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Possible Duplicate:
What tools can be used to keep track of changes on web pages?

http://www.readfree.net/bbs/register.PHP (Google translated version: http://translate.Google.com/translate?js=n&prev=_t&hl=en&ie=UTF-8&layout=2&eotf=1&sl=zh-CN&tl=en&u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.readfree.net%2Fbbs%2Fregister.PHP) is a forum where registration is not available all the time. It says it limits the number of new users for registration every day, and releases openings from time to time.

I wonder if there is some software that can track the website, and notify me when there is opening? Can RSS do that? Note the website is PHP.

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Tim
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2 Answers2

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There are several tools, including Google Reader, that can do this.

The underlying technology doesn't matter, as you always only see the generated result. You just won't be able to rely on header information about the date and time of the last change to the page.

Daniel Beck
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  • Thanks! What do you mean by "You just won't be able to rely on header information about the date and time of the last change to the page"? – Tim Aug 13 '11 at 15:06
  • @Tim HTTP includes meta information that can tell you when a (static) web page was last edited, e.g. `Last-Modified: Wed, 15 Nov 1995 04:58:08 GMT`. On dynamic web pages, e.g. written in PHP, those are typically not set to a useful value. Then the only thing left to rely on is the actual content. – Daniel Beck Aug 13 '11 at 15:08
  • Thanks! I tried Google Reader. When adding the website address into subscription, I got the error "Your search did not match any feeds. Suggestions: * Make sure all words are spelled correctly. * Try different keywords. * Try more general keywords." I wonder if I am missing something? – Tim Aug 13 '11 at 15:12
  • @Tim [Google announced it 1.5 years ago](http://googlereader.blogspot.com/2010/01/follow-changes-to-any-website.html), so it might have been removed already. The other tools on that page are more specialized web site update checking services and fit your needs better. – Daniel Beck Aug 13 '11 at 15:17
  • Reader had dropped support for it few months back, page2RSS would be a good alternative @Tim – Sathyajith Bhat Aug 13 '11 at 16:11
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First four hits on google searching for "Tell me when a website changes",

One looks like a costed product, one's a website, one I'm not sure about and one is a list of other services.

EightBitTony
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  • Thanks! I tried changedetection, and had some quick look at the others. I wonder if in such services, the largest frequency of checking a website is daily? Is there some service (free preferably) that can check more than once each day? – Tim Aug 15 '11 at 03:39