Amazon.com has just announced Amazon.com Syndicated Content which is a new service syndicating content on their site using the RSS format.

The Amazon page quotes a couple of articles pitched at a general audience on what RSS is and why it is useful:

Here's the deal: thousands of website publishers, from big-content companies to teenage bloggers, are making their systems automatically produce a summary of their site in a special format called RSS. By using special RSS-reading software on my laptop, I can grab the RSS files from all my favourite sites while the kettle is boiling, and see instantly who has updated, and with what.

Working the web: Newsreaders

Instead of the hunt and peck of Web surfing, you can download or buy a small program that turns your computer into a voracious media hub, letting you snag headlines and news updates as if you were commanding the anchor desk at CNN.

News That Comes to You

The main point is that RSS and Newsreaders move you away from the need to go looking for what is new or what has changed on frequently updated sites. If the site has a RSS feed then the newsreader can figure out what is new, saving you a heap of time.

The other advantage is that you don't need to surrender your email address or have your email inbox filled up with newsletters telling you content has updated.

The Newsreader I use is Feedreader.