03-09-2004, 01:00 PM
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Swami
Join Date: Feb 2004
Posts: 4,303
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RSS Sync - Decent RSS/RDF Reader
If you want to take up-to-date web based information with you and don't really like Avantgo, then PPCT reader Daniel suggests that you take a look at RSS Sync. Why? Because "RSS Sync is a Pocket PC 2003 ActiveSync Extension. It synchronizes RSS/RDF news to your PDA - effectively creating an offline newsreader. RSS is an acronym for Really Simple Syndication. It is what it claims to be: a quick and easy way to create and use "syndicated content" such as news headlines and announcements. You read this data in a program called an aggregator, which provides it to you in a simple form. This program updates your PDA with headlines and text from RSS data collected from the internet."
"There are literally thousands of RSS newsfeeds available on the net, ranging from headlines from the major newspapers to private diaries and people who have something interesting on their mind. The sync program updates RSS data at scheduled intervals. Data is then synchronized to the PDA, where it can be viewed in the RSS Viewer aggregator. The headlines are stored in a small database on the PDA, so you can carry the information with you anywhere and examine it without being connected on the internet.."
As Danniel says, it's "better than Avantgo as it can be used with any site that provides RSS/RDF data." So there you go. Check it out. 8)
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03-09-2004, 02:25 PM
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Moderator
Join Date: Aug 2006
Posts: 6,878
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Hmmm...
Seems to me, we need a really comprehensive list of Pocket PC related RSS feeds! :wink: I may have to start a "project"...
Steve
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"My eyes are rolling back in my head so far I can see my grey matter bubbling and frothing from reading this thread....bleh." JD
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03-09-2004, 02:33 PM
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Intellectual
Join Date: Aug 2002
Posts: 222
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I installed RSS Sync last week. Definitely a nice app. Very easy to install and use. But... (there's always a but, isn't there?)... I feel a bit let down by RSS. Yes, it gives you a great alternative to AvantGo. The feeds are just so darn small though. Take Slashdot for example. All you get is the headlines. You can't do anything else.
I'm not giving up on RSS yet. I need to figure out how best to use it first. I want something like AvantGo without having to use AvantGo's slow servers. Plus, RSS Sync is amazingly fast. That, I could get used to.
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03-09-2004, 02:43 PM
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Editor Emeritus
Join Date: Aug 2006
Posts: 1,221
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I've had the same problem with the small feeds. Because my device is not connected, I sync the RSS feeds, just like Avantgo. I've been disappointed with several that all I get is the headline or a one-sentence description...no story. Perhaps I'm missing the point of RSS?
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03-09-2004, 03:02 PM
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Pupil
Join Date: Mar 2004
Posts: 16
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I agree that there often is no more than a short description of the item in the RSS feed... but
while I believe that this is intentional it is by no means required. There is quite a variance
between different feeds... for example The Motley Fool generally only provides a title, with no
additional information, whereas Techdirt often provides quite a lengthy summary. Either way,
I believe the intent is to (in many cases) allow you to decide if you are interested enough to
read the full content from the website. Seems like many new technologies, people are still working out how to best utilize it's abilities.
I noticed that RSS Sync is an extension to ActiveSync and just wanted to let people know that there are several applications to retrieve RSS feed directly from the PocketPC. I am aware
of three: PocketFeed (http://www.furrygoat.com/Software/index.html) PocketRSS
(http://www.happyjackroad.com/AtomicD.../pocketRSS.asp), and Egress (http://web.newsguy.com/GarishKernels/egress.html).. As the author of Egress, I will readily admit my lack of objectivity but I believe it's the best of the bunch.
-Karl
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03-09-2004, 03:20 PM
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Intellectual
Join Date: Jul 2003
Posts: 176
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garishkernels - I'd never heard of Egress before today and I'm just playing with the demo now. Very impressed!
Very quick to update and very intuitive, you may well even see $10 prised from my stingy fingers before too long!
One comment though, could the headline be word-wrapped like the rest of the story text?
Cheers, Iain.
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03-09-2004, 03:25 PM
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Editor Emeritus
Join Date: Aug 2006
Posts: 10,981
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Does anyone know if this has a desktop componet to it? I prefer to read my RSS's on my laptop, but sometimes I'm busy and want to read when I'm on the go. Currently, I have one program for the PPC and another for the desktop. This causes such a headache because stories you've read on one are marked as unread on the other! :cry:
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"I have no special talents, I am only passionately curious" - Albert Einstein |
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03-09-2004, 03:32 PM
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Pupil
Join Date: Jun 2002
Posts: 12
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Mobipocket reader has a news reader that is RSS based. You may need the Pro ver. (There are 18 PDA feeds as of now, plus over 200 other feeds) you need to buy into there enews subscription in order to add your own feeds. I haven�t bought into that yet, I have a hard enough time keeping up with the free stuff.
One idea for someone out there would be to add tivo ability to learn what you are interested in reading a bought [forget this subject][get more of this article][look for more RSS feeds on subject]
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03-09-2004, 03:53 PM
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Neophyte
Join Date: Sep 2002
Posts: 1
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Size of RSS posts
Quote:
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Originally Posted by pmradio
I've had the same problem with the small feeds. Because my device is not connected, I sync the RSS feeds, just like Avantgo. I've been disappointed with several that all I get is the headline or a one-sentence description...no story. Perhaps I'm missing the point of RSS?
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One of the problems with RSS is that some sites rely on advertising so they only put a little of the article in the RSS feed (e.g. OSNews). Other sites put a much larger part or all of the of the article in the feed. There does appear to be a limit to the article size in this particulat feed reader.
Sites normally only put a little of the article in a feed to force you to go to the site so that the site gets advertising revenue.
Richard
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03-09-2004, 04:19 PM
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Intellectual
Join Date: Jan 2003
Posts: 214
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Quote:
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Originally Posted by garishkernels
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So far so good with Egress for me, one issue though. Have you seen the feed from this site pocketpcthoughts.com/xml ? It only shows headlines in Egress but has headlines and text using PocketFeed.
Is there a setting I'm missing?
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Linear Mode
