How subscribing to RSS can save you time?

Posted August 19th, 2009 in Internet, Web 2.0 by Manish Misra

rssAlmost all our favorite websites and blogs provide RSS feeds, but does it makes sense for us to subscribe to these RSS feeds? Well, yes it does! It can save us time and keep us updated on the latest topics that we are interested in.

Watch this simple video to know more about about RSS :

What is RSS?

RSS (most commonly translated as “Really Simple Syndication” but sometimes “Rich Site Summary”) is a format for delivering regularly changing web content. Many news-related sites, weblogs and other online publishers syndicate their content as an RSS Feed to whoever wants it.

Why RSS? Benefits and Reasons for using RSS

RSS solves a problem for people who regularly use the web. It allows you to easily stay informed by retrieving the latest content from the sites you are interested in. You save time by not needing to visit each site individually. You ensure your privacy, by not needing to join each site’s email newsletter. The number of sites offering RSS feeds is growing rapidly and includes big names like Yahoo News.

What do I need to do to read an RSS Feed? RSS Feed Readers and News Aggregators

Feed Reader or News Aggregator software allow you to grab the RSS feeds from various sites and display them for you to read and use.

A variety of RSS Readers are available for different platforms. Some popular feed readers include Amphetadesk (Windows, Linux, Mac), FeedReader (Windows), and NewsGator (Windows – integrates with Outlook). There are also a number of web-based feed readers available. My Yahoo, Bloglines, and Google Reader are popular web-based feed readers.

Once you have your Feed Reader, it is a matter of finding sites that syndicate content and adding their RSS feed to the list of feeds your Feed Reader checks. Many sites display a small icon with the acronyms RSS, XML, or RDF to let you know a feed is available.

Mind Tools – Essiential skills for an excellent career

Posted August 12th, 2009 in General, Internet, Self Help by Manish Misra

Mind Tools – Your one-stop source for career improvement, career success and career solutions information.

MindTools.com is a leading provider of online, instantly-available self-study management and career training.

Mind Tool resources focus on the following skill areas of management and soft-skill training:

  • personal effectiveness
  • leadership
  • time management
  • team management
  • communication
  • stress management
  • goal setting, and
  • career and life planning

Mind Tools offers one of the most effective and easily implemntable tools and techniques for personal and professional development. Every one should try it.