For example, say you're a congress critter reading about a cache of bomb components uncovered in Iraq and you come across a statement that the stuff was bound for "armed Shiite groups here." You shake your head: what the hell's a Shiite? Just doubleclick!

guessing congresscritters are not so much with teh internets, on the whole.

Shiite is a slur. The proper word is Shia.

God, people, pop-up blockers. The dictionary is a pop-up, it's blocked if you don't hold down control when you double click.

Besides, for real annoyance try reading Outside the Beltway these days. You don't even have to doubleclick: an annoying gigantic box (Powered by Snap!) pops up every time you run your mouse over a link. Ugh.

Yeah, I hate those things. If your pointer's in the wrong place they can get in the way of what you're reading. But I like the idea of clickable hyperlink definitions. Saves a cut and paste to Google.

I appreciate the definition link for the reasons given by Kevin. I think we will all have to get used to using whatever popup structure becomes prevalent. Those who nerviously click on the mouse while reading will have to find some other mannerism to deal with their nerves.

I can't stand the NYT popup definitions. I figured, well, might as well learn to live with it since I'm probably the only one who clicks/highlights incessantly while I read. But I'm relieved to find out that I'm not.

I think I'll drop a note to their webmaster, and ask them either to remove it or make it optional.

When I'm reading something on the screen, I click, double-click, drag, and highlight words. Any and all words, whole blocs of text, I don't care....If I want to just nervously click on words, that's what I do.

how much caffeine and/or sugar do you have to be ingesting to be unable to just, um, Read the screen? and what do you do when you read something on a page? {{i mean an old fashioned, paper page, or do you not do that anymore??}}

It's a great feature (contextual dictionary) just poorly implemented.

Apple did this right. (If you're an Apple hater please stop reading here)

Macintosh computers have the same feature built into the OS but you right-click on any word (in any program where you can select text) and you are given the option to look it up in a dictionary (or search the term in Google)

Everybody's happy because it's under the users control. (even cooler, BTW, if you do this in a program that allows you to type or edit text, and you misspell something, it adds a list of possible proper spellings)

I use this hourly

I had to read Matt Yglesias' post on this a couple of times to figure out what he was even talking about -- random clicking on words on a web page?? Obviously, ADHD is far more widespread than I thought.

Yeah, the NYT's new format annoys the heck out of me too. You don't have to be Gen Y.

There is a Firefox extension that will allow you to selectively block sites for javascript. It's called "NoScript".

(And since when have Macs come with a right-click mouse button?)

I get ambushed by the Microsoft 5-consecutive shiftkeys brings up the viewer assistance stuff. Usually happens when I thinking about what to say. Old habit from the days of teletype circuits, where if you had priority stuff to send and were composing on the fly, it let the other stations know you weren't through.

When I'm reading something on the screen, I click, double-click, drag, and highlight words. Any and all words, whole blocs of text, I don't care....If I want to just nervously click on words, that's what I do.

I'm just happy to hear I'm not the only one with this behavioral trait.

"Those who nerviously click on the mouse while reading will have to find some other mannerism to deal with their nerves."
"how much caffeine and/or sugar do you have to be ingesting to be unable to just, um, Read the screen?"
"Obviously, ADHD is far more widespread than I thought."

Damn. So much for our vaunted "tolerance."
Maybe on this one point, the reichwingers are not utterly without reality contact.
FWIW, I nibble not only my nails, but my fingers, and am unable to stop myself from doing so. If I were messing about with the mouse instead of with my own flesh, I'd probably be the healthier for it.

The pop-ups are among the least annoying of the many, many annoying things about OTB. Starting with the people who blog there.

since when have Macs come with a right-click mouse button

Any USB mouse will work with a Mac. If, for some strange reason, you're still using your old one-button mouse, you can ctrl-click for the same effect.

ABC's "Sunni or Shiite?" quiz: 8 out of 8. What's my prize?

You can disable the "annoying gigantic box (Powered by Snap!)" via the following page:

http://www.snap.com/about/spa_faq.php#2

I did it on each of the browsers I use a month ago and I don't miss the Snap Previews at all.

Try the Off By One web browser.

Worse, on some sites boxes are popping up as you just drag a mouse across links, and the accursed popups get in the way of text you are trying to read. This is a big nuisance, not a feature.

Oh, and neither blockers nor Firefox can save you from this new nuisance -- wait until the admongers get hold of this code!

"Those who nerviously click on the mouse while reading will have to find some other mannerism to deal with their nerves."
"how much caffeine and/or sugar do you have to be ingesting to be unable to just, um, Read the screen?"
"Obviously, ADHD is far more widespread than I thought."

My son (age 18) clicks and blocks even when he's showing me something on the screen, and it drives me nuts. Bites his nails, too (correlation?). On the other hand, I (who do not bite my nails) occasionally find an advertisement in the middle of my screen, apparently unbidden, and realize I must have been clicking randomly in the side margin of the site. At least that may increase somebody's ad revenue.

Macintosh computers have the same feature built into the OS but you right-click on any word (in any program where you can select text) and you are given the option to look it up in a dictionary (or search the term in Google)

I'm using OS X 10.4.8 with Firefox 2.0.0.2 and get the Google option but no dictionary option.

It's a minor annoyance from my view, but they'd be wise to filter out common words and just provide the definitions for less common and obscure words. I'm sure this could be automated to a large degree.

So many fidgety people, so little time.
Firefox has some neat add-ons: Dictionary functions: double-click any word on any site for definition; Autocopy: highlight a block of text and it's copied to clipboard; Cooliris previews: hover over a hyperlink and a blue square appears. Hover over that, and you get a page preview that you can lock, email or copy.

