1. Web 2.0: Concepts and Applications 3 Syndicating Content

2. Overview  Syndication is the process of making a summary of a Web site’s information available to other Web sites and applications  A Web feed represents the list of items that are being shared  Feed reader applications and devices access the Web feed of each of the subscribed sites and deliver any new content Chapter 3: Syndicating Content2

3. Overview Chapter 3: Syndicating Content3 http://www.youtube.com/user/leelefever#p/search/2/0klgLsSxGsU

4. Exploring Web Feeds  RSS (Really Simple Syndication) is one of the first and most popular types of Web feeds  Web sites providing feeds usually display an orange Web feed icon –Feed icon –RSS icon –XML icon  Google Reader is a popular feed reader application Chapter 3: Syndicating Content4

5. How can you recognize if a Web site syndicates its content using Web feeds?  There will be the presence of a feed icon on the Web page or address bar  Usually appears in orange Chapter 3: Syndicating Content5

6. Exploring Web Feeds Chapter 3: Syndicating Content6

7. Publish / Subscribe Model Chapter 3: Syndicating Content7

8. Exploring Web Feeds  Many bloggers syndicate their blogs’ content as Web feeds  News sites syndicate news headlines  Monster provides an RSS feed with job postings  eBay alerts users of daily deals  Amazon keeps users informed about bestsellers  Flickr notifies users of new photos Chapter 3: Syndicating Content8

9. Exploring Web Feeds Chapter 3: Syndicating Content9

10. Subscribing to and Reading Feeds Chapter 3: Syndicating Content10

11. Subscribing to and Reading Feeds  The ability to subscribe to a feed is standard in many Web browsers  The method by which you subscribe to feeds varies with each Web browser  Every browser presents Web feeds differently –Feeds are syndicated the same XML (Extensible Markup Language) Chapter 3: Syndicating Content11

12. Subscribing to and Reading Feeds Chapter 3: Syndicating Content12

13. What is the advantage of using a Web- based feed reader rather than a Web browser to manage your RSS feeds?  Updated content from a variety of Web pages can be delivered  You don’t have to download a client application  Can work in any browser and on multiple devices  Feeds that are saved with a browser are only available on that machine Chapter 3: Syndicating Content13

14. Features of Web-Based and Client Feed Readers Chapter 3: Syndicating Content14

15. Features of Web-Based and Client Feed Readers  Web-based feed readers –Google Reader Contains feed searching capability –Bloglines  Client feed readers –FeedDemon –FeedReader –Microsoft Outlook Chapter 3: Syndicating Content15

16. Features of Web-Based and Client Feed Readers Chapter 3: Syndicating Content16

17. Features of Web-Based and Client Feed Readers  Blogs can contain gadgets to display Web feeds in sidebar gadgets –Gadgets update when blog is loaded or refreshed  Blogger defaults to automatically create feeds for its hosted blogs –Also syndicates full content  Professional bloggers manage their feeds and collect information about how users interact with them –Feed managing services –Metrics –Reach Chapter 3: Syndicating Content17

18. Features of Web-Based and Client Feed Readers Chapter 3: Syndicating Content18

19. Features of Web-Based and Client Feed Readers  Web-based applications incorporate data from Web feeds to present it visually Chapter 3: Syndicating Content19

20. How is reading RSS feeds different than reading e-mail messages?  RSS feeds provide updated information from presubscribed Web sites  Brings the information to one central location  Three common features include: –Adding and searching for feeds –Organizing feeds into folders –Marking all unread items as read Chapter 3: Syndicating Content20

21. Formats for Web Feeds  RSS 2.0 is the most widely used version of RSS –RSS is closed to further modifications  Atom is a newer, evolving alternative to RSS –Not as simple as RSS, but is becoming popular  Differences between RSS and Atom are transparent to the user Chapter 3: Syndicating Content21

22. Formats for Web Feeds  XML (Extensible Markup Language) is the underlying technology used for describing content syndicated using RSS and Atom feeds –Tags describe information Opening tags Closing tags –RSS and Atom feeds are the most common types of content represented in XML Chapter 3: Syndicating Content22

23. Formats for Web Feeds Chapter 3: Syndicating Content23

24. Formats for Web Feeds Chapter 3: Syndicating Content24

25. Exploring Podcasts  A podcast is a series of audio or video files that are broadcast to a computer or personal media player over the Internet by a publication in an RSS feed (“Personal On Demand broadcast”) –Podcast reader iTunes –You can download and watch podcast episodes directly on a Web site, or with a Web-based application Chapter 3: Syndicating Content25

26. Exploring Podcasts Chapter 3: Syndicating Content26

27. Exploring Podcasts Chapter 3: Syndicating Content27

28. Exploring Podcasts  Web-based podcast services contain directory listings of audio and video podcasts –Odeo manages podcast selections Chapter 3: Syndicating Content28

29. How is a podcast different than an audio or video file published on a Web site?  You don’t have to continuously check a site for an update, but your computer is automatically updated  You can download podcasts to multimedia players Chapter 3: Syndicating Content29

30. Features of Podcast Readers Chapter 3: Syndicating Content30

31. Anatomy of a Podcast Feed Chapter 3: Syndicating Content31

32. Creating Podcasts  Requires basic equipment for recording and editing digital audio and video –Most laptops have built-in Webcams and microphones, as well as recording software Chapter 3: Syndicating Content32

33. Creating Podcasts Chapter 3: Syndicating Content33

34. Configuring Blogger to Support Podcasts Chapter 3: Syndicating Content34

35. Configuring Blogger to Support Podcasts Chapter 3: Syndicating Content35

36. Configuring Blogger to Support Podcasts Chapter 3: Syndicating Content36

37. Summary  Syndication is a way to distribute and share Web content –Web feeds  Users can subscribe to Web feeds using a Web browser or a feed reader application  Content publishers syndicate their content as feeds using either the RSS or Atom formats, represented in XML  Podcasts are RSS feeds with an enclosed multimedia file Chapter 3: Syndicating Content37

38. Web 2.0: Concepts and Applications 3 Syndicating Content Chapter 3 Complete