[thelist] Basic RSS question (I think)

[Jeremy Weiss]

> Matthew Bernhardt wrote:
> I like the idea (mentioned by someone else) of rebuilding the feed every
time 
> the data gets modified, actually, so I'll probably look into that first.

In my (limited) experience, this is usually the easiest way.

> Am I right in thinking that the feed should include -all- articles 
> published, or would it just be the most recent N 

It's really personal preference, but most people limit the feed to the 5,
10, or 20 most recent articles/postings/whatever. In addition, most blogging
packages also offer the option to only include an excerpt of the first XXX
number of words and the user has to come to the site to read the full story.
Personally I find that annoying, but it is an option none the less.
 
> > How time sensitive is your information?
> 
> For some feeds, I'd say its somewhat sensitive (when we closed the  
> building due to snow emergency last winter, the feed would 
> have picked  that up if we'd had it then). For others, I'm generally fine 
> with building it each night.

If you're rebuilding the feed after every post, then time sensitivity really
shouldn't matter.

-jeremy