RSSfeed

An RSS feed is a standardized XML-based format used to publish frequently updated information such as news headlines, blog posts, and podcast episodes. The name RSS has been used for several related formats since the late 1990s; common versions include RSS 0.9x, RSS 2.0, and RSS 1.0, while Atom emerged later as an alternative syndication standard. RSS feeds provide a machine-readable summary of content through elements that typically include a channel (or feed) title, link, description, and a series of items each with its own title, link, publication date, and summary. Enclosures are used to attach media files, enabling podcast distribution.

Users subscribe to feeds with feed reader applications or aggregator services, which poll feeds for updates and present new items in a consolidated view. Websites publish feed URLs so readers and automated services can detect changes without visiting the site. Feeds support namespaces and extensions to carry metadata beyond the core elements, and are commonly served with the MIME type application/rss+xml.

RSS has been widely used for content syndication, notification, and automated workflows, and remains a lightweight way to distribute updates across platforms. Its usage has declined in some consumer-facing contexts with the rise of social media and centralized apps, but it remains important for decentralized consumption, accessibility, and integration with automation tools.