Health RSS Feeds

by Michael Dorausch, DC

The current King of all Internet, Google has announced on Friday, another jewel in their crown, with the purchase of Chicago-based company FeedBurner. The Really Simple Syndication (RSS) company, FeedBurner, is a distributor of what is known as syndicated content, typically used with blogs, news and other media websites.

There had been lots of talk online recently that the purchase was expected, which will provide Google with another avenue to deliver their already dominant advertising product, ad words, to more end users. According to what I have read online, the terms of the purchase have not been disclosed yet the rumor is FeedBurner sold for somewhere in the ballpark of $100 million.

I said it over a year ago, RSS will become as popular tomorrow as mp3 is today.

Remember when you could not listen to an mp3 file without installing some sort of software on your computer? It was not that long ago. And yet today, at least in the Windows environment, executing mp3 file formats will likely launch some brand of installed player, providing the end user with an mp3 audio experience.

Up until recently, before upgrades to Internet Explorer and Mozilla Firebox browsers, RSS feeds were likely not readable without the use of some 3rd party RSS reader software technology. That is changing quickly and the pace now will begin to burn at a much greater rate.

According to FeedBurner CEO and co founder, Dick Costolo, more than 430,000 publishers are using RSS technology to provide an estimated 67 million feeds daily to subscribers. Among those publishing RSS feeds online are USA Today, Craigslist, Reuters, the New York Times, and Planet Chiropractic (a FeedBurner client).

According to reports, one of the downsides for RSS publishers had been the inability to include contextual advertising, such as Google Adwords, into RSS content. While some RSS aggregation websites, such as KickRSS.com, have been incorporating adwords into both html and XML versions of the feeds they produce, the technique has not yet become mainstream, and even KickRSS reports using XSLT to "wrap" ads into feeds (not straight XML). Mixing adwords advertising directly into RSS content will make the process a reality for more publishers of the XML based protocol.

To view how RSS is being used in the distribution of chiropractic content, visit these links... 247chiro.com, an hourly updated chiropractic news and blogs RSS aggregation system. Chiropractic Blog Feeds, half a dozen websites delivering RSS in a mix of content.

RSS is being used for news, blogs, classifieds, podcasts, finding lost dogs, and more. Its use will certainly continue to grow, even expanding onto other platforms such as mobile and handheld PDAs. Tomorrow RSS will become to article and blog content what mp3 is to music today.

by Michael Dorausch, DC

It's May 31st, 2007 and I am excited about the Fedora Project and todays release of the Fedora 7 Operating System (aka Moonshine). It must be a Linux day since I posted earlier about Ubuntu installs on Dell. Anyway, I'll be downloading Fedora 7 tonight and upgrading at least one of the servers (currently on Fedora core 6) we use here at Planet Chiropractic.

According the project, Fedora 7 is the first release where the development was 100% done in the community, with all the code being merged into a single external repository. This allows even more high-quality developers to work directly with the code, offering improvements on more than 7500 packages.

Fedora 7 runs on laptops and it should offer great power consumption along with extended wireless functionality. A very exciting part about this release is it is the first Fedora distribution with full Live CD/DVD capability, meaning you can run it from your cd-rom or DVD drive.

I'll be doing an install on a fresh new dual core intel server that will house our growing library of chiropractic related photos, audio, and video. Just dropped 2 terabytes of storage into it so we should be good for at least until next month. ;-) I'll test out the Live CD while on the road this weekend and give a report when I'm back.

In case you are wondering where you can get your hands on this moonshine stuff, here is a fedora download link: fedoraproject.org/get-fedora. You can do direct downloads or use a BitTorrent client.

If it is your first time downloading Fedora, be sure to review the installation instructions before choosing one of the download methods they offer.

If you are wondering what any of this means to chiropractors or Planet Chiropractic, it's important to remember the open-source community has provided the backbone of nearly everything we have done (as well as the majority of the web) online, from webservers (apache), databases (mysql), operating systems (fedora, ubuntu, freeBSD), and numerous other packages and tools made freely available thanks to opensource.

As I mentioned earlier today about another Linux based OS, this is free software made available thanks to open source -- many people working very hard together to see great software is available to the masses. Thanks to everyone that is developing/supporting open-source.

by Michael Dorausch, DC

PC maker Dell recently announced that they will begin shipping computers in the USA loaded with Ubuntu, an open source community developed Linux based operating system that is loaded with features for the desktop user.

From what I could find online, Dell computers to be shipped with Ubuntu 7.04 "Feisty Fawn" distribution of Linux include the Dell XPS 410n desktop PC, the Dimension E520n desktop, and the Inspiron E1505n notebook computer. Just a few months ago I purchased a Dell XPS M1210 laptop that came shipped with Windows XP Media Center Edition and I was hoping Dell was going to include this model in their release. While I could find no evidence that Dell is planning to offer this laptop with a Linux based system, I had no problem downloading the free Ubuntu operating system and installing it on my notebook. In fact, I was pleasantly surprised and rather excited by the ease of install since I've tried running previous versions of this operating system on my notebook with not so spectacular results.

