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Alerts and RSS Feeds

RSS Feeds: What Are We Talking About?

What is it?
RSS (Rich Site Summary or Really Simple Syndication) is a family of web feed formats used to publish frequently updated content.

What for?

  • To keep up-to-date on your favorite websites or journals
  • To save valuable research time by pulling together new information in one handy place

How does it work?
First, you need to choose a feed reader or aggregator. It will check the subscribed feeds regularly for new work, download any updates that it finds, and provide a user interface to monitor and read the feeds.

Then, on your favorite web page, journal, or newspaper, simply click on the RSS icon to add it to your reader.

RSS Advisory Board, CC0 (Creative Commons)

Unlike email alerts, RSS feeders do not notify you when new content has been added.

Adding References to Zotero using RSS feeds

You can use RSS or ATOM feeds to add the references documents of interest directly to a Zotero library.

Right-click on the  button at the bottom of the left pane, select "New Feed" and enter the URL or the OPML. The reference can then be added directly to a Zotero library, by clicking the "Add to My Library" button or by first selecting a specific collection.