Here at Trapster we have been working away like busy little bees writing some great content, sharing how to’s, and taking you inside the day-to-day of Trapster life.

We don’t think you should be missing out on all this fabulous stuff, so here is how to stay tuned to the latest and greatest in the world of Trapster.

What is RSS?

RSS ( Really Simple Syndication) is a collection of web feed formats used to publish frequently updated sources; such as blog entries, news headlines, audio, and video in one standard format.

Originally, just keeping up with all the new content published across the web was a tough task, and that’s where RSS and feed readers can help. So, in the case of the Trapster Blog, we’re able to refresh our content as frequently as we want, and you’re able to grab the RSS feed, plug it in to the feed reader or web application of your choice, and read our updates at your convenience. Essentially, you could take our tips, news, and how tos, with you as you navigate the web for work or play.

Today there are many choices when it comes to applications that support RSS feeds, but we’ve chosen to highlight a few especially solid choices that we know are popular, easy to use, and just plain convenient.

Don’t forget to subscribe to our blog RSS feed. Just click on the orange RSS icon located to the right. I’ve included an extra BIG one in this blog post, so you can’t miss it!

Keep up with Trapster in Google Reader

Probably the most widely used RSS reader is Google Reader, a very simple, yet extremely powerful, utility for keeping with up information as it happens across the web. And, if you have a Google account already, you can quickly get up and running with Google Reader.

Here is a quick tutorial on how to setup your Google Reader account:

Or you could be Sage

Sage is a simple add-on for Mozilla Firefox. Not only is it easy to get up and running and use, but Sage will also clean up advertisements and other unnecessary clutter that you may not want to consume as you read your daily news.

For using RSS with Sage via Firefox, watch this brief tutorial:

How to Install the Sage RSS Reader.

1. Point your Firefox browser to Tools – Sage to open the Sage sidebar. If you prefer keyboard shortcuts you may also just press Alt-S.

2. Look for RSS feeds to add to your reader. Surf to your favorite web pages and click on the magnifying glass logo in the upper part of the Sage sidebar. If the page you are on has an RSS feed, Sage will notify you that is has “Discovered External Feeds”.

3. Select the feed you want to subscribe to and press “Add Feed” and then “Close.”

4. Read your feeds and mark them read or unread as appropriate.

5. Repeat steps 3 to 5 until you have assembled all the feeds that you can follow. Enjoy this easy method to gather lots of interesting reading in one spot.

Do you Yahoo? (or Google)

If you have MyYahoo or iGoogle, take a look at the following video on how to setup your RSS feeds.

Step-by-step directions for iGoogle:

1. Create an email account. An iGoogle page can be set up without having an email address from Google, however, without an account, you will not be able to save the information created on your page. Without a Google account, the page set up will be stored for only a short period of time, then you will be forced to re-create it again.

2. Log in. In the top right corner of the Google homepage, you will see two options that say “iGoogle” and “Sign In.” Click the “Sign In” option first and insert your first part of your email address (the words before @ google.com [http://google.com]). The screen will take you back to the Google homepage.

3. Choose gadgets. Once again, at the top right corner, there will be an iGoogle option. On the Google homepage, you will see an option to “Look for New Stuff.” After clicking the “New Stuff” option, choose from a large variety of “gadgets” offered by Google. A gadget is simply a tool or game in a frame that is added to your homepage, such as http://www.trapster.com or the local time and temperature. Once you have chosen all of the gadgets, click the option in the bottom left corner that will take you back to the iGoogle homepage.

4. Choose a theme. Select the “Choose a Theme” option, which is located in the upper right corner. You can choose from “Create Your Own Theme” or “Pick From Artists’ Theme.” Between the two choices of themes, there are hundreds of looks.

MyYahoo directions for adding RSS Content:

Have the URL ready to type or paste into My Yahoo!. You can usually find the URL for the website by looking for the RSS symbol (often An RSS symbol or An RSS symbol). Clicking the symbol often takes you to the correct page. Copy the URL, and you’ll be able to add it to your My Yahoo tab.

1. View the tab to which you want to add content by clicking its name in the tab bar.

2. Open the content gallery by clicking Add Content.

3. Click Add RSS Feed found in the bottom-center of the gallery.

4. In the box, type or paste the URL of the RSS feed source, then click the Add button.

5. When you’ve added the content you want, click the I’m Done button. The content appears at the top of the left or right column on your tab.

And don’t forget about Netvibes

Similar to MyYahoo and iGoogle, Netvibes lets you customize your Internet start page with RSS feeds, widgets, weather, and more. Netvibes is more of an “all in one” application.

Take a look at this video for how to add RSS to your Netvibes:

Netvibes RSS feeds can easily be added even if you don’t have the URL of the RSS. RSS feeds can be added using the following steps:

1. Click on the ‘Add content’ button, located in the top-left corner of the page.

2. Click ‘Add my feed’, located in the left sidebar that appears when you clicked ‘Add Content’

3. In the ‘Enter an RSS feed link’, enter either the URL for the RSS feed, or enter the URL for the website. For example to add the Trapster blog you could either: enter http://blog.trapster.com and have

Netvibes automatically detect the feeds URL, OR, enter the RSS feeds URL, http://feeds2.feedburner.com/TrapsterBlog

4. If you entered the site’s URL, wait for a list of the site’s feeds to appear and then select the feed you wish to add. If you entered the feed’s URL wait momentarily for the feed to appear on your page.

That’s it! You have successfully added a feed to your Netvibes page.