Currently reading: The User Illusion

I have read just over a third of Tor Nørretranders' The User Illusion so far. It's a hefty book which offers an incredible insight into the difference between ourselves and our consciousness. It begins with the following quote (by James Clerk Maxwell):

"What is done by what is called myself is, I feel, done by something greater than myself in me."

In the book, subtitled 'Cutting consciousness down to size', Nørretranders compares the vast bandwidth of our minds with the narrow stream of information we are actually conscious of, and, by doing so, reveals that we are far broader, deeper and, as Maxwell said, greater, than the self of which we are aware.

The User Illusion is based on information theory, which is introduced comprehensively in the opening chapters. The book is extremely well written, and well translated from Danish (considering its inherent complexity). If you're looking for something a little heavier than your typical bed-time reading, and you are intrigued by the way we perceive the world around us, I would strongly recommend The User Illusion.

More Reading Habits

Yesterday I wrote about what I call my Coffee Columns, and I explained why I visit blogs rather than letting Google Reader fetch posts for me. But that's just for the blogs I read regularly.

For nearly every other article I use the Readability extension for Chrome. It has three options: "Read Now", "Read Later" and "Send to Kindle", each only a hotkey away.

Not only does Readability make text pleasing to look at and comfortable to read, but by saving articles it helps manage time, and that's why I find it so useful.

My Coffee Columns (aka What I'm Reading)

I have a bookmark folder in Chrome called Coffee Columns for blogs I frequently visit. After making myself a coffee (or tea - I'm flexible) I middle-click the folder to open the array of bookmarks in a series of tabs. There are three main reasons why I prefer this to my old method of Google Reader:

1. The differences in design between the sites allows me to distinguish them from each other and emphasises their individuality.


2. I enjoy flicking through the tabs to search for new posts. It's more like reading through the pages of a newspaper and less like scrolling down a long receipt.


3. I'm reminded of what I read there a couple of days ago: it's right there underneath the latest post. Google Reader can make posts seem disposable.

Here's what I'm reading:

zerodistraction.com

b.aking.ca

www.marco.org

mattgemmell.com

folio.jorgeq.com

writeforyourlife.net

patrickrhone.com

bettermess.com

Questions

Is your computer a tool or a toy? A journey or a destination? A means or an end? What about your smart-phone? Could it become the opposite?

What physical task is your computer/tablet/phone replacing? What would you do on a weekend without it? When did you last walk simply for the pleasure of walking? How old were you when you last climbed a tree?

How does technology fit into our life? Is the balance working? Or are adjustments necessary?

Just a Sketch

I plan to draw some city scenes with inspiration from Italo Calvino's Invisible Cities soon (an incredible book that I'm currently resisting the urge to read all at once).