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Using / Accessing the BBA Daily Announcements:
Viewing the announcements web page and an introduction to desktop aggregators
The easiest way to grab the daily announcements at BBA is to go to our blog page to see if any information has been updated. Simple ! For your convenience, there is a link to the 'Daily Announcements' on the left hand column of the home page and links via the 'On Campus' and 'Quick Links' menu (yellow menu column).
Information posted on the announcements blog is listed chronologically. Every item is time stamped with entries at the top being the most recent.
There are other options that exist to have announcements delivered to you in the form of 'desktop aggregators.' Aggregators, via a customized web page or program, fetch information from multiple sites ( i.e. news, sports, school announcements, local papers) and display it on one page or interface. Basically, instead of visiting multiple web sites to view information, all the web site information comes to you.
In order for an aggregator to collect web site information, the web page / site must be 'syndicated' (published). The 'BBA Daily Announcements' are syndicated and may be subscribed to via various aggregators / feedreaders.
Keep in mind, it is not essential to use an aggregator to view the announcements, rather it is an option for those so inclined.
Read on if you'd like to learn more about desktop aggregators. If not aggregators are not for you or you care to read about them at another time, here are some links back to other resources on the BBA web site:
Back to:
Web Site Overview
Daily Announcements
BBA Home Page
News and Updates
Aggregators Continued:
Subscription buttons have been added on the right hand side of the daily announcements blog for your convenience. Just click on the button for the service that you would like to use.
Here are three
easy options available in web browsers and the feed addresses themselves listed at the end.
1. Google Desktop: Pull a variety of information to you in a very easy to use interface.
Check it out at: http://www.google.com/ig
2. The Firefox web browser and live bookmarks:
The Firefox web browser has a feature called live bookmarks.
Check it out at: http://www.mozilla.com/firefox/livebookmarks.html
3. The Google Reader:
Google has an innovative feed reader that is easy to use. Step by step directions at:
http://www.google.com/reader/things/tour
http://www.google.com/reader
Here are the URLs (web addresses) for the feeds if you need them.
4. Bloglines:
http://www.bloglines.com
Create a personalized web page at Bloglines. Log into into a personalized web page web from anywhere (with internet connectivity) and bring feeds from multiple sites to you. Subscribe to news feeds that fit your interests and see them all on one desktop. Kind of like clipping all the best articles from a newspaper and laying them on one page - no scissors required though.
Here are the feeds (addresses for the syndicated version of the BBA announcements) you'll need for web or program aggregator subscriptions:
Atom Feed: http://bbaupdate.blogspot.com/atom.xml
Via RSS from feedburner at: http://feeds.feedburner.com/BurrAndBurtonAcademy
Downloadable Aggregators:
Windows
FeedReader
GreatNews
RssReader(Toolbar for Internet Explorer)
FeedReader
Site URL: http://sourceforge.net/project/showfiles.php?group_id=70179&package_id=74816&release_id=323066
FeedReader is top-notch open-source software. Click on the link above and click on the executable(exe) file. Pick any mirror and begin the download. Navigate through the installation and launch the software. Once the program opens, click the button at the top-left corner that looks like a blank page with an asterisk. This is the “Add New Feed” button and type in the XML link at the top of the page. It should name itself Burr and Burton Academy and display a line on the left side of the program to easily be checked.
GreatNews
Site URL:
http://curiostudio.com
This software is very simple to use. Navigate to the download page and run the executable(exe) file. Install the program onto your hard drive. Once the program starts up, and introductory screen will display “What would you like to do?” Click “Add a news channel” and type the XML link that you see above in the “Channel URL” field. Add it to any channel; it doesn’t matter which. The name “Burr and Burton Academy” will now be displayable on the left panel of the screen. If you click on it, the latest news will show up. Now, all you need to do is open the program to view it.
