Using RSS Feeds in Blackboard

Step 1: Find an RSS feed. Most sites indicate an RSS feed with a graphic like one of these:

Step 2: Click on the RSS feed button. This will put the address of the feed in your address bar. Cut or copy the address.

Step 3: Visit Feed2JS, a site that transforms RSS feeds into displayable content. Here is a list of other Feed2JS sites. Follow the directions, which mostly involve pasting the RSS feed from Step 2 into the first box. You can click Preview Feed to see what the code will look like and Generate JavaScript when you're happy with the results.

This is the button you'll use to create a feed for your site. It can be found on Feed2JS

Step 3: Feed2JS will give you text to cut-and-paste into your site. Cut or copy the whole thing. You then have two choices:

• Cut-and-paste the code into a regular HTML web page. The code from Feed2JS will automatically be converted into HTML.
  OR
• Cut-and-paste the code into your Blackboard environment:

• To do that, go to the content area in Blackboard where you'd like the feed displayed.
• Add a new item
• Paste the Feed2JS code into a text box
• Select the HTML button under the text box (see image below)
• Submit the information. Your now have an RSS feed in Blackboard

Step 4: You now have an RSS feed displaying on your site or within Blackboard. Add more codes from Feed2JS to display more feeds. Please note that the more feeds you have on a page, the slower it will load.

Updated 7/11/07