Virtual Readability Lab Launched | Readability Matters

The Virtual Readability Lab, an online tool provided by Adobe, the University of Central Florida, and Readability Matters, allows adults to participate in 5-minute reading tests. These tests determine the font or character spacing that help readers read faster or enjoy reading more.

The testing material available today is being used in a test at the University of Arizona. Previous Readability Matters’ studies have shown these features are equally valuable to children. The longer-term goal is to expand this test platform to include a full set of materials leveled for K-12 students and their teachers, as well as content appropriate for specific audiences.

Use the Lab to determine your preferred font, your fastest font, and your best character spacing. Improve your own reading experiences. Then, use Readability Features for both reading and writing whenever they are available; ask your digital content providers to add Readability Features where they are not.

We study how personalization can make your reading faster and more efficient

We are studying individualized reading formats — changes to fonts, text sizes, character, and line spacings, that can create more enjoyable and efficient reading experiences. We welcome you to participate in our short studies. Each study will teach you something about how you can read better — whether it is by recommending a font or a character spacing that you will enjoy more or that helps you read faster.

ABOUT THE VIRTUAL READABILITY LAB: The Architect of the VRL is Shaun Wallace, a Ph.D. candidate at Brown University and a researcher with a focus on HCI and Big Data systems. Visit Shaun’s website.

Originally published at https://readabilitymatters.org on July 8, 2020.