Videos in place of text - is it just me!

[homelessvoter]

Is it because I’m in my 40s and not a millennial or whatever- that I just switch off whenever someone puts key information into a bloody video? Instead of continuing the article in written form? …

eg) start off reading an interesting article - watch the rest on a video. Nope - cba

or - FAQs on managing my account / subscription - goes to video. I just never watch. It seems too much of a hassle! I delete the subscription sometimes to save watching it.

or - learning new module at work. Half of its in a video format with someone I don’t know yapping away. I find it really off-putting.

i can’t help but switch off. I find watching videos really uncomfortable. Not sure why! Why is so much content now in video form? Is it just for the sake of improving the website rankings - or do people genuinely want to watch rather than to read?

I know my children do - but do people in their 30s and 40s actually watch all these videos?

I’m a millennial and find videos unbearable. I speed them up if possible. A friend sends me random YT videos which are often 17+ minutes long and I don’t understand how she has the patience to sit through them. I can barely sit through a 2 minute video. I do have ADHD though which could be a factor.

It depends on the nature of information. For instructions, I need bullet points in a written form. But sometimes video is extremely useful (i.e. how to change brake light in a car).
Presentation about a topic of interest, videos are great (think Ted Talk style).
Mandatory training at work, I would prefer a written summary rather than endless clicking on coloured squares and sub-menus with 30 second videos.

I generally prefer videos/audios for larger chunks of information because I like having my hands occupied with something else.

I'm a millennial, albeit at the older end, I hate this. I want to read, I can read quicker than someone presenting the information in a video, I can also read without disturbing anyone else and quickly refer to specific sections of the information without having to rewind/skip a video and try to find the bit I need

Same. I CBA. But that's because I then have to get my earbuds out etc.

I wonder if that's why we have to hear so many people's phones now? Because everything is in video form?

I will sometimes watch - sound off - if there are good subtitles or if it's cats doing things

Video does seem to be the way to go, almost everyone seems to prefer eg a You Tube video when trying to find out how to do something. I much prefer good written instructions to follow and I'm with you, if anyone sends me an information video, I'm not going to watch it. I would read a paragraph or two on the same subject.

Hate them. Lloyds Bank won't talk to you now in my local branch, they give you an iPad to watch a video and promise to answer my questions afterwards. Whether they do or not, I never found out, I'm not watching a fucking video while an actual person watches me.

17 minutes! Ffs! 😅 Ok so that’s interesting as I see lots of adhd content made by and for folks with adhd. Yes to speeding them up @ShiveringMeTimbers!

Impatience is definitely the major factor for me. I feel that if I can read the info I can pick and chose which bits are relevant but with a video you have to work harder to avoid the branding bit, or the basic bits you already know etc.

Plus I find that watching someone talk - who isn’t actually there say on Zoom - is uncomfortable. I don’t know why??

ah adhd… So I’ve diagnosed myself with this 🤣 but no seriously, so my sibling has adhd and watches tons of videos. And they forward me quite a few too which I never open.

I’m like this too. I find it’s to do with the pace information comes at me. Being unable to control that means I can find it difficult to take in details or understand properly: the irrelevant bits are too slow and the important bits are too fast.

Allegedly it’s easier to put together a video than a written piece which is part of how this is happening (not sure I can see that, I’d rather write something than film myself).

Put the transcript with the video, let me read that then skip to the end of the video!

Same with voice notes tbh. If you leave me a voice note instead of a text there's a 98% chance I'll never listen

It doesn’t help that my workplace has bought all our compulsory training from some naff American company with presenters that talk like they’re on kids tv e.g. ‘make sure your your computer is password protected cos you don’t want any nasty folks to get in!’ accompanied by an image of a cartoon villain. I now just read the script or mute and read subtitles to get through it.

I’m in my 60s and I feel exactly the same. Even a Ted talk will have me reading the transcript.

