahead of the smaller software companies that are vying for their slot in the marketplace. Consequently, making the jump from an unknown to a mainstream brand can prove to be very difficult for the mid-sized software company....

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Microsoft Great Plains Implementation ? Overview for IT Director/Controller

What is installation in the language of technology? Installation has server and client sides. Server side - Installation creates security environment (logins) on MS SQL Server or MSDE, creates system database - DYNAMICS and then company databases. All these tasks are performed by Microsoft Great Plains Utilities Workstation side - workstation installation copies the client side application, installs current version of MDAC (we need SQL ODBC driver - please check documentation on ODBC DSN setup), registers the application. If you plan to run Great Plains Utilities from the workstation to create server side (see above) - you need to check Install Client and Server Components What is following implementation? Implementation requires combination of technological and accounting skills System...

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Reduce TCO: The Java Database Way

TCO (Total Cost Ownership) is the buzzword in today's business world. This metric helps enterprise managers assess direct and indirect costs and benefits derived from their investment on IT components and services. A vital component of overall TCO is database management. All information-centric applications need databases for data storage. Also, the storage demands of small and mid-sized companies are growing rapidly, as more emphasis is given on data backup and long-term archival of data disaster recovery. Embedded databases have arrived in this scenario as a major cost-cutting tool. They help organizations in managing the growing storage requirements by providing a cost-effective and reliable solution for data backup, file storage and archiving, thereby assuring a lower cost of ownership...

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Instant Messaging is a Sweet Way to Communicate

MSN messenger is a pretty cool invention. I mean I'm not really into serious discussions on the email, answers to questions can often take a few days to arrive because people are so busy these days. I've just been 'hooked up' into Messenger and it's really a different kind of communication, quick, simplistic and even humorous with the capability to express your feelings with 'emotion' cartoons. With Messenger you can communicate with a group of close friends or business partners instantly whenever they are at their computer. When a message is received you are informed instantly on your desktop, you don't have to be at an email site. A little box appears flashing the name of the sender, you read the message and send a reply when you've got a second free. There's a contact list and when...

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Troubleshoot Windows with Task Manager

Task Manager is a Windows system utility that displays thetasks or processes currently running on your computer. Toopen Task Manager, press Ctrl+Alt+Del. The Applcations tablists the applications currently running on your computer.A single application may actually consist of several runningprocesses, and many programs that run in the background arenot listed (you can see icons for some of these programs inthe System Tray). Note: With Windows 98 and Windows Me, Ctrl+Alt+Del willopen Program Manager, which allows you only to closeaplications. However, you can download one of the many TaskManager utilities from the Web. The Processes tab displays a comprehensive list of all theprocesses currently running on your computer. This can bevery useful for monitoring your system. The process tabdisplays...

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To Wire or Not to Wire

To Wire or Not to Wire Wireless networks are en vogue, but your installation won't be successful unless you chose the right type of network and set it up properly. Wired networks require that each computer be connected via a wire to a central location, called a switch or hub. This often involves installing cables through walls and ceilings and can present a challenge for anyone. If the computers in your home or office are all within 500 feet of each other, a wireless network might be for you. A wireless network has no cables. It can connect computers on different floors of a building or even across the street. Aside from the obvious benefit of not having wires, wireless networks are more convenient since the setup, configuration, and reconfiguration can often be done within minutes, without...

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