Re: Encoded HTML within <description> or <content>

"Bill Kearney" <[email protected]> Wed, 08 Jun 2005 13:51:21 -0000

Newsgroups	gmane.network.syndication.rss.devel
Message-ID	<[email protected]>

> Non-escaped elements aren't allowed in an RSS description element.

It's considered standard to use escaped HTML.  A point to consider,
however, is you want to make sure people can actually READ your
newsfeed.  This is not a web page, it's a textual feed.  If you want
the widest range of readership you'd do well to avoid bothering them
with text formatting.  Live without it.

> However, a valid extension is to use:
> 
> <item>
> ...
> <body xmlns='http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml'>
> <p><b>Big Bolded Text</b></p>
> </:body>
> ...
> </item>

Yes, in the technical sense, this is correct.  But it's not something
that all RSS reader programs will know how to handle.  As a result
some users won't be able to read the text.

For all it's evils, the only reliably consistent way to put text
formatting inside the description element of an RSS item is to use
double-encoding of *very* limited HTML styling (as in, NO css).  The
most reliable way, however, to make sure people can read your feed is
to avoid formatting in it entirely.  Pull 'em back to your website for
all the fancy formatting.

-Bill Kearney
Syndic8.com







 
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