Sorry, if you mean with "closed community" that the entire site and its albums are password protected, RSS will stay empty. If you read with an external rss reader or via a service those are of course not loggedin and therefore don't see anyhting. Everything else would be an unpleasant surprise, wouldn't?
You respectively your users have to use a browser (Firefox e.g.) to read the RSS while they have to be loggedin. Otherwise you only chance is to email them manually using the mass mail utility (overview page).
ok. I see. this expains it!
But this would mean editing (trying) the rss.php and remove the protection would do it? in theory you could receive (free) rss with the link saying there is a new upload and if you go for the link - well the you need the pasword.
Hmm what do you think? possible? I will try it tonight. hope my site still works aftewards....