Don't Click This Link
Posted by Joey Martin at Jun 01, 2010 10:27 AM CDT
Categories: Content Management, Usability

In the June edition of  Wired magazine there is a fascinating article about how the web is changing the structure of our brains. The article was adapted from the book The Shallows: What the Internet is Doing to Our Brains by Nicholas Carr.

You can guess by the title of the book Carr surmises that the internet is not promoting deep thinking on singular topics but rather skimming the surface of multiple subject matters. And to prove his argument I am not going to go into the details of the article, ha! Instead here are some of the theories outlined that I believe are good considerations for planning, designing and/or writing for your site.

  • The internet promotes scanning not reading = Limit the amount of text
  • The internet is distracting and interrupting = Limit distractions on your site and in text
  • Links disrupt concentration and decrease comprehension whether or not readers click on them = Limit the use of links
  • Amount of information we scan while surfing exceeds our ability to process it =  Write in a clear and concise manner
  • We desire new information even if it is inconsequential = Update your site often, use twitter and blogs to push new content

Make your site an oasis in the sea of information by creating a design and content that is relevant, fresh and succinct.  And get a subscription to Wired if you don’t have one already.  

Carr, Nicolas. “Chaos Theory.”Wired. June 2010: 112+

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