You can subscribe to the Millsaps-Wilson Library Blog using blog-reading software, also known as RSS readers or aggregators.

RSS (Really Simple Syndication) is a convenient, spam-free method for tracking not only Millsaps-Wilson Library News but hundreds and thousands of news sites, blogs, library reference resources, and much more.

The orange “XML” logo is often used to link to public RSS feeds. In most Web browsers, you can right-click on the “XML” logo, copy the link, and paste it into your news reader.

If You’re Already RSS Savvy…

If you are already familiar with RSS, drop

http://library.millsaps.edu/index.php into your RSS reader–most readers will find related feeds.

Getting a Bloglines Account

To read our RSS feed, you need blog-reading software. We discuss other blog-reading software at the end of this tutorial, but we base our instructions on Bloglines.

We at Millsaps-Wilson Library don’t have any connection to Bloglines other than we like it. Bloglines is easy, free, and Web-based–you don’t have to install anything on your computer.

1. Go to www.bloglines.com and set up a (free) account.

2. Log in to Bloglines with your new account.

Adding the LII Feed to Bloglines

3. Select (click on) the “Add” link on the upper left-hand side of Bloglines, under “My Feeds.”

4. The right-hand side of Bloglines should say “Subscribe.” Below that, you should see a box that says “Blog or Feed URL.” Type or copy and paste http://library.millsaps.edu/index.php into the “Blog or Feed URL box, and click “Subscribe.”

5. You may now see up to ten different feeds. Select and subscribe to one or both of the feeds that begin with the URL http://library.millsaps.edu/index.php (Ignore any feeds that begin with anything other than http://library.millsaps.edu/index.php.)

Using Bloglines to Read RSS Feeds

Your feeds will appear on the left side of your Bloglines account. Reading your feeds is flat-out easy: just click on the names of the feeds. Feeds with new posts are bolded.

Poke around Bloglines. It’s easy to use. You can quickly learn how to create folders to organize your feeds, unsubscribe to some of the feeds that Bloglines gave you when you signed up, and find and add new feeds.

Finding More RSS Feeds

Bloglines is searchable. You can also find feeds in Bloglines through its “Related Feeds” feature.

You can also browse the blogosphere with Technorati or Feedster. There are a number of good blog-finding tools, such as Blogging About Incredible Blogs and, especially for librarians and library groupies, Blogbib.

Finding More RSS Readers

Most aggregators are clients (software you install on your computer); some, like Bloglines, are Web-based. Some are fee-based, and some are free. You might try Newzcrawler and Amphetadesk. The Firefox browser also offers an RSS reader plugin so you can read feeds directly through Firefox.

Need Help

Please email the Millsaps Librarians at librarian@millsaps.edu if you need any help setting up RSS. Thanks to the Librarians Internet Index at http://lii.org for the content of this post and information about RSS.