Do you find it tough to read news articles on web sites because of all of the distracting ads? Do you ever want to print web pages without the clutter of ads around the perimeter? If so, use Safari’s Reader view. It’s easy. 

Here are instructions of how to use Safari’s Reader view.

1. Open Safari and visit a web page such as my previous Tech Tip about Understanding DNS
2. While I don’t display ads on my web site, I do have a “header” and “sidebar” that clutter the screen. To get rid of this clutter, click on the View menu and select Show Reader.
3. That’s it. You can now read or print this page without the clutter.
4. To turn off Reader, click on the View menu and select Hide Reader.

I frequently use Reader view for distraction-free online reading. Additionally, if I am going to print a web page, I will turn on Reader view since it will reduce the length of the article considerably. My Understanding DNS article is 6 pages long with the clutter and just over 3 pages without the clutter.

It is important to point out that not all web sites necessarily support Reader view. The Reader command will be greyed out if a web page don’t support Reader view. The web site builder may either intentionally or unintentionally not support Reader view. If the web site is supported by ads then it’s increasingly likely that they might intentionally choose to not support Reader view. For example, the New York Times web site does not support Reader view.

If you ever want to print just part of a web page, refer to this previous Tech Tip for an easy way to print selected text.