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How to gain more from your reading

psyche.co

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Re: How to gain more from your reading

#41

Post by okareaman »

EricE wrote: post #28
posharma wrote: post #26

How do you folks deal with the following? I borrow books from the local library but can't mark or underline anything in the book to go back and refer. How do you then keep notes to retain the salient points of the book? Maintaining notes separately breaks the flow of reading. Suggestions appreciated.

I used to keep a pad and paper - now I can snap a picture with my iPad and then annotate on it with the Pencil in my own writing. Writing is far more effective at retention than typing so I stick with it. It's not as convenient as writing directly in your own book, but it's pretty darn close. And if it's a subject of importance I'll just get my own copy of the book. I recently re-discovered independent used book site…

I second this. I take pictures with my phone to save for further study.

Edit: I use https://www.onlineocr.net/ a lot when I later want the text

Re: How to gain more from your reading

#42

Post by leokennis »

wombatmobile wrote: post #15
leokennis wrote: post #5

This article is, perhaps unsurprisingly, very well written and structured. A joy to read compared to most internet writing! It vibes pretty well with my own "rules" for reading: * I read one book at a time * In general I only read when I feel like it, but I will read every day: if I don't feel like it, I'll just read one page * At any point am I allowed to stop reading a book and pick up a new one * I do not track "p…

Why do you read one book at a time? Have you tried more than that and found it unsatisfactory? I usually have two books on the go. I leave them in different places. That’s key. I am a different person in each place, and I can keep my associations separate and distinct for each book. Given enough places, I’m confident I could read more than two books in parallel.

I read almost exclusively on my ereader, so “two books in different places” does not apply to me. But years ago before the ereader existed I also self-disciplined to one book at a time.

If I don’t, my reading will become like my internet browsing: chasing my interest of the moment, half reading something about it, going on another chase and never properly engaging with one subject.

Of course some people will be better at context switching and the discipline to actually finish the multiple books they’re reading…but not me.

Re: How to gain more from your reading

#43

Post by BeetleB »

mrjivraj wrote: post #6

I sometimes fall into the trap of bookmarking interesting content but failing to go back to read it, especially long form content, although I find such content to be the best for learning about interesting things. There were a few articles I kept coming back to but couldn't get through because of distractions, so yesterday I decided to print out the articles I wanted to read. 30 mins later, I had gone through 3 three…

Printing is something I started to do some months ago. Instead of keeping the tab open for weeks, I decided I'd print anything I want to read and place it a physical "inbox".

Some tips: I print 2 pages to a side, so 4 pages per printer paper. Even long articles don't use too much paper, and for my eyes it's still readable (there are a few articles where I need to enlarge first). I print using either Firefox's "Simplify Page" feature or its "Readability" feature. This removes almost all the noise: No ads, no menus, etc. It's just the article and relevant images. Similar to reading a physical newspaper.

It's been a game changer. I can now read wherever I want. Going to the mechanic? I just take some of these printed articles with me. I find myself taking notes on the paper - something I would not do well on the computer screen. My eyes get a lot less strain. Once you get used to this, there's no going back. Now when I see an article through a web browser, it's just ugly. Too many distractions. Even the menus are annoying. I didn't realize I'd been putting up with filth for so long.

I initially worried that my inbox would get full and I'd have the same mental angst, and my plan was that if it happens, I'll take a random bunch and throw it in the recycle bin. But it never came to that - I still manage to read everything I print. Somehow, the physical inbox weighs less on my mind than the virtual one. I don't feel I need to deal with this inbox. It's OK if it just sits there collecting dust.

Bad for the environment. Good for the brain.

Re: How to gain more from your reading

#44

Post by sixstringtheory »

wombatmobile wrote: post #15
leokennis wrote: post #5

This article is, perhaps unsurprisingly, very well written and structured. A joy to read compared to most internet writing! It vibes pretty well with my own "rules" for reading: * I read one book at a time * In general I only read when I feel like it, but I will read every day: if I don't feel like it, I'll just read one page * At any point am I allowed to stop reading a book and pick up a new one * I do not track "p…

Why do you read one book at a time? Have you tried more than that and found it unsatisfactory? I usually have two books on the go. I leave them in different places. That’s key. I am a different person in each place, and I can keep my associations separate and distinct for each book. Given enough places, I’m confident I could read more than two books in parallel.

