What Is RSS? A Step-by-Step Guide to Google Reader

April 28, 2008

(Abraham here. Thanks to Molly for letting me invade her blog. I hope this article will be helpful enough to earn me my keep.)

If you read even one blog regularly, RSS is for you. It will save you time, I promise.

Some of you may be wondering, “Doesn’t everyone use RSS?” The answer is no; less than 6% of internet users take advantage of this extraordinarily helpful technology.

I’ve read lots of posts on what RSS is and how to use it, but they’re limited in their helpfulness. There are just too many options out there to fully explain any one of them in a post that tackles RSS as a whole. So I am going to use the majority of this article to help non-RSS-users get started on Google Reader.

If you follow these instructions, you will be subscribed to your favorite sites and already saving time by the end of this article.

What Is RSS and Why Is It Worthwhile?

The acronym RSS stands for a couple things. The most helpful as far as a clear explanation of what it’s for is “Real Simple Syndication.”

RSS is a technology that allows you to subscribe to any website that has one of these in the address bar. You can then track every site you’re subscribed to without having to go to each individual site.

If you’re like me there are a couple websites that you love to read. Without RSS, I would be looking at these sites regularly to see if there were new material. Depending on how often I checked, I wouldn’t see anything new most times I visited.

With RSS, I never again have to go to a site that has no new material. I subscribe to the sites I enjoy and am updated every time they post.

This is especially helpful for keeping track of those bloggers who we want to read but who only post every 3 months.

Why I’m Focusing on Google Reader

If you’re not a current RSS-user and would like to be, my hope is that by the end of this article you’d have everything you need to begin. In order to do that, I need to pick one feedreader to show you how to use. (”Feedreaders” are the programs that people use to collect and manage their RSS subscriptions.)

I’ve chosen to use Google Reader for 3 reasons:

It’s free and available to everyone no matter what computer or browser you use.
It is by far the most popular feedreader that’s out there right now. On both the blogs I write for, Google subscribers are between 35-40% of the readership. The next most popular feedreader only claims about 5% of readers.
It’s really easy to use, so let’s get started.

Setting Up Google Reader

1. Create a Google account.
2. Go to Google Reader and make sure you’re signed in.

Adding a Subscription in Google Reader

1. Select “Add Subscription” from the left column.
2. Type in the address of a blog you want to subscribe to and click “Add.”

Adding a Subscription from Elsewhere Online

1. When you are visiting a site that you want to subscribe to, click on the orange icon in the address bar or on a link provide on the site.

You will either see a page like this:

Or like this:

2. On either page, select Google as the reader you want to subscribe with.
3. On the first page, you will need to click “Subscribe Now.”
4. On either page, choose “Add to Google Reader.”

Reading and Managing your Subscriptions

Reading Options

You now have a few of your favorite blogs listed in the left column of your Google reader page. The best way to go through your feeds is up to you. Here are some options.

Home, at the top of the left column, is where you can see new, unread posts listed with just a few lines of content.
All Items, just below “Home,” is where you can see new, unread posts listed with all their content.
Selecting an individual feed from the list in the left column allows you to see new posts as well as scroll down through older ones.

Scanning Options

In the upper right corner you will see tabs for “Expanded view” and “List view.” These allow you to decide whether you see all content as you scroll through your feeds or just titles and the first few words.

Marking as Read

You will mark a post as read when you click on it. Scrolling through posts will also mark them as read, although you can turn this feature off in settings if you want to. Finally, if you want to mark all your new posts as read at once, you can do so at the top of the “All Items” page.

Unsubscribing

When you change your mind about being subscribed to a blog, you can unsubscribe by going to the settings in the upper right corner.

You’re All Set!

As you poke around in Google Reader, I’m sure you’ll find more nifty ways to improve your RSSing. But for now, you should have what you need to go on a wild subscription binge.

You will, of course, want to subscribe to Molly’s blog and and to the blog of whoever referred you here. And then maybe even to mine.

If you have any questions, please feel free to leave them in the comments. Happy blog reading!

Entry Filed under: Blogging. .

35 Comments Add your own

1. Sarah | April 28, 2008 at 5:25 pm

I am an avid google feed reader, but how do I get that little orange square to appear in my blog so that people can subscribe to mine?

Thanks!
2. Heidi | April 28, 2008 at 7:09 pm

Great idea to post about the RSS feeds! I’ve been using this for about 6 months and I don’t know how I did without it. Saves so much time!
3. Leslie | April 28, 2008 at 7:39 pm

Wow, very helpful RSS post. And, I agree, GoogleReader is the way to go!
4. jennapants | April 28, 2008 at 8:13 pm

I will be the FIRST to report that I JUST DID THE GOOGLE READER RSS FEED READER THINGY FOR THE FIRST TIME EVER!!! THANK YOU, ABRAHAM! (I feel like that WIll Ferrell character that can’t control the volume of his voice!)

