Why users scan


1. reading online is slower and harder

Reading from computer screens is tiring for the eyes and about 25 percent slower than reading from paper. No wonder people attempt to minimise the number of words they read. To the extent this reason explains users' behavior, they should read more when we get high-resolution, high-scanrate monitors in five years since lab studies have shown such screens to have the same readability as paper.

Source: Alertbox, http://www.useit.com/alertbox/whyscanning.html