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How to read more books

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Re: How to read more books

#111

Post by [deleted] »

fl1pper wrote: post #104
tdiff wrote: post #97

The most distracting app for me is Telegram with numerous channels, which I find myself doomscrolling too often, and at the same with numerous crucial personal contracts. Really sad modern phones don't allow to set app's budget for custom interval, like 5 minutes in an hour.

I've ditched all Telegram channels and only kept a few I'm quite fond of (they post rarely anyway) You could try ScreenZen or a similar app that help control nd reduce the time you spend on certain apps. Nowadays, you can such apps in a few prompts and some minor tweaks :)

[deleted]

Re: How to read more books

#113

Post by tdiff »

fl1pper wrote: post #104
tdiff wrote: post #97

The most distracting app for me is Telegram with numerous channels, which I find myself doomscrolling too often, and at the same with numerous crucial personal contracts. Really sad modern phones don't allow to set app's budget for custom interval, like 5 minutes in an hour.

I've ditched all Telegram channels and only kept a few I'm quite fond of (they post rarely anyway) You could try ScreenZen or a similar app that help control nd reduce the time you spend on certain apps. Nowadays, you can such apps in a few prompts and some minor tweaks :)

Thanks. Honestly, I am somewhat concerned with all those 3rd party apps obtaining some control of my phone. Personally, would be so much nicer to have the same service provided by system. Vibecoding one is really an option.

Re: How to read more books

#114

Post by cubefox »

aaronbrethorst wrote: post #22

I have an almost-four year old child and not a lot of downtime. I used to listen to podcasts when I was doing dishes, cleaning the house, walking the dog, etc. I've mostly abandoned podcasts in favor of audiobooks. It didn't feel like they were benefiting me in any meaningful way—almost like they were just empty calories for my ears. I finally made it all the way through The Power Broker recently, which I've wanted t…

> Avoid even audiobooks. Big corporations want to grab your attention by trying to market audiobooks as books for busy people, but don’t fall for the trap. A book is just boring black text on a white page because that’s how it’s meant to be consumed, and it requires your entire attention. Listening to audio while cooking or cleaning or whatever you do is not the same thing; you are not 100% concentrated on the content. Also, reading is faster than listening, so use your time wisely.

Re: How to read more books

#115

Post by cubefox »

vermooten wrote: post #71

I've read 31 novels since January, far more than I'd read in the last 30 years. Easy: I read 50 pages every night when I go to bed, instead of screens. I started with short novels, 150 pages or fewer (chatgpt gave me a reading list). It quickly became a habit, and it's lovely.

That's crazy speed!

Re: How to read more books

#116

Post by abnry »

mihaaly wrote: post #64
card_zero wrote: post #29

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Who asked what you prefer? That has nothing to do with reading more books. Personally I have pages from books projected onto the walls, so that if I ever accidentally look up from the book that I'm reading, I read part of another book. Also I hire a mercenary soldier to watch me at all times, and if I try to stop reading even for a moment he jumps at me with a combat knife and pushes an open book into my face. In thi…

This "serious reader" expression makes my skin crawl. Like if it was something of a sport with olympics where people compete in their own weight and it is measured in the end to the hundredths of seconds in front of spectators in a stadion shaped library cheering READ, READ, READ! Quality is mentioned, remotely, through selection, but still, the mental picture remains the same. The post smells like a training guide f…

I don't think serious reader is a cringe term. Reading is a skill like any other and we use terms like "serious golfer" or "serious painter". The flip side of serious is causal. It's okay to structure your life so that reading is a big part of it.

Re: How to read more books

#117

Post by brandall10 »

aaronbrethorst wrote: post #22

I have an almost-four year old child and not a lot of downtime. I used to listen to podcasts when I was doing dishes, cleaning the house, walking the dog, etc. I've mostly abandoned podcasts in favor of audiobooks. It didn't feel like they were benefiting me in any meaningful way—almost like they were just empty calories for my ears. I finally made it all the way through The Power Broker recently, which I've wanted t…

Wow, listening to the Power Broker now, about 1/3 of the way through.

Audiobooks completely changed things for me... in the past 2 years, 'read' about 40 books, almost entirely listened to on my daily runs. The prior 2 years? Only 3 or so.

Re: How to read more books

#118

Post by [deleted] »

kelvinjps10 wrote: post #103
aaronbrethorst wrote: post #22

I have an almost-four year old child and not a lot of downtime. I used to listen to podcasts when I was doing dishes, cleaning the house, walking the dog, etc. I've mostly abandoned podcasts in favor of audiobooks. It didn't feel like they were benefiting me in any meaningful way—almost like they were just empty calories for my ears. I finally made it all the way through The Power Broker recently, which I've wanted t…

For me audiobooks are okay for non fiction but for fiction I need to read it to be able to immerse in the story and imagine the characters. Also no all non fiction it's okay either, for philosophy that's a little complicated I need to read it too.

[deleted]

Re: How to read more books

#119

Post by cubefox »

AyanamiKaine wrote: post #37

While I do agree that reading is really important especially when it comes to good books. BUT simply consuming something for the sake of consumption is rarely a good idea. I know of people that read books and consome them like food everyday, and wont learn anything thing from them. Their content becoming a distant memory as time passes. What is the point of reading something if you forget it 2 weeks later? You may re…

Schopenhauer made a similar point in his essay "On Reading and Books".

https://en.wikisource.org/wiki/On_Books_and_Reading

https://fs.blog/wp-content/uploads/2016/11/Arthur-Schopenhau...

Re: How to read more books

#120

Post by nephihaha »

estetlinus wrote: post #86
nephihaha wrote: post #78

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Audiobooks are heavily dependent on the reader. In one case, I had an audiobook where the translator was the reader. She is an excellent translator but a poor reader. Many authors are poor readers of their own work. They are certainly good while you are on a long drive etc, because they entertain you while doing some another task which you wouldn't be able to do while reading. During lockdown, I could not read due to…

+1 The best audiobook I’ve ever listened to is Stephen Kings On Writing: A memoir of the Craft, read by the author. One of our times best storytellers, both when it comes to writing them and telling them.

I've a soft spot for that book because it saved me from two days of very long and dreary jury service. (They kept us sitting around all that time.) I think I read at least a third of it in there. The only court stuff I heard was for about ten minutes and incredibly unexciting.
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