I will still probably check Molly’s blog a little more frequently because I love reading the comments that all these amazing women write.
5. puremotif | April 28, 2008 at 8:52 pm

I used to have bloglines but eventually switched to google reader on the advice of Jason Rhodes. I really really like it!

Be careful, it can become addictive. Before you know it, you won’t check your reader for 2 days and you’ll be 500 posts behind!!
6. Dave | April 28, 2008 at 10:21 pm

My issue is that it doesn’t seem to save any time…and I enjoy leaving comments. Call me old fashioned, but I just don’t think that RSS is the way to go for me. But nice job on the article, Aber!
7. Kelly @ Love Well | April 28, 2008 at 11:04 pm

Great summary, Abraham.

(And hi, Molly! I’ve been reading your blog for about a month now, and I can’t remember if I’ve commented yet. So a shout out to you, too. I’m here for the long haul, obviously.)

Two questions:
1. I use Bloglines as my blog feedreader. How does Google Reader compare?
2. I haven’t put a RSS feed button on my blog because, with Bloglines, I can subscribe to any blog whether they have that button or not by using the Bloglines toolbar. So I thought it was somewhat superfluous. Is it not?
8. Victor P | April 29, 2008 at 12:57 am

oh no…his a mac freak…don’t listen to them…

(if not take window screeni’s :P)
…hehe jk…
9. How To Use Google Reader &hellip | April 29, 2008 at 4:23 am

[...] Read the whole thing here. [...]
10. What Is RSS? A Step-by-St&hellip | April 29, 2008 at 5:37 am

[...] What Is RSS? A Step-by-Step Guide to Google Reader 29 04 2008 I’m taking this straight from Abraham Piper who writes on his wife’s blog about what RSS is and how to subscribe to sites using Google Reader. This is a very simplistic and yet thorough explanation. If there’s at least one site you like to read, this is something that will save you time from the minute you start using it. Read his full article here. [...]
11. Abraham Piper | April 29, 2008 at 6:18 am

Sarah,

I’m not sure what the best way to advertise or link to your feed on a blogspot blog is. Does anyone else know?

Kelly,

1. I’d say if you’re already set up with a feedreader you like, don’t switch to Google.
2. You’re right that people can subscribe without a subscribe button on your blog, but a lot of people don’t know that. So a button let’s them know they can subscribe and offers a friendly reminder/invitation to people that already know.

In a strictly functional sense, it is irrelevant. Promotionally, it is invaluable.
12. chedspellman | April 29, 2008 at 7:22 am

Does anyone else know?

One easy way to do it with a Blogspot Account is through Feedburner.com. It is a free service that takes the feed from your blogspot account and burns it into one, streamlined feed.

Then, you can copy and paste the the code for their RSS icon into a sidebar element with a message that will entice your readers to subscribe (e.g., click here for digitized syndication bliss).

Also, if you do it this way, when someone clicks on the RSS Icon, feedburner allows him (or her) to subscribe with whatever feed reader that they currently use.

Example: See the Rss icons in the Sidebar. See the Feedburner page these icons take you to.

Of course, the amount of readers who will choose to pass on this option is directly proportional to how often your posts exceed 22 words.

Hope this helps,
13. Stacey | April 29, 2008 at 8:07 am

TMI……….this would require change and most of us don’t like change. Especially where the internet is concerned. I am old enough that we didn’t have internet when I was in school and barely had computers. This is mumbo jumbo speak this RSS.
14. What is RSS? « Lemm&hellip | April 29, 2008 at 8:17 am

[...] about how to sign up to use this FREE reader, step-by-step instructions can be found by clicking H-E-R-E. Hopefully, one of the first RSS feeds you will want to add to your Google reader is LemmonsAid. [...]
15. Seaford Baptist Church &r&hellip | April 29, 2008 at 8:34 am

[...] [From What Is RSS? A Step-by-Step Guide to Google Reader « The Pipers] [...]
16. A La Carte (4/29) Evangel&hellip | April 29, 2008 at 8:41 am

[...] beginning of a collection of theologian trading cards, coming soon to online retailers (really!). RSS Reader for Complete Noobs Abraham Piper has a tutorial to guide you through getting setup with Google Reader (in case you’ve [...]
17. diane | April 29, 2008 at 8:58 am

Thanks Abraham! I didn’t know such a thing as google reader existed! I’m subscribed now! YAY!
18. Reading blogs quickly &la&hellip | April 29, 2008 at 12:27 pm

[...] using something called RSS is the answer. Here is some good RSS reading advice with Google Reader here, or here with other options. I love this practical and helpful [...]
19. Practical Advice «&hellip | April 29, 2008 at 1:01 pm

[...] Piper (son of the Rev. John), explains. [...]
20. Susan | April 29, 2008 at 7:38 pm

So I’ve finally managed to set this up and this is the first blog added to my list of subscriptions.
21. Rachel | April 29, 2008 at 8:10 pm

Google Reader is the best! It is so much better than trying to visit each of your favorite sites individually.