I can cope with short comedy clips. A previous post reminds me that at 25 I did several weeks IT training based on IBM videos (pre VHS!) I think this worked because they were newsreader style, no mugging the camera or promotions for the next course.

Not just me then! But apparently still not that many people… I think we are in the minority!

@TitInATrance mugging to the camera - cringe!

@LauritaEvita I think the corporate videos are probably the worst!

@ButWhatAboutTheBees voice notes - me either. I either listen two weeks too late or don’t bother.

It's all to do with "da clickz". Much easier to monetise videos than text.

So now rather than reading a quick "how to in 10 seconds", you need to watch some influencer twat for 10 minutes.

If any of the videos you end up watching are about the decline in workforce productivity, the universe may very well explode.

Video recipes.

Instead of just copying & pasting the ingredients to my shopping list I have to write them down as I watch & then type them in, and then constantly stop & start the video. So annoying that I don’t bother unless something looks really good & then I hunt for a written version elsewhere.

I'm with you. I never watch videos. I did a training course recently which used loads of videos and I clicked on "read transcript" every single time. I can scan and read text more quickly, I don't want to have to spend several minutes watching a video. If there had been no transcript, I'd just have skipped it.

I hate it too! I'm profoundly head of hearing though, so I need it loud and I have ADHD so I can't retain the information, whereas with text I can go back and forth. I'm 40.

Yanbu. They're mostly long winded.

Yes, I hate this. Lots of our training at work now is videos and it’s really annoying. It takes longer to watch in the first place and then is much harder to refer back to later if you want to check a specific point, whereas it’s much easier to find something in written notes.

I generally switch off mentally after a few minutes of watching or listening to something - my mind just wanders no matter how interesting the thing I’m watching or listening to is! With audiobooks I have to restrict myself to books I’m already familiar with, or non fiction books, so I don’t lose track of the plot. I don’t watch a lot of TV dramas or films for this reason too. When I read it’s much easier for me to concentrate and take in the information.

Yes hate them.
Very occasionally I will search YouTube for video instructions for something where it’s helpful to see it being done but I will skip to the relevant section.
for anything else please just give me text

Actually so delighted to see lots of other people who feel the same way, I'm only mid thirties but can't stand watching videos for any length of time, I just switch off completely. Have wondered if I have ADHD so interesting a few other people have mentioned that.

Yes, loads of my training courses have videos that are unskippable. Doesn't mean I have to wear the earbuds or stay on that tab, though. I just let it burble away while I scan through the summary. It's strange because I love watching normal people sharing their passions on Youtube, but this overly scripted, badly-acted crap turns me off.

I think one reason I prefer text is control. I can read at my chosen speed & go back over bits without having to fiddle around finding the right place.

This is me though I am gen x
I read very very quickly though

Finally found my tribe!

I would say, it all depends on the content and the purpose. My preferred method of learning how to do something technical, is to be shown on a one to one basis, so I can actually carry out the operations whilst being instructed.

If I am sent a short video, then this can be helpful, because I can see what the individual is doing (e.g. which keys are being pressed). A wiki with screen shots can also be helpful.

For more theoretical learning, which will be incorporated in an essay or report, then I like text, but short videos explaining concepts also help.

What really frustrates me are badly designed module or courses which comprise repetitive videos, click and match exercises, cloze text exercises, some badly synched virtual learning assistant (where the mouth movements do not match the speech) and waffling paragraphs of contextualising information, for a topic that could be covered by a sheet of information with a few questions at the end.

I am a 'Boomer' (although at the younger end) and so I embrace new technologies (I can remember ploughing through badly written, dry text books and writing whole theses out by hand) and I have found that as I have got older, I need much more of a variety of media to learn from (I love short instructional videos on You Tube to tell me how to do little jobs around the house and so on, but I also like to read academic papers when they are relevant). Yet, I am aware that whilst videos can be helpful, we need variety with respect to how information is presented.