How it works
See the shape first. Then go to the part you need, and read it, hear it or watch it.
The spacing effect
People remember material better when they study it in several short sessions spread over time than in one long session. Hermann Ebbinghaus first described the effect in 1885, and it has since been found in memory for words, faces, facts and skills. Decades of research have produced many theories about why the spacing effect happens. Most researchers now think more than one cause is at work. When an item is repeated straight away, the first look primes the second, so the brain does less work the second time. Spacing the repeats lets that priming fade, and the second look gets full attention.
or Alt+ Shift+ P
Step 1
Open it beside the page
Click Pleat Reader in your toolbar, or press Alt+Shift+P. It opens in Chrome’s side panel, next to the article, video or PDF.
- Follows your tabSwitch tabs or open a new page, and it reads that one.
- Leaves no traceClose the panel, and everything it added to the page is gone.
- Your own keysChange them, or turn them off, in chrome://extensions/shortcuts.
Step 2
Contents: see the shape
A numbered map of the page’s sections and parts, from its own headings. Pick a part, and the page goes straight to it.
- Folded sectionsLong sections stay folded, like “3 parts folded”. Open one when you need it.
- You are hereA mark shows where you are. It never keeps track of what you have read.
- Pages with no headingsEach row is named by its first sentence, word for word.
The spacing effect
People remember material better when they study it in several short sessions spread over time than in one long session. Hermann Ebbinghaus first described the effect in 1885, and it has since been found in memory for words, faces, facts and skills.
Causes
Decades of research have produced many theories about why the spacing effect happens. Most researchers now think more than one cause is at work.
When an item is repeated straight away, the first look primes the second, so the brain does less work the second time. Spacing the repeats lets that priming fade, and the second look gets full attention.
Step 3 · Hear it
On page
Turn on On page, then click any paragraph to hear it. The rest of the page dims, and each word lights up as it is read.
- PauseClick the paragraph again. Auto-next goes on to the next one.
- Read selectionSelect some words to hear just those.
- KeyboardAlt+Shift+R reads or pauses.
Encoding variability
Each spaced session happens in a slightly different context. The item is stored with more cues, so there are more ways to find it later.
Step 3 · Read it
Reader view
One section at a time, in large, calm type. Its other parts fold into lines with their names. Choose one to open it.
- Three layoutsPleat, Blocks or Scroll, in the View menu.
- Section done · next upAt the end of a section, with Continue.
- Read aloudEach block is read to you. Move with Previous, Next or the arrow keys.
2Causes
1:52
Decades of research have produced many theories about why the spacing effect happens.
Next: Using it to study · 6:30
Step 3 · Watch it
YouTube videos
Contents lists the video’s chapters, or parts from its captions, with start times. Choose one, and the video plays from there.
- Read alongThe words of the part that is playing, under the video, with what is being said marked.
- Pause after each partIt stops at the end of each one, with Continue and Replay this part.
- Reader viewThe video at the top, the words below. Press a time to play from there.
- Punctuation by AIWith AI on, auto-captions get full stops and capitals. Not one word is changed.
The spacing effect
People remember material better when they study it in several short sessions spread over time than in one long session. Hermann Ebbinghaus first described the effect in 1885, and it has since been found in memory for words, faces, facts and skills. In his experiments he learned lists of nonsense syllables and tested how many he could still recite later. When he spread his practice over several days, he needed far fewer repetitions to learn a list than when he crammed them into one sitting. Later studies found the same pattern in children and adults, in classrooms and in the lab, and even in animals. Decades of research have produced many theories about why the spacing effect happens. Most researchers now think more than one cause is at work. When an item is repeated straight away, the first look primes the second, so the brain does less work the second time. Spacing the repeats lets that priming fade, and the second look gets full attention. On this view, back-to-back repeats feel easy because the item is still fresh, and that ease is the problem: little new work goes into storing it. A gap makes the second look count as a real second study. Each spaced session happens in a slightly different context. The item is stored with more cues, so there are more ways to find it later. Your mood, the room, the time of day and what you studied just before all become part of the memory. When those cues differ from session to session, the memory is linked to more of them, so more situations can bring it back. A spaced repeat makes you recall the first time you saw the item. That effort strengthens the memory more than an easy repeat does. Recalling the first study takes effort only if some time has passed. Right after studying, the item is still in mind, so the repeat is too easy to help. The best gap is long enough that recall is hard but still possible. Plan short reviews across days and weeks instead of one long session the night before. Each review should come just as the material starts to slip. The longer you need to remember something, the wider the gaps should be. Flashcard apps that use spaced repetition do this for you: cards you know come back less and less often, and cards you miss come back soon.
Causes
Decades of research have produced many theories about why the spacing effect happens.
Step 3 · For PDFs
PDFs
Open a PDF in Pleat Reader for one calm column you can read, or have read aloud. The file stays on your computer.
- On a PDF tabThe panel offers Read this PDF in Pleat Reader.
- Any PDFOpen a file from your computer, or a web address.
- One columnTwo columns become one. Images and page previews stay.
Reading settingsChanges apply right away.
Theme
Reading textLexend · 24px
Read aloudOn · Automatic · 1.0×
Dim the rest of the page
AIOn this device
Your way
Reading settings
One place for how reading looks and sounds, in the side panel. Each group shows what it is set to, so you can check at a glance. Changes show at once, on the page and in Reader view.
- ThemeLight, Dark or Auto.
- Reading textLexend, Atkinson or Literata, from 16 to 40 px. Fade other paragraphs, if you like.
- Read aloudVoice, highlight by word or by sentence, speed, and how long to wait before reading.
- Dim the rest of the pageFrom 0 to 95%.
Only when you ask
Split with AI Uses AI
For pages with no headings, or very long sections. AI finds where the topic changes and names each part. The page’s words don’t change.
- Review firstYou see the suggested parts. Use these, or keep the paragraphs.
- Switch backAny time, with Paragraphs | AI parts.
- Marked AIEvery name AI wrote says so.
People remember material better when they study it in several short sessions spread over time than in one long session. Hermann Ebbinghaus first described the effect in 1885, and it has since been found in memory for words, faces, facts and skills. Points
PointsAICopy
- People remember material better when they study it in several short sessions spread over time than in one long session.
- Hermann Ebbinghaus: first described the effect in 1885.
- It has since been found in memory for words, faces, facts and skills.
Only when you ask
Points Uses AI
One dense paragraph, laid out as bullets in its own words. If a sentence or number would be lost, it stays as written.
- On pagePress the Points tab on the lit paragraph, or Alt+Shift+O.
- Reader viewPoints shows each paragraph as bullets, and can read them aloud.
- CopyPuts the points on your clipboard.
AI runs only when you ask: on your computer, or with your own free Gemini key. Choose in Reading settings. About AI
Coming next: Contents for PDFs
Compared with what you have
| Feature | Pleat Reader | AI summary | Read-aloud tool | Browser AI chat |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Shows the page’s parts before you start | Built in | Partly: A shorter list, not a map of the page | Not supported | Partly: Only if you ask for an outline |
| Keeps every word of the page | Built in | Not supported: Cuts it down | Built in | Not supported: Answers in its own words |
| Nothing to type or ask | Built in | Built in | Built in | Not supported: You type a question |
| Reads it aloud one part at a time | Built in | Not supported | Partly: Usually the whole page in one go | Not supported |
| Works with no account and no AI | Built in | Not supported: Needs AI | Partly: Many need an account | Not supported: Needs AI and a sign-in |
Built in Partly — the note says how Not supported