It's Time for an RSS Revival

This headline is inspired by an article from WIRED - It's Time for an RSS Revival.

During the dawn of the internet era (roughly 1999 to 2009), I was just a kid in elementary to junior high school, with my understanding of the internet and browsers limited to browsing web pages. It wasn't until I ventured into web development that I realized what a brilliant invention RSS Feed was.

The idea that web content could be published in a unified format for other websites to access as early as 1999 is impressive and very much in the spirit of the open and shared nature of the internet, though looking back now, it seems somewhat ironic.

I wonder if anyone else, like me, occasionally misses that simpler era.

Nowadays, many people rely on mainstream social media for their news sources, shifting from actively seeking information to passively receiving messages, endlessly scrolling through Facebook, Instagram, and Threads. Moreover, algorithms are designed to make you more addicted, as the platforms' goal is to increase your time spent on them.

Honestly, I've been deeply affected too. Time disappears as I scroll through videos and updates, and despite my efforts to tailor the algorithm to my liking, unwanted content still pops up, like soda cap tricks, ping-pong ball into cups, and high school girls dancing cutely.

Some videos do bring a moment of happiness, but it's fleeting. Once you've watched one addictive "junk" video, you look forward to the next, and the next, and the next…

Closed Social Platforms

Whether it's Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter, when you want to check out a post, sometimes you can't see it without logging in, or you're only shown part of the content with a login required to see comments or the full article.

This is quite troublesome for those not on social networks. Your content is confined within these platforms, which goes against the original ethos of the internet.

Netflix has a documentary I quite like called "The Dilemma of a Smart Society," mainly describing the impact of social media algorithms and the like mechanism.

One line struck me deeply:

The only two things that call their customers 'users' are drugs and software.

Undeniably, I've also made some good friends through social media, even meeting up for meals. I can't deny the connections made possible by social media, but it's crucial to understand the platforms' purposes and the sacrifices made for this convenience.

Does Your Website Support RSS?

So, how do we break free from the grip of social platforms? The answer is simple: Don't just post your content on social platforms.

Write on your blog, preferably on your domain and hosting (including rented hosting). This way, you're not limited by algorithms, and your quality content isn't trapped within a platform.

Another approach is to use platforms with higher openness, like Mastodon or Bluesky. With Mastodon, anyone with a server can create their space; Bluesky's API is entirely free, and you can even use AT Protocol to integrate post notifications into your service.

Another thing is to add RSS support as much as possible. When I write for blogs or content-centric websites, the first thing I consider is RSS, aiming for full-text feeds. Some RSS feeds intentionally trim articles, directing readers to the original site for the full text.

I'm not fond of this practice. A big reason for subscribing to RSS is to control how I consume content, whether on Discord, an RSS service, or even the terminal (okay, the terminal is a bit of an exaggeration), but having to visit the website to read the full article is inconvenient.

What if your favorite site doesn't offer RSS? Open-source software RSSHub solves this by defining data generation methods to produce RSS Feeds.

Find your favorite creators and subscribe to their RSS Feed. If they don't have one, tell them it's important. It's also a way to reclaim control from social platforms.

Popular services like inoreader or feedly are pretty good. If you like my blog and articles, you can also subscribe via RSS!

The Ideal and Reality of RSS

At its core, RSS is just a format specification. Once published, services consuming RSS content fetch the XML file and display it in their UI.

This simplistic design struggles a bit in the modern era, as web pages now incorporate many interactive elements, and XML's limited capacity for presenting content sacrifices readability for articles not just made up of text and images.

With an ever-increasing amount of content, these RSS-consuming services might get overwhelmed unless they add filtering, categorization, or even AI Summary. Filtering itself is an algorithm, and without any, you're still facing a sea of content.

Compared to social platforms, there's a fundamental difference: the filtering criteria are yours to decide, and the content sea comes from your subscribed RSS feeds. Even if you don't want to read every article, at least it's content you've selected.

So where do you find quality RSS subscriptions? It might require searching on social platforms or hoping RSS services step up. I think the best approach is to become a quality creator yourself, eventually attracting similarly high-quality creators❤️.

Follow

Follow is an RSS service in development, by DIYGod, also the creator of RSSHub and xlog. It's been quite popular on Twitter lately, with many seeking invite codes (though I only learned about it through Twitter 😂).

Beyond typical RSS service features, it also offers a virtual currency reward mechanism, and the UI looks great. I haven't tried it yet but am looking forward to its launch!

Fighting for Attention

I really appreciate leafwind's Sixth Estate, which mentions:

If the fourth and fifth estates are about the "right to freely publish content," then the sixth estate (attention right) is the "right to control what you can see," and losing this right is today's most severe media issue.

The article also discusses how to implement this, highly recommended reading!

Twitter used to be my favorite social platform for random musings, complaints, sharing technical insights, and ideas. Now, my feed is full of ads and distracting short videos, but I can't help clicking on them; if I post something, I'm overly concerned about the number of likes.

I want to distance myself from these toxic algorithms and platforms, and I want to share with you how important this realization is. What you consume can eventually shape your thoughts; seeing only the glamorous lives on social media might make you feel miserable, ignoring that everyone has their own struggles.

Lastly, something I've started practicing since last year is writing to developers and creators I've long admired. This can let them know there's a supportive community, a crucial source of creative motivation. Though I haven't received many, being thanked and knowing my articles or services have helped others is truly gratifying!