Hacker News Reader

Comment by viburnum | Hacker News Reader

This weekend I was slogging through a book I had been meaning to read for ten years when I realized that twitter is actually more enjoyable than books.

View on HN

I would argue that totally depends on the books and the twitter threads that you're reading!

It took me a long time to realize that if a book wasn't interesting or enjoyable, I could just...stop. With twitter it's a bit mentally easier to just close the browser.

I find books are every bit as enjoyable. The problem is the first 30-50 pages are usually a slog, before I hit my "activation energy" and really get into it (or realize I don't like it).

When I was less distracted, the slog was easier.

I use to try and push through the slog, but now I determine why I am reading the book and if it's worth continuing. I've stopped reading multiple books this year to go on to something I enjoy more and it's been fantastic. I used to feel obligated to finish every book I started, but realized that some books are just not worth it. I suppose the same could be said for a lot of things in life.

Don't read e-books on your phone. Not that you're doing that, but it's very difficult to do for reasons you're describing.

I carry a Kindle Paperwhite just for focused reading, but I also have a Kindle app on my phone, so I'll read books rather than obsessively checking email / social media / weather / omganything. I read different books on my phone thank on the Kindle, things that I can easily pick up and put down without having to shift the brain to a different gear. (Current phone read: Everything Is Fucked. Current Kindle read: War and Peace.)

It's still crazy to me the paperwhites are more expensive than Amazon's Fire Tablets

I imagine most of the cost is in that wonderful screen. Reading on a paperwhite is a revelation - the next best thing to an actual book, and better than many books.

Demand, mostly, but I agree - it's especially expensive since it's a platform device that's exclusively locked to their marketplace.

I see this is downvoted for going against the HN narrative that Twitter is worse than Hitler.

Reply on news.ycombinator.com