2 ms·

My progression was something like: Video Games > Social Media > YouTube > TV > Reading I had to cut quite a few things out of my life before I defaulted to bo

by Aromasin 10mo ago

My progression was something like: Video Games > Social Media > YouTube > TV > Reading I had to cut quite a few things out of my life before I defaulted to books, because all of the prior activities tapped into my brains inherent desire for stimulating, low effort consumption. Reading is quite often hard, boring, or difficult, but generally more rewarding in the end. I retain more useful information, explicitly because it is more difficult and my brain denotes it a higher reward value.

theshrike79 10mo ago
What you read is also a big thing. There's no need to read that new pseudointellectual tome everyone is talking that could've been a blog post. It's a boring slog to read anyway. You can just grab a book where a space-wizard stops an orbital bombardment with his willpower[0]. Or one that's Top Gun but Grimdark WH40k[1]. Whatever is fun for you specifically. Books can be fun, they don't need to have any "value" past entertainment. And get an ebook reader. An actual one with an e-ink screen. It moves the barrier from going "I'm bored" to "I'm reading" to near zero. Just open the smart cover and the book is exactly where you left it. And if the book is 15 or 1500 pages, it weighs the same. [0] https://www.goodreads.com/series/124536-starship-s-mage https://www.goodreads.com/series/124536-starship-s-mage [1] https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/58912.Double_Eagle https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/58912.Double_Eagle
- ekjhgkejhgk 10mo ago
  > Whatever is fun for you specifically. Books can be fun, they don't need to have any "value" past entertainment. That's a choice. I avoid books which are exclusively about entertainment. I always aim for value + entertainment. Absolutely yes on the ebook reader. Also, get one that you can use without internet so they're not spying on your and deleting your books. I got a pocketbook. Small, cheap, doesn't need internet. And yes, _actual_ e-ink, otherwise you're just playing on an ipad. But one thing I love about my pocketbook is that it has a backlight which you can set it to very low, plus enable dark mode, and I can read it in complete darkness which with a physical book you can't.
- seec 10mo ago
  Well, if it's just for entertainment, then books don't have more value than any other medium or way to spend time to entertain yourself. People have a book fetish because they imagine books are necessarily better quality, but it is actually rarely the case. Reading valuable books is hard, takes time, effort, and concentration, and is out of the means of most people. And that's just about all there is to it. Stuff that would have been books previously, now are just long articles because the commercial incentives have changed (just like music albums have disappeared). It's not a bad thing in my book!

theshrike79 10mo ago

What you read is also a big thing. There's no need to read that new pseudointellectual tome everyone is talking that could've been a blog post. It's a boring slog to read anyway. You can just grab a book where a space-wizard stops an orbital bombardment with his willpower[0]. Or one that's Top Gun but Grimdark WH40k[1]. Whatever is fun for you specifically. Books can be fun, they don't need to have any "value" past entertainment. And get an ebook reader. An actual one with an e-ink screen. It moves the barrier from going "I'm bored" to "I'm reading" to near zero. Just open the smart cover and the book is exactly where you left it. And if the book is 15 or 1500 pages, it weighs the same. [0] https://www.goodreads.com/series/124536-starship-s-mage https://www.goodreads.com/series/124536-starship-s-mage [1] https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/58912.Double_Eagle https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/58912.Double_Eagle

ekjhgkejhgk 10mo ago
> Whatever is fun for you specifically. Books can be fun, they don't need to have any "value" past entertainment. That's a choice. I avoid books which are exclusively about entertainment. I always aim for value + entertainment. Absolutely yes on the ebook reader. Also, get one that you can use without internet so they're not spying on your and deleting your books. I got a pocketbook. Small, cheap, doesn't need internet. And yes, _actual_ e-ink, otherwise you're just playing on an ipad. But one thing I love about my pocketbook is that it has a backlight which you can set it to very low, plus enable dark mode, and I can read it in complete darkness which with a physical book you can't.
seec 10mo ago
Well, if it's just for entertainment, then books don't have more value than any other medium or way to spend time to entertain yourself. People have a book fetish because they imagine books are necessarily better quality, but it is actually rarely the case. Reading valuable books is hard, takes time, effort, and concentration, and is out of the means of most people. And that's just about all there is to it. Stuff that would have been books previously, now are just long articles because the commercial incentives have changed (just like music albums have disappeared). It's not a bad thing in my book!