A few years ago, you might remember me heralding RSS as the content distribution format of the future. Well, that future is here today (and we’re still only beginning to tap into the power of XML-based syndication). You should understand one thing, however: RSS is written in XML, but XML is not RSS. There’s another XML document standard that’s emerging: OPML. In plain English, it stands for “Outline Processor Markup Language.” Just as a Web browser interprets HTML (HyperText Markup Language), there will be a new range of products - both Web-based and on your desktop - that will support and parse this “strange new” OPML thingy for you. So, what does OPML do? It’s an outline, as its acronym’s foundation suggests. Inside of an OPML document, you might find an organized list of information - like a set of RSS feeds that might easily be imported into your favorite news aggregator. And by now, you all must have a news aggregator installed (how else could you dare to call yourself a Windows Fanatic). Stick with me folks - once you understand all this stuff, your Internet experience will be improved tenfold. Trust me on this, okay?

Enter Gada.be - the Web service we launched a few months ago. After being asked a simple OPML question on one of our private discussion lists, I responded… “One might not be able to subscribe to OPML today, but one can easily import OPML into one’s aggregator with relative ease. Now, a smart aggregator (like FeedDemon) will allow you to pick and choose which feeds in an OPML file get imported - and when you have several engines against which you wish to search, auto-generated OPML documents come in handy.” I then proceeded to point him to a sample OPML document that’s populated with any given keyword:

• http://gada.be/a/keyword/opml

If that looks like code in your browser, try importing it into your news aggregator and watch what happens (NOTE: not all news aggregator allow you to select which RSS feeds in an OPML document are imported). Yeah, that sounds technical - but all the greatest things in the galaxy are geeky, right? That’s just an OPML document which displays all the categories and feeds we pre-populate with your keyword on Gada.be. Go ahead, change the word “keyword” to something else - watch what happens. If it still looks like a mess to you, try importing an OPML file from our shopping category. Say, the OPML for Harry Potter. I’m assuming you’d rather not visit your top 10 favorite RSS search providers and re-enter the same term 10x over? RSS is not OPML, and vice versa; Compared to RSS, OPML is just a child - but they all have to start somewhere.

Now, imagine a local app that could take these auto-generated OPML files and
parse them on-the-fly? If I could program, I’d illustrate it for you. The result would be supremely quick and easy searches across hundreds of search providers - dynamically, easily, and portably. That’s the beauty of OPML, exposing the beauty of RSS, proving the validity of XML. And if you don’t understand it now, keep pushing yourself to “get it” before others do. Your boss will thank you for it.

Tags: rss, syndication, xml, search, keywords, subscriptions, opml, outline, markup language