VII
NETWORKING AND THE INTERNET
OPEN SOURCE SOFTWARE
To create an RSS feed, you first assign a local name for the feed. This is used to create a local data file, and thereafter, you fill in the title and description of the RSS feed and the URL of the Web site it refers to. Next, you add new items to the RSS feed. And then, you enter the destination information and publish the RSS feed. The result of all that you have done is an XML file in RSS format. Along with it an optional companion HTML file can also be generated, and this file can be read in a browser. The user can maintain multiple RSS feeds with ListGarden. An important and useful aspect of ListGarden is that it stores information about the RSS feed on the same machine even if the operation was done on a remote access server. This enables the user to continue from where he left off. When the user publishes an update to the RSS feed, ListGarden connects to the Web server to upload an updated copy of the XML file that makes up the RSS feed.
7.7.2 AgileRss (www.agilerss.com) AgileRss is a desktop aggregator. It has the ability to display any RSS, ATOM, and XML news feed, and therefore, allows the user to remain updated with the preferred sources of information that support RSS. The RSS News Ticker is headline displayer. It stays at the top of the screen. The user can customise the news ticker from the preferences panel. AgileRss makes life simple: it reduces the time and effort needed to check for updates, is able to subscribe to a new feed. Also, it can be configured to check for new content at user decided intervals, and retrieve the content.
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