RSS Connector 25.4
RSS Connector Help

# Extract Dates from RSS Feeds

Items in an RSS feed often contain a date to indicate when the item was published. The RSS Connector can use the dates to determine whether there is new information that needs to be ingested. For example, if the last modified date for an item has not changed, the connector does not need to process it. If a feed item has been modified, the connector can extract this information and send the update to the ingestion server.

The names of the XML fields that contain dates, and the format of the dates, can vary between RSS feeds. The following is one example:

    <item>
      <guid>...</guid>
      <title>OpenText releases new connector</title>
      <description>OpenText today released the new RSS connector...</description>
      <pubDate>2015-11-01T00:00:00.000-07:00</pubDate>
      <link>http://www.example.com</link>
    </item>

To extract the date associated with each feed item, set the parameter `RssItemDateTag` to the name of the XML element that contains the date:

    RssItemDateTag=pubDate

The configuration parameter `RssDateFormats` instructs the connector how to parse dates. The default value of this parameter includes many standard date formats, but if the dates in your RSS feed are not recognized, you might also need to set this parameter. The following example shows a suitable format for the example feed item above:

    RssDateFormats=YYYY-M+-D+THH:NN:SS.F+ZZZZZ

For more information about these parameters, refer to the RSS Connector Reference.

Copyright 2025 Open Text
Version 25.4 | Last updated October 2025

Send documentation feedback

Close

Send documentation feedback

To send feedback using your default email client, open an email window.

Otherwise, send your feedback and the information below to MFI-swpdl.idoldocsfeedback@opentext.com.

We appreciate your feedback!

Product: Knowledge Discovery RSS Connector 25.4

Topic Title: Extract Dates from RSS Feeds