You definitely want to read these as physical books if the option is available. Screens are distracting, there’s the inescapable urge to create a new tab to do whatever, basically whenever you spend even a second not feeling super engaged (doesn’t matter what causes that second). There’s also even worse reasons that I’m not willing to mention in public.
Zvi also makes a solid case for why smartphones are terrible here.
The ability to highlight digital text is leaps and bounds over that of physical text. What’s the point of reading dozens of LW essays if I’m going to forget almost everything therein within months? My memory is particularly bad, but the problem of forgetting most of what one reads is ubiquitous. The recommended remedy for forgetfulness is to use spaced repetition, but how do you generate the cards in your spaced repetition system without digital copyable highlights?
How do you read a physical book in the dark if there’s no backlighting? Of course you can turn on a lamp, but that solution is way worse.
Also, where is text-to-speech in physical books?
I agree that smartphones and browsers are terrible distraction devices, but they’re not without significant advantages. And e-ink readers like the Kindle have some of these advantages, while having less of the corresponding disadvantages of the “smarter” devices.
You definitely want to read these as physical books if the option is available. Screens are distracting, there’s the inescapable urge to create a new tab to do whatever, basically whenever you spend even a second not feeling super engaged (doesn’t matter what causes that second). There’s also even worse reasons that I’m not willing to mention in public.
Zvi also makes a solid case for why smartphones are terrible here.
Counterpoints to reading physical books:
The ability to highlight digital text is leaps and bounds over that of physical text. What’s the point of reading dozens of LW essays if I’m going to forget almost everything therein within months? My memory is particularly bad, but the problem of forgetting most of what one reads is ubiquitous. The recommended remedy for forgetfulness is to use spaced repetition, but how do you generate the cards in your spaced repetition system without digital copyable highlights?
How do you read a physical book in the dark if there’s no backlighting? Of course you can turn on a lamp, but that solution is way worse.
Also, where is text-to-speech in physical books?
I agree that smartphones and browsers are terrible distraction devices, but they’re not without significant advantages. And e-ink readers like the Kindle have some of these advantages, while having less of the corresponding disadvantages of the “smarter” devices.