Let's start with Bookmarks!
The problem with traditional bookmarks (or favorites) is that when you save them, you can't access them on other computers. So if you save something at home, you can't get to it from your office computer. Grrr...

But! There's a whole fleet of websites that will change the way you bookmark and organize your favorite pages. Here's how it works: First, create a free account at one of these places (Blinklist, Del.icio.us, Yahoo, Google, Furl, Spurl... just to name a few). Then once that's done, you'll be able to save your bookmarks in an online database, which means that you can access your links from ANY computer at ANY time! Brilliant!

But this is the thing that I love... most of these sites specialize in "Social Bookmarking." Meaning that when you save a link you have the option of sharing that link with the rest of the bookmarking community. So through this process of sharing links, you'll likely meet other people who share similar interests, and discover new resources that you'd never know about otherwise. All these bookmarking sites work a little differently, but once you begin using them, you'll wonder how you ever got by without them! Just FYI... my favorite bookmarking sites are Blinklist and the new Yahoo Bookmarks.

So how does this apply to the nifty buttons on my blog posts? Easy! When you see a post that interests you (yeah, I know... ALL my posts are interesting! LOL...) simply click the button. A new window will open up and you can select the bookmarking service that you use. Then that link will be permanently saved in your online Bookmark folder. And I LOVE IT when you save my pages this way, because every time you do, you spread the word about my site! And by spreading the word, you will help me get a better ranking in the search engines, and become more exposed to more people. Sooooo... if you're a REAL fanatic, feel free to bookmark, bookmark, bookmark me! It helps me a lot, and makes it easier for you to find your favorite posts later. YAY!!!

Last hint... if/when you do bookmark my pages, try to use good tags/keywords to describe the link. Not only will it help you to find the link later, but it will help other people find me too.

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Now... All about RSS Feeds!
Believe it or not, RSS feeds are really simple. In fact, RSS stands for "Really Simple Syndication." Think of it as a stripped down, portable version of a website. Here's how it works: When I post a new message on my blog, the software that runs the website publishes 2 versions of the same content... the version you see on the front page of AmysPanties.com, and a text-only feed that you can access here (go ahead... take a look). SO WHAT, right? Well here's the secret... let's say you have a ton of websites that you like to read all the time. Wouldn't it be awesome if you could just go to one URL and read ALL the new posts from ALL those websites at once? Well, you can!

There's a myriad of ways to do it, and everyone has his/her favorite. But let's keep it simple. Let's say you want to add my headlines/posts to you My Yahoo page. Simply click the button. A new screen will appear and you can choose your desired RSS system (in this case, Yahoo). Then just follow the onscreen instructions, and voila! You're done! Now, you'll always be able to read all my new posts right there on your Yahoo page... sorta like checking your email.

Just like I was saying above about bookmarks... I LOVE IT when you syndicate my blog this way! Because every time you do, I get more exposure...especially with the search engines. Search engine spiders crawl RSS reader sites *constantly* and they pay close attention to what sites are being syndicated/read. The more AmysPanties RSS feeds that Googlebot stumbles upon, the more he likes me, and the more attention he'll give me in the search results pages. So again... Just like the bookmarks, this is a WIN/WIN situation! You can have my content delivered right to your homepage, where it's convenient, and I can have more exposure to the search engines! Now you see why those little buttons are so important!

Last hint... My favorite RSS reader system is built right into My Yahoo, but I hear that Bloglines, Google, My MSN, Windows Live, and Technorati are all quite good.


Well that's about it!
I sincerely hope that my little article will help you understand and use social bookmarks & RSS feeds for your benefit. I am definitely not an expert on the matter. So if something is still unclear, or if you have any questions, or if you need help bookmarking or syndicating my site PLEASE let me know and I will do my best for you! Contact Me anytime!

Hugs & Kisses,



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