I was a one-book-at-a-time person for the longest time, and in the last two years relaxed what I realized was an arbitrary rule and allowed myself to read any of a number of books (because I buy them faster than I can read them anyways) depending on my mood. I currently have at least one going in each of these areas:

- technical

- design

- autobiography

- classic fiction

- short nonfiction anthology

- history

Progress is a lot slower per book, but it’s not a race. I much prefer being able to pick up whatever I’m interested in at the time than having to wait, feeling like I have to slog through the end of the current book.

Re: How to gain more from your reading

#45

Post by yepguy »

posharma wrote: post #26

How do you folks deal with the following? I borrow books from the local library but can't mark or underline anything in the book to go back and refer. How do you then keep notes to retain the salient points of the book? Maintaining notes separately breaks the flow of reading. Suggestions appreciated.

If you'd prefer the low-tech route, try this: Buy notecards for your thoughts and leave them in the book as you go. Then before you return it, review them to make sure you've captured enough context that they make sense without the physical book.

Re: How to gain more from your reading

#46

Post by splittingTimes »

BeetleB wrote: post #43
mrjivraj wrote: post #6

I sometimes fall into the trap of bookmarking interesting content but failing to go back to read it, especially long form content, although I find such content to be the best for learning about interesting things. There were a few articles I kept coming back to but couldn't get through because of distractions, so yesterday I decided to print out the articles I wanted to read. 30 mins later, I had gone through 3 three…

Printing is something I started to do some months ago. Instead of keeping the tab open for weeks, I decided I'd print anything I want to read and place it a physical "inbox". Some tips: I print 2 pages to a side, so 4 pages per printer paper. Even long articles don't use too much paper, and for my eyes it's still readable (there are a few articles where I need to enlarge first). I print using either Firefox's "Simpli…

When I had more time (before having kids) i would print out a couple of articles every other day to read while commuting with public transport or during the evening. I became a bit obsessed with the optimal usage of paper space per article. So I wrote a HTML-to-LaTex converter as a golang learning project and applied the scientific paper style to the articles. I was quite happy with the results. Some HN classics can be found here:

https://github.com/frankMilde/interesting-reads

Re: How to gain more from your reading

#47

Post by slothtrop »

wombatmobile wrote: post #15
leokennis wrote: post #5

This article is, perhaps unsurprisingly, very well written and structured. A joy to read compared to most internet writing! It vibes pretty well with my own "rules" for reading: * I read one book at a time * In general I only read when I feel like it, but I will read every day: if I don't feel like it, I'll just read one page * At any point am I allowed to stop reading a book and pick up a new one * I do not track "p…

Why do you read one book at a time? Have you tried more than that and found it unsatisfactory? I usually have two books on the go. I leave them in different places. That’s key. I am a different person in each place, and I can keep my associations separate and distinct for each book. Given enough places, I’m confident I could read more than two books in parallel.

I also do two, usually one fiction and one non-fiction.

Re: How to gain more from your reading

#48

Post by njharman »

My problem is bad memory. I don't remember much of the books I read. Even recently.

So, I become very discouraged and see reading as waste of time as very little will stick and this I'll "grow" very little from time invested. Poor ROI.

I still read but mostly for eprmeral enntertainmen

Re: How to gain more from your reading

#49

Post by watwut »

sanderjd wrote: post #19

I have really struggled with this, especially since having kids. The problem for me is that I have very little time to read, so I either have to read fast or read very little, reading fast doesn't really work as the article describes, so the choice is to read very little, but then that makes choosing what to read a big commitment, and that leads to analysis paralysis, and then I end up reading nothing because it's to…

If you are reading physical book, give a chance to epub version on phone. It is much easier and faster to pop it out of pocket when you suddenly have a chance.

It made big difference for me in exactly that situation.

Re: How to gain more from your reading

#50

Post by humen99 »

posharma wrote: post #26

How do you folks deal with the following? I borrow books from the local library but can't mark or underline anything in the book to go back and refer. How do you then keep notes to retain the salient points of the book? Maintaining notes separately breaks the flow of reading. Suggestions appreciated.

>Maintaining notes separately breaks the flow of reading.

I would push back on this point. You do not have to keep a flow of reading. If there is something that stands out to you, then it is noteworthy enough to pause and think about it for a bit. When I read books I am waiting for moments like this, as something the author wrote resonates with me. In my opinion, that's what makes reading fun and valuable. After you reflect on the line you can re-read to get back into the flow until you are pleasantly provoked by the next piece :).

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