...or, say you're sitting in the Oval Office and you're wondering what the hck a "neocon" is, or maybe the proper pronunciation of "nuclear" or "fiduciary"...

Try the Off By One web browser.

"When I'm reading something on the screen, I click, double-click, drag, and highlight words. Any and all words, whole blocs of text, I don't care....If I want to just nervously click on words, that's what I do.

I'm just happy to hear I'm not the only one with this behavioral trait."

Amen.

JavaScript sucks 99% of the time.

What's worse for us mobile users is that now some sites REQUIRE javascript to run.

I think it's shitty that script kiddies ruined denial of service attacks for the rest of us.

Aaron wrote:

I'm using OS X 10.4.8 with Firefox 2.0.0.2 and get the Google option but no dictionary option.

My bad, developers may of course reprogram the right click in their application. For example the Adobe products prefer their own contextual menus and their dictionary not the OS one.

I use it as described in the following programs: Safar, textedit, textwrangler, mail

setting snap's preferences requires I allow cookies to be set, and reset them whenever I purge the cookie cache.

I would prefer to purge snap's server.

since when have Macs come with a right-click mouse button

Since October 12, 2005.

Though Mac laptops still don't have two buttons, they have the equivalent functionality by holding down two fingers on the trackpad when you click on something.

When I have my Google pop-up blocker on this doesn't happen on my machine. Although I must say, the 21st definition of "of" is worth the annoyance: "Archaic. On: “A plague of all cowards, I say” (Shakespeare).
[Middle English, from Old English.]"

I hope Matt Y has disabled one-click shopping at Amazon.

smaller of two branches of Islam; defining belief is that succession of Islamic leaders should descend from Ali, son-in-law of the prophet Muhammad (Isl.)

I thought the Shiite were the larger of the two

Since conservatives are unable to absorb facts, how exactly are these popups supposed to help?

Now, maybe if you only had a popup angel who could mutter "believe X", they might pay attention!

If you don't like the Snap box, click on "Options" (in the box) and turn it off. It's that simple.

Oh, so that's why I keep getting those dictionary entries! I wondered what on earth was going on. Thanks for the tip, Kevin.

Oh man, I have the same nervous click-and-highlight habit and those pop-ups drive me nuts. I use firefox but the pop-up blocker doesn't stop them.

Feel lucky you're not a computer professional.

In a lot of the technical discussion blogs, the ones that are ad-supported, there are "links" on random words in posts, that on mouseover, will pop up an unwelcome advert.

I have noticed (read, exceedingly pissed off at) the ads on the NYT site that automatically appear with no way to turn them off till they are ready

Ad block was a great temporary fix when my bank account was "cookied" Fortunately, I read about it the nest day on C'net, & installed it. Works fine. I'll have to remember it the next time I get an unwanted ad to see if it works there too.

I have both Yahoo and Google popup blockers. I have seen none of this. I couldn't even reproduce what Kevin was describing.

I noticed the same thing. I wrote a greasemonkey script to fix the problem available here:
http://userscripts.org/scripts/show/7721

earl

God, people, pop-up blockers. The dictionary is a pop-up, it's blocked if you don't hold down control when you double click.

I have Firefox (2.0.0.2) popup blocking turned on yet still get those NYT dictionary popups. popup blockers work 95% of the time but they're not infallable. no matter how much SP rolls his or her eyes.

I'm in the drag-and-click-incessantly crowd, which I'd thought was a crowd of one. so it annoys me too. I hadn't thought of this, but one might try isolating the javascript file containing the doubleclick handler and if perhaps it's on a different server than the other javascript files ( like if it's served by answers.com) then one could alias that domain in their hosts file so it's never found. or something like that.

I don't understand.

Are you moving your cursor over the script like someone running their fingertip along the line they are reading? Are you clicking the cursor randomly or over words you have a problem with in intergrating into your comprehension? Are you double-clicking out of lack of understanding, exasperation, impatience, or what?

Is it a control freak thing not to take your hand off the mouse and only roll the scroll as you read.

Boy. I never thought of myself as laid back, but I'm definitely getting the idea I'm not as twitchy as a whole load of people.

Why do you do it?

I totally agree that this is annoying, but I thought that I was the only one.

Generally, when I'm reading a long-ish article (especially if it's something in the NY or London Reviews but also on longer NYT pieces), I'll double click the paragraph so that it's highlighted. This helps me keep my place, especially if I scroll up or down.

I also highlight individual words or sentences. I'm not sure why I do this, but it's inevitably part of my reading experience when I read online. Maybe it helps me get a more tangible feel to the words on the screen. When I'm reading a newspaper or a book or a magazine, I don't do anything like this -- only when I read online.

I also use firefox, and it hasn't stopped the popups.

Also, newspapers are generally written on an 8th grade reading level, so I'm not convinced that the function is helpful at all.

The Instant Messenger program called "Trillian" (which can connect to Yahoo, AOL and Microsoft IM systems) does one step better. Any word typed in a message is made into a link to a Wikipedia article (if there is one).

To test the system, I double-clicked the first word in the article: "In".

For the definition, I got: "The symbol for the element indium."

Perhaps there are some kinks to work out.

When I'm reading something on the screen, I click, double-click, drag, and highlight words. Any and all words, whole blocs of text, I don't care....If I want to just nervously click on words, that's what I do.

It's not just me!

Also, as to the reason. One word. ADD.