Interesting read: Why people online don’t read to the end.

[snagglepuss]

snip

Schwartz’s data shows that readers can’t stay focused. The more I type, the more of you tune out. And it’s not just me. It’s not just Slate. It’s everywhere online. When people land on a story, they very rarely make it all the way down the page. A lot of people don’t even make it halfway. Even more dispiriting is the relationship between scrolling and sharing. Schwartz’s data suggest that lots of people are tweeting out links to articles they haven’t fully read. If you see someone recommending a story online, you shouldn’t assume that he has read the thing he’s sharing.

snip


I wonder, too, if this applies to more than just the Web. With ebooks and streaming movies and TV shows, it’s easier than ever, now, to switch to something else. In the past year my wife and I have watched at least a half-dozen movies to about the 60 percent mark. There are several books on my Kindle I’ve never experienced past Chapter 2. Though I loved it and recommend it to everyone, I never did finish the British version of the teen drama Skins. Battlestar Galactica, too—bailed on it in the middle, hoping to one day jump back in. Will I? Probably not.


Maybe this is just our cultural lot: We live in the age of skimming. I want to finish the whole thing, I really do. I wish you would, too. Really—stop quitting! But who am I kidding. I’m busy. You’re busy. There’s always something else to read, watch, play, or eat.




http://www.slate.com/articles/technology/technology/2013/06/how_people_read_online_why_you_won_t_finish_this_article.2.html

[Duer 157099]

1. Maybe there's too much boring crap

I read to the end when I find something well-written and interesting. In fact, more often than not, I find articles too short. I like watching good dramas for hours and hours, not the two-hour condensed version.

Basically, there's just too much crap. There's never enough of the good stuff.

[Wait Wut]

2. There is another reason.

After a paragraph or two, my eyes begin to hurt. I have a degenerative eye disease that makes reading painful.

And, I'm a graphic artist.

[randome]

3. It's not just you.

Even subconsciously, overly busy screens with half a dozen areas all shouting for attention at the same time, drain our attention span.

We focus far too much on appearances and not enough on information. Ironic considering this is the Information Age.

[hr]
[font color="blue"][center]Stop looking for heroes. BE one.[/center][/font]
[hr]

[rug]

4. tldr

[Butterbean]

9. Winner of the thread.

If it's a good book, I'll finish it. The only books on my kindle that are halfway finished and have been that way for months are the ones I've already read a bajillion times and am just re-reading to put myself to sleep or something. Favorite books are like lullabies to me.

[NBachers]

5. I'd watch more movies to conclusion if I didn't constantly fall asleep in the middle

Sometimes I have to put 'em on three times to get the whole movie.

[BainsBane]

6. I confess to doing that

and it can be a problem, especially with emails.

[Nay]

7. Hell, when I worked, I couldn't even get people to read to the end of a small

2-paragraph email. If I was lucky, I got an answer to the first of the 2 questions I asked. I finally learned to send 2 emails if I had more than one question. It was insane. Glad I retired. All these people with monkey minds!

[pansypoo53219]

8. excessive verbiage.

[Aerows]

10. tl;dr n/t

[rug]

11. QED

[Aerows]

12. ;) n/t

[dixiegrrrrl]

13. More often than not, the important info in a news story is tucked down at the bottom.

Esp. political news.
All of us who have posted to news links already know that people do not read the linked article,
their comments and esp. their questions demonstrate that.
How many times have we wanted to say "Well, if you had read all of the article I linked to , you would not be asking that question".

When possible, I try to put key/important info. in the body of my post, knowing it will not get seen in the linked article.

As for the more recreational viewing, like books and movies.....yeah, using a computer has really affected my attention span.

[ileus]

14. I made it to bye!