> those who had to scroll through the continuous text did not do as well on the attention and working-memory tests. Wästlund thinks that scrolling—which requires a reader to consciously focus on both the text and how they are moving it—drains more mental resources than turning or clicking a page, which are simpler and more automatic gestures.
This would indicate that using page-down or space bar to scroll through websites would be better than manually scrolling. But I find the opposite is true, since so many websites have opaque toolbars at the top/bottom. So when I hit [space] and it shifts the content up by one-screenful, it's actually scrolling too far. So then I have to back up using the arrow keys or by scrolling manually.
It's too bad browsers don't have a setting to make it so that page-down only goes 85% of the way or something like that, to avoid this issue. Of course, you'd still have to hunt to find where the next line ended up.
I think I read faster and retain more when I read actual paper rather than reading something onscreen, too - nice to see this corroborated. I do feel like I get judged when I read a physical book at work (staring at a book for more than an hour or so brings the boss around to ask 'what are you up to there, commandlinefan? Keepin' busy?'), whereas nobody bats an eye when I spend all day staring at my computer monitor, so I lean toward digital "books" like O'Reilly Safari for learning even though they feel less efficient.
The feel and the smell of books engages me a bit more than a screen does. When I’m really into a book, it’s much more likely that the texture of the stack of pages will pull me out than my partner saying it’s time for dinner.
This would indicate that using page-down or space bar to scroll through websites would be better than manually scrolling. But I find the opposite is true, since so many websites have opaque toolbars at the top/bottom. So when I hit [space] and it shifts the content up by one-screenful, it's actually scrolling too far. So then I have to back up using the arrow keys or by scrolling manually.
It's too bad browsers don't have a setting to make it so that page-down only goes 85% of the way or something like that, to avoid this issue. Of course, you'd still have to hunt to find where the next line ended up.