RSS?

KINGSTON, Pennsylvania-
If you're unfamiliar with what an RSS is, you've come to the right place.  Created in March of 1999, an RSS, short for Rich Site Summary also Really Simple Syndication, is a specific format used to deliver content on the internet that is constantly changing.  For those of us who are tech savy, and use the internet quite often, the RSS is a great tool.  Rather than having to visit each site individually each day to check updates, RSS retrieves the latest content from any site that a user is interested in that offers RSS feeds.

Interested in using RSS feeds?  First, you'll need RSS reader software such as Amphetadesk (Mac, Windows, Linux) and Feed Reader (Windows).  There are also web-based feed readers such as My Yahoo and Google Reader.  Once you have a feed reader, you can look for websites that have RSS feeds that you can add to your feed.  For your convenience, some sites include an RSS, XML, or RDF icon, indicating that you can add their site to your feed reader. 

Student, Jason Cholish enjoys using RSS feeds on his laptop every day to keep up with his favorite web sites.  "It's a lot easier to quickly get to the websites I want to to check the updates.  It's very convenient,"said Jason.

Librarian at Wyoming Seminary in Kingston, Courtney Lewis is also fond of the RSS feeds.

"RSS feeds are one of the best things to use on the internet, " said Lewis.  As a librarian, Lewis uses RSS feeds to gain updates from the databases used in the library for research.

Lewis also added, "It's the best thing since sliced bread."


 

Facebook- A great tool to connect with family and friends

Facebook, which was created and launched by Mark Zuckerburg in February of 2004, serves as a great tool to connect with family and friends, near, or far.  As of July 2010, over 500 million people across the globe are using Facebook. From Ireland, to New Zealand, Australia, Spain, and so on, Facebook is a universal success and connection tool between people all around the world.  Whether it's creating statuses, posting on a friends wall, uploading photos, or instant messaging, there are lots of ways through facebook to keep in touch and show what you've been up to.  

Many students here at Wyoming Seminary use facebook to talk with friends who are in different countries over our long holiday breaks.  Students like Alisa Oh '12 of Korea enjoys keeping in touch with her friends using Facebook over the holidays.  "Facebook is a great way to stay in contact with my friends over break.  It is hard to use a phone in Korea to call into other countries, so the easiest way is to message my friends over Facebook."  

Facebook is also a great tool for students like Fran Domiano '12 of Old Forge, who can stay in touch with her sister while she is away at college.  "Facebook helps me connect with my sister, Katrina, who is gone away to school. We can instant message each other, write on each others walls and inbox eachother! I can even record a video on her wall and she can do the same, so its like we are talking to eachother face to face!"

All in all, Facebook is widely used around the globe, and is a great tool to keep in touch with your friends and family. 

To Blog or Not to Blog?

I have never blogged before, and I cannot say that I ever will in the near future (besides for this class), but blogging is a great way to express and voice your opinions, share a story amongst your friends, teach a lesson, persuade a group of people, or just to vent about drama.  Many people today use Facebook, Myspace, Twitter, and blogging to share their opinion on a topic of their choice.  This helps many people from teenagers to adults express something when they are feeling down, happy, angry, etc.  Your own blog is left for you to determine what is posted, and whether you decide to keep it open for all to read, or kept as a personal online diary just for yourself, a blog is a way to express yourself.  Blogging can be a great tool, as I have been able to read my indoor field hockey coach's blog, who plays internationally.  She blogs about her experiences in other countries.  Blogs are not essential to human survival, however, they serve as a great, personal space to express yourself.