Using RSS feeds

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Adding an RSS feed to a website with a blog is a no-brainer, but in this post I'll share some tips on how to make it work for the people who use your website.

Getting the feed delivered to your browser or reader

Depending on what browser you use (such as Firefox or Safari), if you click on the RSS feed icon below, you'll see an option to subscribe to an RSS feed in your browser.  You'll be able to place a bookmark that leads immediately to the news page.

But not all browsers work with this function; if you're using Chrome, you may get a page of meaningless code.

Besides, what if you'd rather get updates delivered to your email directly?

If you right click on the RSS feed, and select "copy link address," you can open up your email client (Outlook, Macintosh Mail or the like) and create a new RSS feed. Past the link address into the feed option, and voila! - you have a live bookmark your browser where the blog updates will appear whenever posted. Remember - you have to click on the bookmark to see the updates.

Feedburner supplies the rss code with additional options. Here's an example of the same feed supplied by Feedburner:

Getting the feed delivered to your email inbox

So - what if you want the update delivered straight to your email?

When logged into feedburner, click on the publicize tab, then look for email subscriptions in the left hand column. You can access html code for a form signup (as above) or a simple link to sign up for updates.


Don't be afraid to get sweaty... with Sweaty Betti

Catherine is not only a talented personal trainer. She's a professional actor/ dancer/ singer seen in productions throughout the Twin Cities metro area and outstate Minnesota - and a cartoonist, as seen in this portrait of her alter-ego, Sweaty Bett…

Catherine is not only a talented personal trainer. She's a professional actor/ dancer/ singer seen in productions throughout the Twin Cities metro area and outstate Minnesota - and a cartoonist, as seen in this portrait of her alter-ego, Sweaty Betti.

In May we launched a new site for Bodiology Pilates, a private studio located in Minnetonka, Minnesota. Proprietor Catherine Battocletti has come up with a site that is media rich and social-media savvy. She's put in a lot of extra effort to add professionally produced client videos, an active blog (Sweaty Betti's Guide to Getting In and Getting Out of the Gym), and related social media sites on Facebook, Vimeo, Linked In, Google Plus, and Yelp. 

We wish Catherine all the best in her endeavors - she makes Pilates fun and accessible for all body types. Check it out! Maybe you'll be her next client. We could all use a little encouragement to get up and moving.

A visionary approach to understanding and building violins

Steve Rossow, Steve Sirr, M.D., and John Waddle

Steve Rossow, Steve Sirr, M.D., and John Waddle

 A new Dakota Street Design website, Trio Violin Project, has just launched (www.trioviolinproject.com). Dr. Steve Sirr, M.D., is a radiologist and violinist. In 1988 he had a lull in the work day and ran his violin through a CT X-ray machine, revealing an interior view of the instrument he had never imagined. He took the scans to his friend luthier John Waddle who found them equally fascinating.

Fast forward 15 years or so and the two of them connected with luthier Steve Rossow, who designed a system for carving out violin parts that exactly replicate the scans using a CNC machine. Using scans of a 1704 Stradivarius (the "Betts," now in the collection of the Library of Congress) they have successfully re-created replicas of the instrument which are not only fine works of art, but beautiful instruments in their own right.

Read more about Dr. Sirr, his colleagues and this project at: Trio Violin Project