PC World Documents

• THIS DOCUMENT NEEDS TO BE REVISED FOR THE NEW FORUM SOFTWARE--INFORMATION BELOW IS INCORRECT FOR THE FORUMS SOFTWARE NOW IN USE AT PCWORLD.

To avoid having to keep checking back for changes to content in Clearspace, you can use RSS feeds and email notifications.

• RSS Feeds give you a way to see information about content changes and additions all in one place -- your RSS aggregator. Subscribing to RSS feeds and using an RSS aggregator is a way to view updates about content changes and additions through a single tool.
• With email notifications, Clearspace sends you an email each time content you're interested in (that is, for which you've requested email notification) is changed or added. Requesting email notification is a way to get updates about content changes and additions in a more immediate way.

h3. What is RSS?

RSS is a way for you to keep track of changes or additions to content you care about. By "subscribing" to the RSS feed for content in Clearspace, you're asking to have easy access to information about content changes or additions. An RSS feed brings you a list of updates that you can view in an RSS aggregator. (The acronym RSS stands for Really Simple Syndication.) Subscribing to RSS feeds is an alternative to receiving email notifications, in which an email is sent each time content is changed or added (although you can also do both). You might prefer email notifications if you want to receive updates in a more "passive" but immediate way.

You can subscribe to RSS feeds for content lists (such as a list of blogs, discussions, or documents you'd view in Clearspace), spaces, or for discussion threads.

h3. How do I use the RSS feeds I get from Clearspace?

To view RSS feeds you use an RSS aggregator that's designed to collect information about content from the places whose RSS feeds you've subscribed to. RSS aggregators include some web browsers such as recent versions of Internet Explorer, Firefox, and Safari. There are also aggregator applications that are specifically designed to collect and aggregate RSS feeds.

For the feeds you've subscribed to, an aggregator will typically display a list of summaries for content that has recently been added or changed. You can view the content summarized in the list and mark it as having been "read."

To subscribe to the RSS feed for content, you add the link URL for the RSS feed to your RSS aggregator. One way to get the URL is to click the RSS Feed icon when you're viewing content, then copy the URL out of the address bar at the top of your browser. You can also get the URL from a list of all the available RSS feeds for a space by clicking Subscribe via RSS under *Actions*.

Note: Some browsers will display an RSS feed symbol at the right side of the address bar (at the top, where the page URL is). If you click the symbol, you'll get a list of the RSS feeds available. This is a good way to get feeds for wiki documents, for example.

h3. What are email notifications?

You can have Clearspace send you email when content you care about is added or changed. This is an alternative to RSS feeds, which require an RSS aggregator (although you can use both RSS and email notifications, of course). Because an email is sent for each notification you request, you might prefer subscribing to RSS feeds if you'd rather not get all the email.

To begin receiving email notifications, navigate to the area you care about - a space or document or blog, for example - and click Receive Email Notifications under Actions*. To stop receiving email notifications, click *Stop Email Notifications instead.