A short series on How To Make The Most of Your Screentime, brought to you by STUG, The Sarasota Tech Users Group. First up, Mercury Reader.
If there’s anything that can make me madder than banner ads and commercial sidebars, it’s the pop-ups and un-asked-for videos when I am simply trying to read an article on the web.
Yeh, okay, I know,
it costs real money to bring me open information, no such thing as a free lunch, they need to pay for the service they offer you, etc… but really? This much?
My silent scream used to be Just let me read what I came here for, please. Then, if I think your website has something to offer, I’ll subscribe, maybe even pay, if that’s what it takes.
If you use Chrome as your browser, Mercury Reader is simple to install and simple to use. Here’s their web site. Or download it directly from Chrome here. And it doesn’t just remove distractions. Mercury Reader will also:
Send To Kindle
Adjust typeface and text size, and toggle between light or dark themes
Quick keyboard shortcut (Cmd + Esc for Mac users, Alt + ` for Windows users) to switch to Reader on any article page
Printing optimization
Sharing through Facebook, Twitter and Email
I downloaded it. Now I read what I want to in peace. Not 100% of web sites allow this, but most do. Mercury Reader makes my screentime a whole lot more enjoyable. Try it!
Read more:
- Interested in the history of digital advertising?
- Who’s to blame for ad clutter? (An opinion piece, only available with a paid subscription to WSJ, who, BTW, created the illustration for this article.)
Join us next time here on the STUG blog when we explore more magic that well-chosen extensions can do. Make your online experience a walk in the park, not a mad dash to get across the jam-packed informational highway without becoming roadkill.
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