Email Alerts and RSS Feeds

RSS stands for "really simple syndication" and/or "rich site summary." An RSS feed is a method of broadcasting links to content on a website. Users "subscribe" to a list of headlines and short descriptions on a variety of topics, from a variety of sources and can view them all at once using a program called an "RSS aggregator". A link to the full story/podcast/etc. will accompany each of the headlines and descriptions.  RSS feeds on Pall.com are designated by the orange and white "RSS" icon .

A podcast is a multimedia file (usually an audio file in .mp3 format) which is distributed across the Internet using a web syndication feed such as RSS and ATOM feeds. These files are specially formatted to be downloaded by an "RSS aggregator" for use on a portable MP3 device.  The term "podcast" originated from a combination of the words "iPod" and "broadcast", but has since been said to stand for "Personal On Demand broadCAST."  Podcasts on Pall.com are designated by the blue and white "Podcasts" icon .

To take advantage of an "RSS feed," you need to have an "RSS aggregator" (also called "RSS readers" and "RSS channels") or an internet browser with a built in RSS reader.  Internet Explorer 7, Mozilla Firefox and Safari all have built in RSS readers (Internet Explorer 6, the most popular browser in use does not have a built in reader). Pall's RSS feeds can be added to any RSS aggregator by copying the url of the particular feed off of our website, and pasting it into your aggregator.

An RSS aggregator is a computer application that tracks RSS feeds, organizes the information and notifies the user when there is an update to a certain feed. Many aggregators are available to download and run off of the user's computer, while others are accessed via the web.

There are numerous freeware RSS aggregators, both web-based and pc-based, available on the Internet.  Here are some of our top picks:

Web	-	Google Reader & Netvibes
PC	-	Sharpreader & RSS Bandit
Mac	-	NetNewsWire

News websites, community and religious organization sites, product information sites, medical websites, blogs, and many other types of websites feature content that changes in an unscheduled manner. Most people don't have the time to check each of their favorite websites often enough to see all of their important updates.

RSS feeds with RSS aggregators are the best way to organize and view new and changed content on websites. Notifications of changes to multiple websites are handled easily, and the results are presented to you in a well organized fashion.

To add a Pall RSS feed to your aggregator, all you need is the url of our feed.  Anywhere you see the "RSS" icon on Pall.com, there is an RSS feed.  Simply click the icon and copy the address of the resulting page.  This address is all your aggregator will need to track our feed.  Check your aggregator's help file for information on how to add a new feed to it.