Flow Depth
Flow Depth controls how much content appears in your river at once, from a calm trickle to a powerful surge.
Three Depths
Choose the volume of content that matches your reading style and available time:
Quiet
A calm, manageable river. Best for focused readers who prefer quality over quantity.
Normal
Balanced flow for daily reading. Enough content to explore without feeling overwhelmed.
Surge
High-volume flow for voracious readers or those with many subscriptions.
What Changes
Item Count
The maximum number of items shown in your river at once. Older items are naturally pushed out as new ones arrive.
Resurfacing Allowance
How many previously-seen essays can resurface per session:
- Quiet: 1 resurface keeps things minimal
- Normal: 2 resurfaces balance discovery and focus
- Surge: 3 resurfaces maximize content rediscovery
Ambient Animation Intensity
Subtle background animations adjust based on flow depth:
- Quiet: Reduced animation (0.6x) for calmer feel
- Normal: Standard animation intensity
- Surge: Enhanced animation (1.5x) for more energy
Choosing Your Depth
Choose Quiet When
- You have limited reading time
- You prefer focused, intentional reading
- You follow fewer but higher-quality sources
- You find large volumes of content stressful
- You want maximum calm
Choose Normal When
- You have moderate reading time
- You want a balanced mix of content
- You follow a typical number of sources (20-50)
- You're not sure which to pick (start here)
Choose Surge When
- You have substantial reading time
- You follow many sources (50+)
- You want to see as much as possible
- You enjoy discovering content through volume
- You're a professional who needs broad coverage
Changing Flow Depth
- Go to Settings
- Find Flow Mode under the Reading section
- Select Quiet, Normal, or Surge
The change takes effect immediately. You might switch depth based on your day: Quiet for a busy Monday, Surge for a relaxed weekend.
Relationship to Reading Mode
Flow Depth (how many items) is independent of Reading Mode (how items display). Common combinations:
- Quiet + Study: Deep focus on few articles
- Normal + Read: Balanced daily reading (recommended default)
- Surge + Skim: Scan lots of headlines quickly
See Reading Modes for details on Skim, Read, and Study.
Performance Considerations
Higher flow depths require more processing:
- More items mean more memory usage
- Initial load may be slightly slower on Surge
- Scroll performance remains smooth in all modes
If you experience performance issues, try reducing flow depth or creating Currents to filter content.