What Is RSS?
The Real Story Behind It
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RSS, which stands for Really Simple Syndication or Rich Site Summary, is a simple XML based format that allows anyone to easily share content on the web. Others would say RSS is a web content syndication format and also an XML format used primarily by news sites and weblog publishers for syndicating their content.
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RSS (also referred to as feeds, RSS feeds, news feeds, RDF (Resource Description Framework) and web feeds) is simply a technology that gives you easy access to news, web content, and other information in real-time, delivered directly to you, without having to visit a web site. RSS delivers information as an XML file, and this XML file is called an RSS feed. RSS is also at the heart of the exciting new phenomenon called "pod casting," which lets consumers automatically download audio files and play them on portable devices like Apple's iPod.
It is by no means a perfect format, but it is very popular and widely supported, and most commonly known as a method of distributing links to content in your web site that you'd like others to use, or in some other way, allows people to easily add links to your content within their own web pages. RSS is based on XML (eXtensible Markup Language), the specialized Web page language that provides structured data to Internet-based applications. RSS is undoubtedly an important first step on the path towards an interconnected network of shared social services. RSS is one the latest buzzwords flying around the internet, constantly referred to, but hardly ever explained its use. Of course, the real problem right now is that most people on the Web still don't have any idea what RSS is.
RSS originated in 1999, and has strived to be a simple, easy to understand format, with relatively modest goals. Originally, RSS was introduced by Netscape in 1999 then later abandoned in 2001. RSS as a publishing standard has been rapidly growing and is being widely adapted by most of the web publishers today. If you're tired of getting too many emails or trying to keep up with favorite web sites, RSS is for you. RSS makes it easy for anybody to stay connected with their readers, members and clients and build lasting relationships.
 RSS Definition from Wikipedia
RSS (which, in its latest format, stands for "Really Simple Syndication") is a family of web feed formats used to publish frequently updated content such as blog entries, news headlines or podcasts. An RSS document, which is called a "feed," "web feed," or "channel," contains either a summary of content from an associated web site or the full text. RSS makes it possible for people to keep up with their favorite web sites in an automated manner that's easier than checking them manually.
RSS content can be read using software called a "feed reader" or an "aggregator." The user subscribes to a feed by entering the feed's link into the reader or by clicking an RSS icon in a browser that initiates the subscription process. The reader checks the user's subscribed feeds regularly for new content, downloading any updates that it finds.
The initials "RSS" are used to refer to the following formats:
- Really Simple Syndication (RSS 2.0)
- RDF Site Summary (RSS 1.0 and RSS 0.90)
- Rich Site Summary (RSS 0.91)
RSS formats are specified using XML, a generic specification for the creation of data formats.
Other site's point of view on the definition of RSS:-
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