From Now On The Educational Technology Journal

Vol 9|No 7|March|2000

Stretchability allows the scanning of ideas and segments across pages of text. How easily can our eyes jump from one section to another? What happens differently when we hold pages in our hands? Why is scrolling different? If you prefer reading on the screen over reading paper pages, I would love to read e-mail explaining your top 2-3 reasons. Conversely, if you prefer reading paper pages over reading on the screen, I would love to read e-mail explaining your top 2-3 reasons.     Stretchability Printed books offer opportunities to check connections between separate sections by turning pages. It is often easier to "stretch" one's eyes and mind back to previous paragraphs with paper books and print outs of articles. For several years I have been asking members of my audiences how many of them print out articles from this journal before reading them. Surprisingly, some 80 per cent or more indicate they prefer reading with paper. Even though I have taken great pains to format these articles for reading on screen, paper still wins out. Why? In trying to understand this phenomenon, I have asked audiences why they prefer paper and they have identified stretchability as a major attraction to paper.   Back to When the Book Back to March Contents Credits: The photographs were shot by Jamie McKenzie. Icons from Jay Boersma at (http://www.ECNet.Net/users/gas52r0/Jay/home.html)Copyright Policy: Materials published in From Now On may be duplicated in hard copy format if unchanged in format and content for educational, nonprofit school district and university use only and may also be sent from person to person by e-mail. This copyright statement must be included. All other uses, transmissions and duplications are prohibited unless permission is granted expressly. Showing these pages remotely through frames is not permitted. FNO is applying for formal copyright registration for articles. From Now On Index Page