What I love most about Ubuntu on Dell is the lack of crappy 3rd party software that is typically shipped with their computers. When I bought Dell's in the past I'd basically strip the entire hard drive and do a fresh Windows install so I wouldn't have all those extra programs on my computer which I'd never use. To tell you the truth Ubuntu already comes with too much stuff for my tastes but it's really easy to uninstall unwanted applications in this OS.

Besides not having to deal with the added junk software the second thing that I found critical was that Ubuntu recognized my wireless configuration and I had Internet access as soon as I completed my install. (My wireless even worked when booting just to the OS CD) For me this is the most critical point since nearly everything I do is done online in a web interface and Linux based systems are great for that. I loved that I didn't have to install antivirus software and I'm not getting those annoying notices from antivirus companies to update an upgrade my applications every other day. I mentioned that Ubuntu is based on open source, and for you that don't know what that means, it basically means it's FREE. Yes, the operating his system is free and you can download it from the website at ubuntu.com (had the wrong link earlier, sorry about that).

If you're a chiropractor you may be wondering is this operating system ready for the chiropractic office? In my experience if you're going to run chiropractic office management software you may be better off sticking to Windows for now since I don't know of any office management software programs that have installs and support for Linux based operating systems. That being said I certainly think it's a great idea to get Ubuntu installed for computers your staff may be using to access the Internet, simply because of the lack of virus attacks on Linux based operating systems. Ubuntu installs with OpenOffice, another open source (free) product that features a word processor, spreadsheet tools, presentation tools, and other productivity office related tools. In my experience OpenOffice has been very easy to use and is loaded with productive features.

Ubuntu also makes a great operating system for the chiropractor on the road since there's less likely a need for office management software when out of the office. With Firefox installed as a Web browser, Thunderbird or Evolution available as an e-mail client, the tools available from OpenOffice, and a mindbending number of other opensource products, you should have everything you could desire in an operating system. One example is open-source software called Audacity that allows you to use the microphone on your computer to record voice presentations. That could mean narrative reports, presentations, podcasts, and voiceovers for your slideshow presentations you're making with your OpenOffice tools. Did I mention that all of this is free and without the hassle of viruses infecting your computer?

Just remember, if it sounds too good to be true, it's likely available via open-source.

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Dr. Michael Dorausch is a chiropractor practicing Los Angeles, California. He has been utilizing open source products and platforms since the early 1990s and has been long recommending open-source products to others. Planet Chiropractic has utilized and/or continues to use products such as FreeBSD, Apache web server, Fedora core (now simply Fedora 7), Ubuntu desktop edition, Ubuntu Server, Audacity, Gimp, Wordpress, and a long list of other open source products. We are happy to support the open-source movement and would like to thank everyone working in this environment that has provided us with support and expertise.

by Michael Dorausch, DC

Thanks to advances in Internet technology such as Really Simple Syndication (RSS), web content that in the past may have only been available in one location, can now be distributed through a potentially unlimited number of channels, offering much greater access to the source information. For example, a current news article written about whales in San Francisco, could potentially appear in minutes across thousands of web sites thanks to the technology behind RSS.

Many major news companies are increasingly using RSS as a way to distribute articles published to their websites, making those articles available to readers via tools such as RSS browser plug-ins, and RSS readers available from companies like Google, Yahoo, Microsoft, and AOL, to name a few. The newer versions of Internet Explorer (7.0) and Mozilla Firefox (2.0) have the ability to display an RSS feed in a similar fashion to a typical HTML coded web page. What that means basically is when someone goes to visit a web site and clicks on the RSS feed, they will get to view the content (sometimes the entire article) instead of seeing a bunch of computer code that often does not make much sense to end viewers.

But RSS is not just for news content. While news distribution is by far the most popular use of RSS feeds, it is only one form of content out of many, being distributed across the Internet. Some web sites are distributing photos (Flickr by Yahoo!), pod casts (both audio and video), slideshow presentations, as well as other forms of content, such as classified ads.

A great example of how this technology is being used, for forms other than news and article content, is the RSS feeds that have been added to the chiropractic classifieds section at Planet Chiropractic.

With the addition of RSS technology, someone can now post a classified ad to one location and have it potentially appear on a multitude of web sites, thus increasing the likelihood that someone will view the ad, respond to the ad, and make a connection with the person or party posting the advertisement.

As an example, a chiropractor posted an ad late last week and stated that he was available to substitute at chiropractors offices in the state of California, for those seeking such services. As is typical, the ad was posted (for free) in the "associates available category" on the website. It should've technically been posted in the "substitutions and locum positions" category but that's a topic for another day. Normally, someone seeking a chiropractor to cover their office would visit the classified ad pages and either do a search or browse for related information. With the addition of RSS feeds, this post (since it was a recent post) would appear in the feed and could potentially appear on any number of websites (typically related to chiropractic) across the Internet. You can view to different examples of how this sort of RSS feed is output here:chiropractordirectory.org/classifieds/ and here: 247chiro.com/classifieds/.

