Read e-books, posts, articles and magazines with focused attention. No Internet connection is required. Your offline reading list can be constructed using add-ons and built-ins in any of the popular browsers: Mozilla Firefox, Safari or Google Chrome.
This week Google added a Chrome extension called “Save to Drive.” Drive is the new home for Google Docs. Download the Drive web app, set up offline access, select online content to be saved, and then right click to save it offline and read later. This application is available only on Google Chrome. You can also read downloaded eBooks any time offline with the Google Play Books app. No Internet connection is required.
Pocket (formerly known as Read It Later) is another resource for saving content offline. Articles, videos, images, even links in email can be saved for reading later. View the content on your phone, tablet or PC anytime. No Internet connection is required for reading. More than 300 apps are integrated including Twitter, Flipboard and Google Currents to help you filter content. Platforms include Mac, Chrome and Safari, on iOS and Android operating systems and Kindle Fire apps. Filter content by category and use tags for easy search. If you don’t like cluttering up your web browsers with bookmarks Pocket is a good solution.
Evernote is another popular application that allows you to save content, search by keyword, and read offline across multiple computers and devices.
Instapaper is described by the company as “a simple tool to save web pages for reading later.” Create an account, download the app for $3.99 and get started. Text appears without ads. Needs iOS 5.0 or later. Compatible with iPhone, iPod Touch iPad and Kindle e-reader. Includes folders for organizing articles.
Here’s a video on how to use a built-in Safari feature for offline reading called Reading List.
Create Content Worth Reading Offline
Will your audience take the necessary steps to consume your content offline? Offline readers are not scanners. They want the real stuff and will dedicate their attention. It seems the most saved authors are not the same as the most read later authors. Those that produce evergreen content that holds a particular point of view, covers a topic in depth and provides useful (not dated) information are more likely to be saved and read later. Most of today’s content has a lifespan of hours, especially on social networks.
Good content takes time to write and to read. Offline readers are asserting a desire to capture and consume content on their own timeline, unrestricted by device or Internet access. Web developers are creating the tools for them to do just that.
