The problem is we take in information from a website differently than we do from a sheet of paper. "The online medium lends itself to a more superficial processing of information," says Jakob Nielsen, a Web-usability expert who has written a dozen books on how people interact with technology. "You're just surfing the information. It's not a deep learning."
Consider the way we read online. By tracking people's eye movements, Nielsen figured out that our focus moves around the screen in an F pattern. We start scanning horizontally, but pretty soon we're dropping down to see what else is there. By the time we're halfway down a Web page, we're tuning out.
So while online statements are fine for retrieving specific information--say, last week's bar tab--internalizing broader spending habits is a different story.
Another new article (November 8, 2009) that includes more from Dr. Nielsen. The article also mentions a new book that he has co-authored (not yet released), Eyetracking Web Usability.
See Also: Alertbox: Current Issues in Web Usability
Dr. Nielsen's bi-weekly column that is available at no charge. You can read it online or have it sent via e-mail.
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