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Adding RSS feeds to a Web site can offer great benefits. If you post news and commentaries on a regular basis, your readers can subscribe to them through an RSS feed. You can offer a snippet of the article (with a link to your Web site) or post the entire article. The feeds can be used to inform your customers of new product releases, industry developments and other information about your business. If you operate a business that changes due to the seasons of the year (e.g., plants or food), you could provide timely topics for your readers. WebReference.com and internet.com have many RSS feeds to inform our readers of recent news stories and industry-related articles.
Many of the more recent content management systems and blogs have RSS capability built-in. If this isn't available, you can can create your own feeds, and you don't need to be an XML expert to do it. There are several programs available; some even guide you through the entire process.
One of those programs is Feed Editor Lite, by ExtraLabs Software. This program will get you up and running in no time at all. It's quick to learn and easy to use.
If you've never created an RSS feed before, there's no need for concern, the New Feed Creation Wizard walks you through the entire process. To begin, you enter the feed title, a description of the feed, and the feed link. Then, just enter the individual feed items, including the title, description, a link to the page, or portion of the page, that contains the full story or article. Repeat this for as many items as you want to have in your feed. Once you've entered them all, the entire feed, along with the individual items, is completed. You can enter optional fields for the feed or the individual items if you like but they're not necessary. You can also add an image to the feed to give it a more professional look. (You can create an unlimited amount of feeds.)
Once you've created the feed, you can view it with the built-in preview. The viewer gives four different views: Bloglines; Classic; Firefox; and Simply.
In addition, an WYSIWYG HTML editor is also included. You can add formatting such as bold, italics, and underline, as well as lists. Other options are the ability to insert links, graphics and color.
If you prefer, you can create templates for exporting your feeds or, perhaps, for use as includes in another file. These are simple to create using the instructions in the help file. Feeds can be exported to HTML, CSV and JavaScript formats.
Once you've created your feeds, you can upload them using the Feed Editor Lite software. Setting up the built-in FTP is straightforward, and completes the task of adding the feed to your site.
Managing several feeds is easy. When an individual feed is opened, the related feed items are opened along with it.
Included with the program is a PHP script for converting your feeds to HTML pages. You can use this script to create new Web pages or to embed information in an existing Web page.
The help file also includes links to different specifications and related information, as well as sites for testing your feeds. There is also an online manual available.
The download file is 1.9Mb and includes a 30 day evaluation period. The software is compatible with MS Windows 9x/ME/NT/2000/XP/2003.
Overall, Feed Editor Lite is an excellent editor for RSS feeds. It's easy to use, without having to learn RSS or XML. At only $29.95 for a single license, I recommend this to anyone who is looking to add RSS feeds to their Web site. It also includes free updates and premium support.
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