Additionally, using RSS reader (like the ones mentioned in this article) a person could "subscribe" to a feed (even a classified ads feed) and have the information within that feed delivered to their desktop or mobile phone. This ensures that the information one is receiving is always fresh and up-to-date, a fantastic addition to any website featuring classifieds or auctions.

Read more about Planet Chiropractic and the use of RSS feeds for classified ads here: RSS Feeds Added to Chiropractic Classifieds

About the RSS Features
Currently, the only information included in the RSS feed version of a users classified ad, is the title and the description (also known as subject or body) of the advertisement. This means it's more important than ever that users engage in best description practices so as to improve the results intended from their posts. For example, when selling a practice in Las Vegas, a great title would be "Las Vegas Chiropractic Office for Sale" rather than "office for sale" or the ever so popular "practice for sale" heading. It's just as important to include relevant information into the body of content so that people can better find out where you're located.

By Michael Dorausch, DC

I received my monthly "information age" e-newsletter from chiropractic internet company Now You Know (NYK) earlier today. As I browsed through the copy I found myself thinking "these guys are still right on and standing tall for chiropractic." I figured it's better to share some of those thoughts rather than just keeping them to myself.

In their first topic NYK discussed the International Chiropractors Association (ICA) and the organizations decision to reject a so called "Demand" made by the board of the Congress of Chiropractic State Associations (COCSA) to merge with another chiropractic association (the ACA). Planet Chiropractic reported on the same topic Chiropractic Association Maintains Principles earlier in the month.

I was most interested in the editor's comments as NYK authors pointed out that the ICA annual meeting in Washington was held in conjunction with the "Chiropractic Coalition" which is a coalition of associations designed to facilitate an avenue where national chiropractic organizations could work and lobby together for the common good of chiropractic. Each year since the inception of the Chiropractic Coalition the ICA, World Chiropractic Alliance (WCA), and Federation of Straight Chiropractors and Organizations (FSCO) have participated in the event. According to NYK, each year the ACA has declined to participate.

I've noticed other newsletters from organizations such as the WCA as well as chiropractic advocates like Dr. Tedd Koren questioning the apparently suspect nature of merging the ICA and ACA. One thing I've gotten from all this is that there is a large and vocal group of chiropractors that are either represented by organizations such as the ICA, FSCO, or WCA, or just concerned chiropractors that don't think merger is a good idea for chiropractic. Thinking about it further, being a member in any combination of the ICA, WCA or FSCO makes great sense, since all three organizations share something in common... subluxation being the first that comes to mind. While not recommending mergers, I would find supporting efforts to see greater coalition between organizations sharing similar goals for chiropractic advancement to be a positive thing.

The NYK newsletter discussed other topics such as "Making a Website Work for You" and a new book titled "I Stand Amazed" by chiropractic patient, advocate and author, Ms. Geri Carlson. Rather then getting into those topics here it's best you visit the NYK website at nowyouknow.net and get subscribed to their newsletter yourself.

by Michael Dorausch, DC

Google's announcement last week that they have begun incorporating video content, photo content, and other multimedia content, into regular organic search engine results, has motivated me to open up the channels so that people like you can have access to numerous feeds of chiropractic video.

I created my first chiropractic videos back in 1996 and I remember how they used to require several hours to convert into formats that could be uploaded online. After the videos were converted and then posted to web sites (which took another hour or so) they would get viewed in tiny compressed formats such as those provided at the time by companies like Microsoft (asf and asx), RealNetworks (ra and ram), and Apple (mov QuickTime).

I remember being in school at that time and wishing there was more chiropractic content students could watch. We would sometimes get access to old VHS tapes featuring chiropractors such as Ian Grassam, Fred Barge, and Carl Cleveland II, but they were far and too few in between.

Since those days I've collected more than a hundred hours of video footage featuring chiropractors giving lectures, people receiving adjustments, doctors demonstrating techniques, individuals talking about philosophy, and so forth.

Just as I did back in 1996, I want to get the message out today. While it is no longer difficult create this kind of content, I'd like to make it as easy as a cut-and-paste procedure so that chiropractors worldwide could add video content to their websites at no cost, and people worldwide could learn more about what it is we do.

The videos that are accessible here may appear amateur but they demonstrate the simplicity of not only getting the information online, but of getting information delivered.

You can view chiropractic videos here...
Chiropractic Video Blogs

New plug-and-play technologies allow us to embed video content directly into webpages which can be incorporated into articles like this one. Again, these are amateur style videos but just think of the possibilities.

Here is a video filmed in my chiropractic office in Los Angeles and it's just a simple short clip explaining some basics about bones, discs, spinal nerves, and a healthy spine.

Rest assured there's a lot more video to come.

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