RssReader
Toolbar for Internet Explorer
Site URL:
http://www.netimechannel.com/FreeRssReader
This program is exclusively for Internet Explorer. Click on the link above and click on the Download Now button. It will run the downloader automatically, and then open the zipped(zip) folder. Run the Setup executable(exe) file and navigate through the installation. It will launch Internet Explorer and show the toolbar on a left panel of the window. You can then click on the “New Channel or OPML” button (looks like a satellite dish with a yellow asterisk at the top of the toolbar). Then type in the above XML link and you can view the links through the toolbar on the side. Clicking on it will bring you to a page showing all the current posts. A button to the left of the post title will show the information without having to navigate to our blog site. Note- To use the program again after exiting the toolbar, run it from the start menu or desktop.
Mac
PulpFiction Lite
Vienna
PulpFiction Lite
Site URL:
http://freshlysqueezedsoftware.com/products/pulpfiction
Navigate to the homepage and then find PulpFiction Lite from the menu on the right side of the screen. Select the link that reads “Download PulpFiction Lite 1.2”. Once the download finishes, open the program and hit “Cancel” if you don’t want to join the mailing list. Next, if your computer asks you if you want to have the program handle the feed scheme, select “Set”. When the program starts, a window off to the right should display your folders. Next to the “Folders” button at the top of that window is a “Feeds” button. Click that button and delete any feeds you don’t wish to keep (you can delete all if you only wish to use this program for the Burr and Burton blog). You can delete by selecting the feed and clicking on a button near the bottom of the window that looks like a gear with a downward arrow. Next, in the main window, Select the “Subscribe” button and paste in the XML link from above. It will load the title into the “Feeds” window and you can select it from there.
Vienna
Site URL:
http://www.opencommunity.co.uk/vienna_files.html
Click on the link and open the link of the page that says “Vienna 2.0.3”. Select any mirror from the list and click “Download” on the right. It will download the program and open. You will see on the left side of the program a large column called “Folders”. Delete the ones you do not wish to keep and click “File” from the menu bar and select “New Subscription”. Paste in the XML link from the top of this page and click “Subscribe”. Next, click “File” again and select “Refresh All Subscriptions”.
Firefox Add-ons
Wizz RSS News Reader
Wizz Rss News Reader
Site URL:
https://addons.mozilla.org/firefox/424
Navigate to the bottom of the page and click “Install Now for Windows”. When Firefox brings up a window, click “Install Now”. Restart Firefox and you will notice a new toolbar near the top of the browser. Click on the button in the toolbar that looks like a browser with the left side shaded yellow. It will bring a sidebar into the program. It will ask whether or not to import feeds. You can choose to do so, but if you wish to use this program only for Burr and Burton’s blog, click “Cancel”. Right click in the empty space in the sidebar and click “Add Channel”. Type in any name for the Channel name, such as Burr and Burton Academy. For the Channel URL, type in the XML link from the top of the page. It will add that feed to the side bar and to check it, all you need to do is click on the name from the sidebar.
Outlook
RSS Popper
RSS Popper
Site URL:
http://rsspopper.blogspot.com/2004/10/download.html
Add-in for Outlook and Outlook Express
This program allows you to put a toolbar into your Outlook program so you can see blog updates as you view your own emails. Determine if you are using Outlook or Outlook Express. Click on the link above and pick the appropriate download corresponding to Outlook or Outlook Express. Run the installation, then run Outlook or Outlook express. The toolbar should be displayed below the toolbars. If not, go to the Menu Bar and click View > Toolbars. RSS Popper should be under this menu. If it is not, installation was not successful. If there is no check mark beside it, click it now. Now there should be a toolbar in the Outlook window. Click on the button in it that displays “RSS Popper” with a down arrow, and navigate to Edit Feeds. Delete extraneous feeds and click “New…”. Paste the XML link from above and it will load in the title. Click OK and there is now an RSS folder in Outlook where you can view posts.
Document prepared by:
M. Sleeman
BBA Research Lab
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