Blogs & RSS:What they can mean

to your library

Michael Sauers, Internet Trainer, BCRCO SLA, 3rd November 2004

What is a blog?

A blog, short for weblog (pronounced “we blog”,) is an online journal in which the postings are presented in reverse-chronological order.Typically blogs contain links to other online resources with additional commentary from the blog’s author.

Why should your library have a blog?

They’re an easy way to provide information about what’s happening in your library.

Little to no (X)HTML experience necessary.

Combined with RSS feeds it’s another way for patrons to receive timely information about the library.

How do I create a blog?

There are several services and software packages out there that make creating a blog easy. The two most popular are:MoveableType (client)

http://www.movabletype.org/Blogger (Web service)

http://www.blogger.com/

Blogger

What is RSS?

Depending on who you ask it stands for either “Really Simple Syndication”, “Rich Site Summary”, or “RDF Site Summary”.

RSS is an XML language for syndicating news items on the Internet.

How does RSS work?

The author creates an RSS file.Users subscribe to the file via an

aggregator.When the author updates the RSS file, the

user is automatically notified of the new items and may read them on their schedule.

Are there different versions of RSS?

Yes. In fact, there are currently nine different versions:RSS 0.90, 0.91, 0.92, 0.93, 0.94, 1.0, 2.0, 3.0 & Atom Feeds

Each has different features from the author’s point of view.

Today’s aggregators support all of the versions transparently.

What does RSS look like?<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8" ?><rss version="2.0"> <channel> <title>BCR: The Third Indicator</title> <link>http://www.bcr.org/publications/thirdind/</link> <description>The Third Indicator, published monthly, is a technical memo

focusing on OCLC products and services. It includes general OCLC news as well as detailed technical information on cataloging, reference and resource sharing. Announcements of new OCLC developments are also included.</description>

<lastBuildDate>Tue, 21 Sep 2004 21:37:39 GMT</lastBuildDate> <generator>ListGarden Program 1.01</generator> <docs>http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss</docs> <item> <title>WorldCat Resource Sharing Training</title><link>http://www.bcr.org/publications/thirdind/2004/august/

augsharetrain04.html</link> <description>If you'd like to see what WorldCat Resource Sharing looks like

and learn more about it, visit the OCLC Web site at www.oclc.org/ill/migration/ or view the WorldCat Resource Sharing tutorial at www5.oclc.org/downloads/tutorials/firstsearch/sv/rsbasics/intro/index.html/.</description>

<pubDate>Tue, 21 Sep 2004 19:29:47 GMT</pubDate> <guid isPermaLink="false">thirdind-2004-08-21-19-29-47</guid> </item> </channel></rss>

What is an aggregator?

“A news aggregator is a software or a remotely hosted service that periodically reads a set of news sources, in one of several XML-based formats, finds the new bits, and displays them in reverse-chronological order on a single page.”— Wikipedia

It’s what you need to read RSS feeds.

What are the different types of aggregators?

Standalone ClientsFeedReader, Radio UserLand

PIM add-insPluck, NewsGator, intraVnews

Browser add-insFirefox 1.0PR, Sage

Web-basedBloglines, NewsIsFree

A list is available @http://www.lights.com/weblogs/rss.html

FeedReader

Pluck

Firefox 1.0PR

Bloglines

How can I find feeds?

Feedster

Bloglines

BlogrollsA list of blogs/feeds read by another blogger

How do I subscribe to a feed?

Look for an orange icon:

Depending on your aggregator, the subscription procedure may range from copying and pasting the link to right-clicking and selecting “subscribe”.

How do I create a feed?

Hand-rolledYou type the markup and the content

Semi-automatedYou type the content, software generates the markup. (ListGarden)

Fully-automatedYou put the content in your blog and software generates a feed based on that content. (RSSify @ LISFeeds.com)

ListGarden

Notable library blogs & feeds Librarian.net

www.librarian.net Librarian’s Rant

lblog.jalcorn.net LISNews

www.lisnews.com The Shifted Librarian

www.theshiftedlibrarian.com

Travelin’ Librariantravelinlibrarian.blogspot.com

Unshelvedwww.overduemedia.com

Free Range Librarianfreerangelibrarian.com

Crime in the Librarycrimeinthelibrary.blogspot.com

Tame the Webwww.tametheweb.com/ttwblog

LibraryTechtonicswww.librarytechtonics.info