Hello

@transistor @dave @adam @james

the time to stink was last year, and many podcasting folks weighed in

this is something it seems the browser makers _really_ want to do, so it's gonna happen

John Spurlock (@js@podcastindex.social)

XSLT on the chopping block? goodbye good-looking podcast RSS feeds... https://github.com/whatwg/html/issues/11523

PodcastIndex Social (podcastindex.social)

@js @transistor @adam @james Google really wanted to do it. The other members of the WHATWG didn't even notice and are basically just Google's yes men. Google owns browsers now, so they do whatever they want.

The WHATWG (i.e. Google) always says the public is "welcome to participate". That just means they are happy to explain to you why they are doing what they want. It doesn't mean your desires matter. They do not.

@dave @js @transistor @adam We have CSS for XML which avoids the “OH NO A BIG SCREEN OF CODE SOMETHING HAS GONE WRONG”.

But this is a UX issue. We shouldn’t be putting an RSS feed in front of a user as an equivalent click to Apple Podcasts, Pocket Casts etc. Any links to RSS visible by the user should be carefully explained, and probably accompanied with a dialog box with details of how to use it to hand-hold them.

I’d be happy to write a first pass of that, but someone needs to put it into user testing to ensure users understand it.

Only 10% of podcasts use XSLT. It is a waste of energy trying to retain it. It’s gone. Let’s sort out the UX issue.

@james @dave @js @adam Search "feeds.[hostname]" on any social platform, and you'll find tons of podcasters sharing their RSS feeds.

If we're going to treat this as a "UX issue" we have to acknowledge that folks will:

- share their RSS feed URLs
- view RSS feeds in browsers

People are hardwired to share + click URLs.

@james @dave @js @adam The "CSS for XML" approach is probably the best option we have, but it still isn't as good as XSLT:

- Many browsers (especially mobile) will "download rss.rss"
- Instead of recognizing it as an RSS feed (and opening it in Apple Podcasts), mobile Safari opens podcast feeds in my Reader app (I've seen this happen to other people as well!)

https://youtu.be/VJTS-kSeYpY

@transistor

I don’t know how bluntly I can say this - you’re too late. Only 10% of podcasts support XSLT. It’s going away. We’ve lost this one. It is a waste of your time and your boundless energy trying to fight it. Please stop! Let’s do something constructive instead.

Let’s fix this UX issue - that people click on RSS feeds when we give them a big link marked “RSS feed” - with clear signposting about how to use an RSS feed and what it’s for (and a suggested user journey if they do click on one). Let’s work on wording that listeners understand for the CSS “error message”. Let’s see if we can get user testing through the PSP, to get some science behind it; and formulate some guidelines for the industry on how to handle this properly.

You’ve highlighted a problem. Let’s fix it constructively - with science!