What Is RSS?

RSS stands for “Really Simple Syndication” (or “Rich Site Summary” - even the acronym can’t make up its mind). But here’s the thing: you don’t need to care what it stands for. You just need to know what it does.

RSS in Plain English

Imagine you subscribe to 10 different newspapers. Every morning, instead of walking to 10 different newsstands, a single delivery person brings you exactly the articles you want from each one, bundled together and waiting on your doorstep.

That’s RSS.

It’s a standardized way for websites to say “hey, here’s what’s new.” Your feed reader collects all those updates in one place. No algorithms deciding what you see. No engagement metrics. No infinite scroll trying to trap you.

You ask for content. You get content. Revolutionary, right?

Why RSS Still Matters in 2025

RSS was invented in 1999. That makes it ancient in internet years. And yet:

It’s private. No one tracks what you read. No profile being built. Your reading habits are your business.

It’s reliable. When you subscribe, you see everything. Not what an algorithm thinks you should see. Everything.

It’s fast. Open your feed reader, see what’s new, close it. No tempting sidebar, no “you might also like,” no notifications begging for attention.

It’s permanent. Unlike social media platforms that come and go, RSS is a standard. It works the same way it did 25 years ago, and it’ll work the same way 25 years from now.

How RSS Works (The Short Version)

A website publishes an RSS feed

This is just a text file (XML format, if you’re curious) that lists recent content with titles, dates, and links.
Your feed reader checks that file periodically

Maybe every hour, maybe every 15 minutes - depends on your setup.
New items appear in your reader

Just like new emails appearing in your inbox, except it’s articles, comics, or whatever you’ve subscribed to.

That’s it. No magic, no complex technology. Just a simple list that gets updated, and software that checks for updates.

What Can You Follow with RSS?

More than you’d think:

Blogs - Most still have feeds, even if they don’t advertise them
News sites - Major outlets all have feeds
Comics - That’s why you’re here!
YouTube channels - Yes, really. Every channel has a feed.
Podcasts - That’s literally how podcasts work
Reddit - Add .rss to most subreddit URLs
GitHub - Releases, commits, issues
Government sites - Regulations, notices, updates

The RSS Ecosystem

Feed Readers

The app where you read everything. Some options:

Local apps (data stays on your device):

NetNewsWire (Mac/iOS) - Free, open source
Reeder (Mac/iOS) - Paid, beautiful
Thunderbird (Windows/Mac/Linux) - Free, email + feeds

Web services (sync across devices):

Feedbin - $5/month, excellent
Inoreader - Free tier available
Feedly - Free tier available
Miniflux - Self-hosted option

Feed Sources

Websites that publish feeds. Like ComicCaster! We take comics from various sources and make clean RSS feeds you can subscribe to.

Why Don’t More People Use RSS?

Honestly? A few reasons:

Google killed Google Reader in 2013. This was the most popular feed reader, and when it died, a lot of people gave up on RSS entirely.
Social media became the default. Why subscribe to feeds when you can just follow accounts on Twitter/Facebook/whatever?
Websites stopped promoting feeds. The RSS icon used to be everywhere. Now it’s hidden or gone entirely.

But here’s the secret: RSS never went away. Developers still use it. Power users still swear by it. And once you try it, you’ll wonder why you ever relied on algorithms to show you content.

Getting Started

Ready to reclaim your reading experience?

Pick a feed reader (NetNewsWire is a great free option)
Subscribe to some feeds (start with ComicCaster)
Enjoy a calmer, more intentional way to consume content