• What are news feeds?
• How do I start using feeds?
• How do I get a news reader?
• South Africa Government Information latest speeches and statements

What are news feeds?

News feeds allow you to see when websites have added new content. You can get the latest headlines in one place, as soon as they are published, without having to visit the websites you have taken the feed from.

Feeds are also known as RSS. There is some discussion as to what RSS stands for, but most people go for 'Really Simple Syndication'. The feeds themselves are just web pages, designed to be read by computers rather than people.

How do I start using feeds?

In general, the first thing you need is something called a news reader. This is a piece of software that checks the feeds and lets you read any new articles that have been added. Many different versions are available. Some are accessed using a browser, and some are downloadable applications.

Browser-based news readers let you catch up with your RSS feed subscriptions from any computer, whereas downloadable applications let you store them on your computer, in the same way that you either keep your e-mail on a web-based service like Hotmail, or download it using Outlook.

Once you have chosen a news reader, all you have to do is to decide what content you want it to receive.

If you click on the RSS button you can subscribe to the feed in various ways:

• drag the URL of the feed into your news reader
• cut and paste the URL into a new feed in your news reader
• drag the RSS button into your news reader.

Some browsers, such as Firefox, Opera and Safari, automatically check for feeds for you when you visit a website, and display an icon when they find one. This can make subscribing to feeds much easier. For more details on these, please check their websites.

How do I get a news reader?

There is a range of different news readers available and new versions are appearing all the time.

Different news readers work on different operating systems, so you will need to choose one that will work with your computer.

South Africa Government Information latest speeches and statements

For the latest speeches and statements on South Africa Government Information

• drag the URL of the feed into your news reader
• cut and paste the URL into a new feed in your news reader
• drag the RSS button into your news reader.