Keep up to date with the news by using RSS feeds

Online RSS
One of the problems with relying on a dedicated aggregator or web browser to subscribe to feeds is that the feeds are then only available on one computer.

If you would like to be able to subscribe to feeds and then access them from any internet-connected computer, an online reader is required. There are a few to choose from including Google Reader and Bloglines. Here, we’ll look at Google Reader.

All that’s needed to take advantage of Google Reader is a Google account. Once you’ve visited the site and signed in, click ‘Add a subscription’ and paste in the address of a known feed.

To view a feed, click one of the links displayed in the Subscriptions section to the left-hand side of the page.

By default, the contents of a feed is shown in Expanded view so the title and summary are displayed. To fit more headlines or posts onto a single page, opt to use List view by clicking the appropriate link to the upper right of the page.

When working in List view, clicking a headline once will display an expanded version of the story, while clicking it again will open the story on the original website in a new window.

Sharing RSS feeds
Google Reader makes it possible to share feed stories with others. When working in Expanded mode, click the Share link beneath a story and it will then be listed in the ‘Shared items’ subfolder in the ‘Your stuff’ section to the left.

By default, shared items are shared with any Google contacts who are also friends, but this can be customised and changed.

Click the ‘Sharing settings’ link to the left of the page and an options page will be displayed. By clicking the Change link to the right it is possible to opt to share feed stories with all your contacts rather than just those who are friends.

Contacts who are already part of a share are listed in the centre of the window, and you can stop sharing with someone by clicking the Remove link next to their name.

It is also possible to share stories with people who are not contacts: just enter an email address in the text box to the lower right-hand side of the page and click the Send Invites button.

As with Google Mail, stories within feeds you have subscribed to can be starred to allow for easier access in the future, and tags can be added to aid searches.

Move to the ‘Browse for stuff’ section, and a series of suggested feeds will be displayed. From here it’s also possible to import subscriptions from another feed reader. But before this can be done, a file is needed.