Thanks for the advice on setting up a subscribe button.
22. Julie B. | April 30, 2008 at 1:34 pm

Wow. Thanks for the helpful tutorial Abraham. I had no idea what RSS was, but I think I’m all set now. Can’t wait to see how it works for me.
23. Ken Arnold | May 1, 2008 at 8:04 am

Beware the lure of the blog crawling habit.

I went gung-ho Google Reader a year ago, but had to stop very soon because I was wasting too much time reading blogs, and things linked to blogs, and things linked to things that were linked to blogs, etc.

About a week ago I got back on, since I was doing the same blog-crawling thing manually and just wasting even more time. I consciously avoided putting certain feeds on there that I’d know I’d waste time on, and put instead some Gospel-centered feeds, resolving to read those first.

Technology… can be simultaneously very useful and very dangerous.
24. Molly | May 1, 2008 at 8:37 am

Thanks, Abraham, this is very helpful!

Another explanation of RSS that I’ve found very helpful is from a video called Common Craft — I thought I’d pass it along as a complementary explanation to your own: http://www.commoncraft.com/rss_plain_english
25. Kingdom Journalism »&hellip | May 1, 2008 at 9:10 pm

[...] UPDATE: Here’s a great post from Abraham Piper, the Web Editor at Desiring God Ministries, on RSS and how to use Google Reader! [...]
26. Sandra Peoples | May 2, 2008 at 7:06 am

Thanks for the help! I don’t know how to do a trackback, but I did put a link to this article from my blog, Here’s the quote- “I’ve had time to find new blogs since The Pipers taught me how to use Google Reader.”
27. End of Week Round up | By&hellip | May 2, 2008 at 10:03 am

[...] what you know now, what would you focus on?" I’ll be trying to listent with all ears.- Abraham Piper has written a brilliant introduction to RSS and the wonder of Google Reader, if you don’t know what those two things are, and you read plenty of blogs then you need to [...]
28. A belated Valentine candy&hellip | May 2, 2008 at 2:20 pm

[...] Here are some helpful instructions, courtesy of Abraham Piper via Molly Piper’s blog. [...]
29. Terrance Tiessen | May 3, 2008 at 7:43 pm

Thank you very much, Abraham. I have been checking in on various blogs manually and getting a couple (like Desiring God) by email. I was aware of RSS feeds but didn’t attempt to learn how they worked. Your tutorial was just what I needed. I am now signed up for all the blogs I used to check and numerous news sites or magazines that have feeds. It has only been a couple of days since I set things up but I can already see that this is going to be a huge time saver.

So, thanks for the help.
30. About RSS&hellip | May 5, 2008 at 2:54 am

[...] What Is RSS? A Step-by-Step Guide to Google Reader [...]
31. JCP | May 5, 2008 at 12:50 pm

THANK YOU! 2 days now - and it’s even better than you said it would be. I will also have to take note of comment #23 because there is so much going on out there!! How on earth do I internalize all the great stuff I’m learning??? Anyway, that’s not your problem, just wanted to say thanks for a very helpful tip.
32. Eden | May 5, 2008 at 3:31 pm

Like the others, I really appreciate the tutorial. Very helpful. At once, I set up Google Reader for the one blog I follow daily (multiple times, daily), Desiring God. Yes, it does keep me from going to the site multiple times a day, just in case something has been posted. But, ya know what? I miss the visuals of the DG blog! Torn between techno-efficiency and the “at home” feel of the blog site itself.
33. Results from the RSS Awar&hellip | May 8, 2008 at 7:16 am

[...] http://thepipers.wordpress.com/2008/04/28/what-is-rss-a-step-by-step-guide-to-google-reader/ [...]
34. blog subcriptions, they&#&hellip | May 9, 2008 at 10:44 am

[...] Abraham at The Pipers has written a tremendously helpful post that gives step-by-step instructions on how to set up subscriptions with Google Reader. So go, check it out, and set up your own feedreader–oh, and don’t forget to to subscribe to Badgers on the Loose. [...]
35. How to Set Up An RSS Feed&hellip | May 16, 2008 at 3:01 pm

[...] Not one to duplicate something that’s already doing a fine job, I’m going to suggest you head over the Pipers blog and Abraham’s great article What is RSS: A Step-by-Step Guide to Google Reader. [...]

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