Interesting post by ITJournalist on
Hypertext Distraction Disorder (Thanks Sherrilynne for
the link)
So, what is HDD? Have you ever tried reading a web page, followed a hyperlink, ended
up on a different webpage, read a bit, clicked on yet another hyperlink, and eventually
forgot what you were originally reading about? Well, that’s it in a nutshell: The
way that hypertext links, instant messages and other artefacts of recent times predispose
the mind to being interrupted and accepting it as part of everyday life. This has
the advantage of teaching us how to multitask, but also makes it harder for us to
follow a train of thought from start to end.
The author suggests a number of ways to combat this syndrome and his final recommendation
makes so much sense. Spend a few minutes every day reading a book, newspaper or journal;
to train your mind to work in a linear fashion once again. But, read the whole
thing here
Personally I thrive on my ability to multitask and process multiple information streams
simultaneously, but it does make some people around me uncomfortable. What about you
?