Display Messages from a Yahoo! Group on Your Web Site

Use RSS to display the latest messages from a Yahoo! Group on a remote web site.

Really Simple Syndication (RSS) is a standard XML format designed for syndicating content across web sites. The fact that there are so many tools available that can work with RSS means it really is simple to work with.

Yahoo! has embraced RSS and offers RSS feeds for many of their features, including search results, news headlines, and Yahoo! Groups. Many people use Yahoo! Groups alongside another web site, or in cooperation with several web sites, so the following hack offers an excellent example of how this simple XML format can add a lot of value to an existing site.

The first step is to find the feed URL for the Yahoo! Group you’re interested in. If the Yahoo! Group allows anyone to view the message archive, you should find a bright orange XML icon on the front page, like the one shown in Figure 6-23.

If you don’t see the XML icon, you can ask the group moderator to change the settings to allow anyone to view the group archives, which will enable the feed. The steps for the moderator are:

  1. From the group’s front page, click Management at the bottom of the menu on the left side of the page.

  2. Click Messages on the right side of the page, under Group Settings.

  3. Click Edit next to Posting and Archives.

  4. Change the Archive Options at the bottom of the page to Anyone and click Save Changes.

Figure 6-23. XML feed indicator on a Yahoo! Group

After the moderator ...

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