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Formats used on this Web Site
The following are some of the common formats used on the NDP caucus web site. There is information about the format and a link that will allow you to obtain whatever programs are required to use that format.
 PDF
The Portable Document Format (PDF) is a file format created by Adobe
Systems in 1993 for document exchange. PDF is used for representing
documents in a independent document format. The documents are viewable
and printable on any platform — Macintosh, Microsoft® Windows®, Linux®,
and many mobile platforms.
To view a PDF you need a pdf reader. There is an official reader from Adobe or there is a lightweight alternative called foxit reader. It you require an open source program there is GSview .
 RSS
RSS (which stands for "Really Simple Syndication")
is a web format used to publish frequently updated content such as blog
entries, news headlines or podcasts. An RSS document, which is called a
"feed", "web feed", or "channel", contains either a summary of content
from an associated web site or the full text. RSS makes it possible for
people to keep up with their favorite web sites in an automated manner
that's easier than checking them manually.
RSS content can be read using software called a "feed reader" or an
"aggregator." The user subscribes to a feed by entering the feed's link
into the reader or by clicking an RSS icon in a browser that initiates
the subscription process. The reader checks the user's subscribed feeds
regularly for new content, downloading any updates that it finds.
Firefox , the popular web browser has RSS-compatibility built in. If you are looking for a standalone RSS reader, RSSOwl is another option (and it is open source!)
If you are looking to subscribe to podcasts you can use Apple's iTunes or, if you want a free (open source) option there is a program called Juice .
 Flash
Adobe Flash (previously called Shockwave Flash and Macromedia Flash) is a set of multimedia technologies developed and distributed by Adobe Systems and earlier by Macromedia. It is available for many popular platforms, including Windows, Mac OS X and Linux. Flash is used as the basis for many popular video sites, including YouTube and Google Video.
You can download the latest version of Flash for your browser from the offical Adobe webpage.
 Zip Files
The ZIP file format is a data compression and archival format. A ZIP file contains one or more files that have been compressed, to reduce their file size. To access the files inside the "zip file" you need to extract or "unzip" the file. A common program for extracting these files in Windows is Winzip.
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