At 12:11 PM 1/12/04 +0100, you wrote:
As a matter of fact, after scannig those lines at
useit.com,
one gets the impression that it is the same as with books. Good readers
(and people reading WP articles are -for my part- assumed to be good
readers do not read word by word EVER. Even a book. It is absolutely
hideous and the worst way to get information. Only in the interent people
read faster because they do not look for verbose info (even less for
style).
Many good readers--and I count myself as one--read at least some books
word for word. And when we write--which is what we're doing for Wikipedia--we
intend every word to be read.
Yes, it is possible to scan certain documents. Textbooks in particular are
often written so that readers in a hurry can get an overview by reading just
the first sentence of each paragraph. But readers who have more time will
learn more by reading the whole text. Otherwise, why would anyone bother
writing it, instead of just writing the first sentences?
Sure, we should write so that the reader can learn something even if she
only has time, or desire, to read part of the article. And yes, well-organized
sections and headers are helpful. But if nobody is going to read something,
I see no point in writing and publishing it.