Even with a nice silent tablet, reading PDFs feels different than reading a book.
Very weird
Very weird
I say that and I am a very tech-inclined person, so to speak. But books are always a different matter.
The edge has a deep link to my memory, scanning with my thumb is more satisfying than having instant full text fuzzy search, which is paradoxical since search is more powerful.
I ended up thinking that we do need physical stimuli. A lot. And that our brain likes to reflect from physical to ideal, if we skip a step, we deprive/depress the system. It will work but less so than having a right blend of physical then ideal brain stimulation.
Also, books doesn't distract, a tablet is a book reader, and 120 other things, including a gateway to internet which is a known addiction now, so for some, there's always a slight effort to make when reading a book that is not already captivating enough or difficult at times. Dead trees are passive things, and you have no other option than to focus all your mind to them.
This. It's especially evident when you're trying to learn: a physical book gives you more sensations to associate with. Taping on a small kindle screen gives you a much less varied experience.