RSS

RSS - Really Simple Syndication as I understand it is the ability to get a list of the new information posted to any website that interests a person. In order to get an RSS feed from a website first the website needs to offer RSS and second the user needs to have an aggregator that will receive these updates. These aggregators can be gotten easily, and free versions are available. Once you have an aggregator and have chosen which website(s) you want feeds from you will get a list of new information. You can then follow the link to anything that strikes your interest. This saves the user the time it takes to visit every single website that is interesting to them and search through the new information for something interesting.

From what I've read libraries like RSS because it allows them to communicate with users in a direct way. They can make updates to their webpages and the user who has subscribed to an RSS feed of their site will find out about it in a timely fashion, not just if they happen to visit the site. Information that may be hidden in an unusual place, such as new materials, may now become more visible. The disadvantage/advantage is that only people that subscri be get the info. This is good because people don't feel like they're being spammed, but not great because not everyone gets the message. But, it is another way of getting the message out, especially to the tech savy user. RSS may, in part, be attractive to libraries because of the "cool" factor. It shows that libraries know what is going on in the tech world and are keeping up with it.