ZenRead

Screenshot of the extension installed
Extension logo

Inspiration

The inspiration for ZenRead came from a personal understanding of the daily struggles faced by individuals living with ADHD. Reading, a fundamental activity, can be a significant challenge due to difficulties in maintaining focus and concentration. I wanted to create a tool that not only aids in reading but also transforms it into an enjoyable and accessible experience for everyone, especially those with ADHD.

What it does

ZenRead is a Chrome extension that applies the Bionic Reading technique to webpages. It highlights the critical parts of words, guiding the reader's eye through the text. This method reduces cognitive overload, making reading more manageable and less taxing for individuals with ADHD, enhancing their focus and comprehension.

How we built it

I built ZenRead using modern web technologies. The core is a JavaScript content script that dynamically alters webpage text to apply Bionic Reading formatting. This script integrates seamlessly with Chrome through an extension interface, providing a user-friendly toggle switch and settings in a popup HTML window.

Challenges we ran into

One of the biggest challenges I faced was optimizing the script to handle various webpage structures and contents efficiently. Ensuring that the extension didn’t significantly slow down page loading or interfere with the original webpage layout required careful design and testing.

Accomplishments that we're proud of

I am incredibly proud of creating my first ever chrome extension, i am also very proud that I can genuinely make a difference in people’s lives. ZenRead’s ability to transform complex, overwhelming text into a structured format that enhances focus and understanding is a significant achievement. We are also proud of the extension's performance and compatibility across a wide range of websites.

What we learned

Through developing ZenRead, we learned a great deal about the specific challenges faced by individuals with ADHD. We also honed our skills in JavaScript and Chrome extension development, particularly in efficiently manipulating and rendering DOM elements without impacting webpage performance.

What's next for ZenRead

Moving forward, I plan to expand ZenRead's functionality to include customizable settings for different reading preferences and disorders. I also aim to develop versions for other browsers and integrate AI-driven tools to personalize the reading experience further. Our goal is to make ZenRead a comprehensive reading assistant, accessible to anyone needing support in their digital reading journey.