RSS feeds and pod casting, what is the point?

[tefnut]

I have been researching rss feeds and stuff and have drawn a blank as to why you'd want to read or hear one when you can go on the net or switch on the TV. I hope this does make me seem monumentally thick but I just don't get it. Can any one explain this to me

[Charles]

RSS makes life a little bit easier -- but even a little bit is nice. I've about a dozen web sites that I need or want to keep track of and as they have RSS feeds I don't have to check each one. My RSS reader checks them for me and lets me know if there is anything new.

As a web author it provides my users with another "entry pint" and it gives them an index of what's new. There's a way to make your RSS feeds render properly in a borwser so they can do double duty.

[tefnut]

Thanks Charles its a but clearer now, but how do pod casts fit into that. Does the RSS reader tell you if there is a new pod cast on a website?