Having Fun With Customizable RSS Feeds

from my last post:

USF Library also provides the option of making a feed from any catalog search that you do, even those complicated "advanced searches" (good for searches that you do often, for example, items in your field of research, new from your favorite author, etc). USF's catalog : http://usf.catalog.fcla.edu/sf.jsp

Imagine how beneficial for our patrons customizable RSS feeds (discussed above, available from USF's catalog) would be in the Hillsborough County Public Library Cooperative Catalog! While other RSS feeds are library driven and the same for every user, these feeds are user driven with infinite possibilities. Compare the amount of time saved, and user benefit in these two RSS scenarios:

• A patron checks our new book list every week for items to place on hold by going to "Find a Good Book" vs. A patron receives an RSS feed of new items in their news aggregator.



• A patron has 25 RSS feeds set-up to deliver new materials instantly to their feed reader anytime materials are added to the catalog from their favorite authors, subjects, musicians, movies (and more) vs. A patron goes to our catalog and types in 25 different media restrictive searches every week to check for new materials of interest to them.

These feeds would also greatly benefit patrons who have filled out "Suggest An Item" forms for materials that they would like to have in the library collection. These patrons would not longer have to check the catalog randomly to see if items have been acquired for the collection; they could set up an RSS feed and be notified instantly.

This would be a great benefit to customers and I can only imagine the circulation boost that would result.

Also, for those patrons uncomfortable with RSS feeds there are services, like RSSFWD, that forward RSS subscriptions right to your e-mail.

You can create a custom RSS feed from any GALE database searche. Learn how at http://hcplcreference.blogspot.com/2007/12/personalized-news-delivered-to-you.html

"Subscribing to an RSS Search Alert Feed

Here's how to subscribe to the Gale RSS feed alerting you of new content in this database:
1. Perform a search using any of the search types to search for the information for which you want to receive alerts; you may use any type of search criteria, including search limiters
2. On the results list, click the Create a Search Alert link
3. To subscribe to the RSS feed, copy the Feed URL and paste it into the software you use as your RSS reader or news aggregator
4. Click the Close when you have finished.

Now that's a PowerSearch!

You can find the PowerSearch option at the top of every section of the Library's Databases & Websites.
Click here for more information about using RSS (courtesy of CommonCraft)."

Sometimes the link is too long to copy nicely, you can also click the XML button to open the feed.