It is a function of the portal which generates syndications of the latest postings on the portal. These syndications can be RSS 2.0, RDF 1.0 or ATOM 1.0.

RSS is a system which allows you to keep up with new developments on e-Catalunya wherever you are (for example, your own internet browser, corporate web or institutional intranet) at any time. This passing on of information is known as "syndication".

If you are a non-registered user and you access a public portal, you can access its RSS; it is public and includes public postings from the previous day's Calendar, Blog and Mailroom from the portal's public tools.

If you are a registered user, you can access your groups' RSS, including additions to their Calendars, Blogs and Mailrooms. In addition each Blog and Calendar tool has an RSS channel (private or public, depending on the visibility of the tool), with its latest postings.

The e-Catalunya RSS service provides automatic sending of news headlines and other frequently updated information. You can see new developments from elsewhere immediately, from your own internet browser, corporate web or institutional intranet, or from a personalised web page, like those offered by Google (www.google.com ) or Yahoo! (www.yahoo.com).

In this way you can keep up to date with what happens on the portal without needing to access it. New postings come from:

•  Blogs (group or user)

•  Calendar

•  What's new? (latest additions)

•  Mailrooms in public tools

To share this information a special program is needed: an "aggregator". This is an application which can read and interpret the RSS feeds. Many current internet browsers and other standard programs already include this function.

1-To use RSS and receive news you will need an RSS reader or aggregator. There are different types of aggregator:

A- Local aggregators: these are specific applications to read RSS which are installed on your computer. The following are aggregators which you can download and install free:

* FeedReader

* RSSOwl

* RSSReader

* AmphetaDeskr

B- You do not need to carry out an installation, only register as a user on the aggregator's website to be able to use it. This type of aggregator only works with public blogs; you cannot add RSS from a private blog (private group or portal). The following are examples:

* Bloglines

* Google Reader

* MyYahoo!

* Newsgator

C- Applications with built in aggregators: some browsers and mail programs such as Firefox, Internet Explorer 7.0, Opera, Thunderbird, etc. include this utility. Below are some useful links:

* Firefox browser

* Internet Explorer 7.0 browser

* Thunderbird e-mail client

* Opera Suite: Opera Mail

2- Once you have the aggregator you have chosen, you will need to select the RSS feeds or files you are interested in and syndicate the contents.

The different sites and information on the portal with RSS files available are identified by the icon, followed by the letters RSS.

3- Copy the URL of the feed or RSS files and include it in the syndication program you are going to use. Some applications with integrated aggregators, like Firefox, automatically recognise the type of file and you only need to click on the URL to be offered the option of automatically syndicating the content.