The Atlantic: Ebooks Are an Abomination

[Quoth]

Originally Posted by DNSB

The current state of the research suggests that Open Dyslexic is not much if any of an improvement for the majority of dyslexic readers. The British Dyslexia Association appears to have dropped their recommendation for it.

I tried my Kobo with a young woman who professed to have severe dyslexia.

She hated Open Dyslexic and found that simply adjusting the size and line spacing of Georgia was best, and better than any book she'd tried to read. Only a useless sample of one.

However when I first saw "Open Dyslexic" I was surprised to discover it was just an idea with no actual real research to back it up. It's too busy.

However every other positive aspect that people have mentioned of eInk over the last 7 years or so is absolutely true.
My father died last month and was a total snob about books. Spent a fortune on special editions, like the Folio Society, yet he loved his Kindle PW and read under the bedclothes! Same birthday as C.S. Lewis but 32 years younger.

I wonder what Lewis would have thought of an eInk ereader?

One day, you will be old enough to start reading fairytales again.

No book is really worth reading at the age of ten which is not equally – and often far more – worth reading at the age of fifty and beyond

I was surprised to learn that Lewis imported US "pulp magazines", Fantasy and SF titles. So he wasn't an Edition Snob. Stories need to be read.

I started reading "Classic" works from Gutenberg back before 2006, on the laptop. That's what motivated me to get a Kindle eventually. I'd I have bought the terribly grey Sony I saw in Dublin before the 1st Kindle was even released, but I couldn't afford it. Work had bought me the laptop in 2002.

[spacepope]

Originally Posted by DNSB

The current state of the research suggests that Open Dyslexic is not much if any of an improvement for the majority of dyslexic readers. The British Dyslexia Association appears to have dropped their recommendation for it. See their Dyslexia friendly style guide. One of the nicest features with ebooks is that dyslexic readers are able to try different fonts and, hopefully, find one that allows them to read with less effort.

I was not aware of that. I've seen people who like the font, but obviously that's all just hearsay.

As you said, changing font and font size is a huge benefit. I know for me, I read a lot easier thanks to my e-reader, even though I don't suffer from any reading issues. It is just mich, much easier to adjust to what my eyes like and keep myself in the book, distraction free (turning paper pages is distracting to me...)

[kyrilson]

Dyslexia is not an issue with vision, it's an issue with language. So, I don't see why a font would make a difference. I do kind of get why making a font bigger would help, as it would help slow down the reader to help comprehension more.

[Uncle Robin]

Originally Posted by kyrilson

Dyslexia is not an issue with vision, it's an issue with language.

The two are not mutually exclusive. I personally have friends who are dyslexic and who find that wearing glasses with certain colored lenses helps them. This is an example of how vision can impact on language processing.

[Apache]

There are more than one kind of Dyslexia. My wife has Dyslexia and it most often strikes when she is tired. One type she has makes words incomprehensible to her. For example, she can't read a stop sign. She knows it is a stop sign because of the shape, but the words do not make sense to her. Another one is sometimes when she reads the words seem to move. The third one is her sense of direction. She can have trouble driving to places that she drives all of the time. Her father called her stupid, her high school guidance counselor called her stupid. She graduated from UT Austin with a dual degree, one in special ed.
Apache

[kyrilson]

Originally Posted by Uncle Robin

The two are not mutually exclusive. I personally have friends who are dyslexic and who find that wearing glasses with certain colored lenses helps them. This is an example of how vision can impact on language processing.

From what I've read, everyone seems to say it's language based. Some examples below.

https://www.understood.org/articles/...-friendly-font - "People sometimes believe dyslexia is a problem with vision . They think of it as reversing letters or writing backwards . But dyslexia is an issue with language."

https://dyslexiaida.org/frequently-asked-questions-2/ - see the first sentence.

Anecdotal evidence like yours might be right in some cases, though, I don't know. Everyone is different!

Anyways, I think possibly, the colored lenses might help with contrast and focus, which helps with concentration, perhaps. If it works, more power to them.

[kyrilson]

Originally Posted by Apache

There are more than one kind of Dyslexia. My wife has Dyslexia and it most often strikes when she is tired. One type she has makes words incomprehensible to her. For example, she can't read a stop sign. She knows it is a stop sign because of the shape, but the words do not make sense to her. Another one is sometimes when she reads the words seem to move. The third one is her sense of direction. She can have trouble driving to places that she drives all of the time. Her father called her stupid, her high school guidance counselor called her stupid. She graduated from UT Austin with a dual degree, one in special ed.
Apache

That's so wrong. My uncle is dyslexic and an engineer. He's one of the smartest guys I know, but growing up, he was called "dumber than a post" by his dad, etc. Did a number on his self confidence until someone figured out he was dyslexic in high school. Then it was off to the races after he knew and made adjustments for it.

[Uncle Robin]

Originally Posted by kyrilson

From what I've read, everyone seems to say it's language based. Some examples below.

https://www.understood.org/articles/...-friendly-font - "People sometimes believe dyslexia is a problem with vision . They think of it as reversing letters or writing backwards . But dyslexia is an issue with language."

https://dyslexiaida.org/frequently-asked-questions-2/ - see the first sentence.

I repeat, and nothing in that article disagrees - the two are not mutually exclusive. As I said "vision can impact on language processing. " (e.a.)

[ownedbycats]

Originally Posted by spacepope

I'm not sure if it's been mentioned in the thread, but e-books are really important for accessibility. You get to change the font and font size (I'm sure that Open Dyslexia is awesome for any dyslexic reader). And, for people like me who have no way to get to a library/english bookstore, an ereader is a godsend.

Living in Japan, English books are few and far between unless I'm willing to go to a bigger city - and then I better be ok with 50-100% markup on paperbacks, with a rather sad genre book selection.

I would much, much rather stick with ebooks.

(I do sympathize with the writer, as I thought I was a physical book snob before, even though I had my kindle. I didn't understand at the time that books went on discount quite often, and you could link your library card to your ereader. Now I always hunt for a nice deal on my next book and/or read from the library, without having to lift a finger... and I read so much more thanks to that!)

Also, accessibility from a mobility standpoint. I have young-onset Parkinson's. It's become more difficult to use physical books; holding them open and turning pages and trying not to drop the damn thing (forget heavy hardbacks).

My Kobo Aura HD is much easier to manage and I'm soon upgrading to a Libra with page-turn buttons rather than screen-swiping.

[Renate]

Originally Posted by ownedbycats

My Kobo Aura HD is much easier to manage and I'm soon upgrading to a Libra with page-turn buttons rather than screen-swiping.

Consider a Bluetooth "clicker". I've really become addicted to them. You can set your ereader on a stand or on an arm and click pages where your arm is most comfortable.

(This is my custom clicker, but there are a variety of commercial ones.)