RSS is Based!
published onI recently started using Newsboat for RSS.
Getting a proper RSS setup has been on my “cosy setup” checklist for a while. It didn’t take much time at all to get it working either.
I previously just used browser plug-ins for this however this approach is terrible in practice.
Now that I have a proper setup using Newsboat I can truly appreciate RSS feeds and I would recommend using them to anyone that wants to keep up to date with things without engaging with social media.
What is RSS?
RSS is an abbreviation of Really Simple Syndication, although this isn’t it’s original name. Put simply it is a way for you to download a feed from a website and keep up to date with it.
This means that instead of using intrusive and manipulated social media feeds to keep up to date with your favourite web feeds you can have it all in one place on your computer.
You may in fact already be using RSS without realising it. Did you know that most podcast apps are just RSS readers with a media player?
Using RSS you can completely replace the need for a Google account to keep up to date with your favourite YouTube channels. Although adding YouTube channels to an RSS feed isn’t as straightforward as blogs or podcasts it is doable and once you have done it once the process is quickly repeatable.
One small caveat to this is that YouTube can choose to eliminate RSS feeds at any time so it may be worth keeping a separate list of channels you subscribe to for the inevitable third party solution that pops up (or perhaps already exists? 👀 Let me know please) if this situation were to arise.
Why use RSS?
- Censorship Resistant: You get what you subscribed to, no manipulation by algorithms or loss of access based on social media account status.
- Convenience: Every feed you care for in one place, in whatever order you want, categorised, tagged, etc however you see fit.
- Minimalist: No need for accounts or web services. Just a list, add or remove as needed.
- Portable: You can read the feeds using any client you like.
- Privacy: RSS just loads an XML file from a web server, there is no tracking, JavaScript, middleman services, etc. You get the feed sent directly to you without the need to identify yourself (beyond IP requirements).
How do I get started?
You can get started by downloading an RSS client. I recommend the following:
newsboat- CLI client, highly configurable and easy to configure.liferea- GUI client, highly configurable graphical client, uses GTK+ theme.
These can be found in your distro’s package manager.
Now you have a client you can start adding your favourite feeds.
Tips:
- Add feeds as you go, doing it all at once can be an exhaustive exercise.
- If a site doesn’t natively support RSS you will likely find a tool that can create a feed for you instead.
- Some sites provide feeds for specific topics.
- Read the documentation for your chosen client if you need help configuring it.