jrtrana

RSS Functionality

What I find particularly intersting in this article is the quote "And RSS is increasingly becoming the principal means of real-time communication." Quite a feat in this day and age. I also and very intrigued by the final paragraph when it explains how RSS is so standardized that it functions properly across all platforms. The possibilities of using RSS seem almost limitless as far as Information Business is concerned. It seems that ever since I heard of RSS the first time this semester I have seen it everywhere. I am beginning to wonder why I had never heard of it before. I think what RSS is lacking right now is a large following from the common computer user. It seems the dedicated techie knows all about the great perks of RSS, but "Average Joe Home PC User" who only uses his computer to word process, internet shop, and listen to music has no idea what he is missing. I wonder how long it will take for RSS to gain a larger following from the lay crowd.

Blogging - The Hybrid

In this article I really like the author's comment of how blogging is a somwhere between e-mail and the Web, without the disadvantages of both. One interesting implication that this brings to mind is online learning. Of course that is exactly what is happening currently in this class, but I am thinking on a larger scale. I wonder what the possibility of teaching certain courses through blogging. The instructor will initiate certain blogs and the students respond. Inside of the Business School I think this could work really well with all the workshops that are offered. Instead of going to a specific session, take the course online through blogs and get other student's feedback. I think the workshops that the Office of Career Development offer and the Executive Skills workshops could be very effective in an blog format.

Clutter

Even with the limited use I have had with my.yahoo.com and using RSS feeds, I am sold. I love the benefits of having multiple news sources condensed into one single location. There are a large number of people, especially politicians who read 2 to 3 newspapers each morning for more balance. What drives me crazy about sites like my.yahoo.com are the excessive amounts of advertisements and filler that accompany the real 'meat' of the site. I am curious as to what other people think of the idea of a pay site that lets you customize EXACTLY how you want your news to come. Are there enough people that would actually pay for these kind of services? I am also curious as to the possibilities in implementing these kind of feeds to portable devices. Instead of bumping elbows with the guy next to you in the subway and you fumble with 3 full size newspapers, use a specialized news reading handheld.

The costs of RSS

In reading the artilce 'RSS Feeds Can Build Web Traffic, but Fence Sitters Note Problems' I noticed an emphasis on encouraging RSS even though there is a limited market of actual users. I am curious as to what the actual costs of implementing RSS are to a company. Not the costs as they relate to customer satisfaction, but, the actual monetary costs. What is needed in increased manpower or time devoted to implementing and maintaining RSS feeds? I love the idea of the convenience of RSS as a consumer especially when it comes to online shopping with auction sites like ebay, however, I am skeptical of the practicallity for certain organizations. I don't know if there are any real costs assiciated with RSS but if so it may not be right for certain companies to implement it right now.

Amazon Web Services

For all that were stimulated by the idea of Amazon's web services, Here is the link. Amazon lists at the bottom of the page some of the benefits of using their services. Among the most interesting are the referral fees and managing inventory. Being a free service the benefits can be great for someone trying to make just a little money on the side. College students instantly come to mind for me. This seems a great way to make some extra spending money without putting forth a great deal of time.

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