RSS Basics - Information Trapping: Real-Time Research on the Web - page 41

Figure 2.23
netnewsWire
comes with a lot
of Mac-oriented,
preinstalled feeds.
In addition to the regular RSS feeds, NetNewsWire also provides a way to
subscribe to special headlines, which essentially are keyword-based RSS
feeds that we've already discussed. here aren't many options available for
keyword-based feeds, but there are a few available for experimentation.
Another option, a Smart List, lets you group together all the feed entries
that match certain conditions—all the feeds that contain the word “iPod”
in the title, for example, or all the feeds that contain the word “medical” in
the description. In these cases, you're conducting keyword searches of only
those RSS feeds that you've subscribed to!
You'll also ind a Dinosaurs option in the Window menu that shows you
a list of feeds that haven't been updated in at least 30 days—a handy fea-
ture you may want to use when the number of feeds you're using is getting
overwhelming. While you may want to keep those really speciic keyword-
based feeds that aren't supposed to update that oten anyway, blog feeds
that aren't updated at least once a month can be less than useful. Goodbye,
empty information traps!
RSS feeds should be the cornerstone of your information trapping strategy.
But not all resources you want to monitor have RSS feeds. What do you do
at that point? You use another tool: a page monitor. Read on!