Save Your Eyes
Shameless stealing alert! I got this information from Wired.com, and I have to say, it's great advice. And that's speaking as someone who spends about 8-10 hours a day staring at a computer monitor. And someone who readily admits that by the end of the day, my eyes are very sore, dry, and weary. So I intend to put these tips into practice immediately!
The advice is based on the 20-20-20 Rule - that's easy to remember! Look away from your screen every 20 minutes for 20 seconds at something 20 feet away. That changes your focus - it's the same reason we stand up and stretch every so often. By giving our muscles something different to do, we ease the strain on the ones we're overworking.
Then, adjust your monitor position and settings.
Set your monitor so that it's about 20-30 inches away from you (boy, was I guilty on this one - I was peering at my monitor way too closely!). And adjust it so that the very top is level with your eyes. That one I had right, and I can tell you that it keeps your neck in a comfortable position, and allows you to look down on the screen. I also tilt my screen slightly so that I don't have to move my head at all to scan the entire screen easily.
Next, adjust the text size so that the smallest size you can read from about 20 inches away is THREE TIMES larger than what you can read. That simply eases eye strain. And it goes without saying that, despite what a lot of website designers like to do, high contrast is easier to read than low, so set your default scheme to something with a light background and dark text.
Here's a tip I hadn't considered - don't use your monitor as a light source! Look around your room. If your computer is bright, like a light, it's too light. If it's dull and hard to perceive, it's too dark. Set it, if you can, so that it matches the brightness of the general workspace.
Finally, there's matching the color temperature. That is, daylight is basically kind of blue, and is "hotter" than incandescent, which is a more orangey-red light, or florescent, which is a more yellowish light. WIRED recommends trying a free app called F.lux. that "uses your location to automatically adjust your display to pre-determined color temperatures that match your lighting environment based on whether the sun is up or down."
Thanks for the advice, WIRED! And my eyes thank you, too!
The advice is based on the 20-20-20 Rule - that's easy to remember! Look away from your screen every 20 minutes for 20 seconds at something 20 feet away. That changes your focus - it's the same reason we stand up and stretch every so often. By giving our muscles something different to do, we ease the strain on the ones we're overworking.
Then, adjust your monitor position and settings.
Set your monitor so that it's about 20-30 inches away from you (boy, was I guilty on this one - I was peering at my monitor way too closely!). And adjust it so that the very top is level with your eyes. That one I had right, and I can tell you that it keeps your neck in a comfortable position, and allows you to look down on the screen. I also tilt my screen slightly so that I don't have to move my head at all to scan the entire screen easily.
Next, adjust the text size so that the smallest size you can read from about 20 inches away is THREE TIMES larger than what you can read. That simply eases eye strain. And it goes without saying that, despite what a lot of website designers like to do, high contrast is easier to read than low, so set your default scheme to something with a light background and dark text.
Here's a tip I hadn't considered - don't use your monitor as a light source! Look around your room. If your computer is bright, like a light, it's too light. If it's dull and hard to perceive, it's too dark. Set it, if you can, so that it matches the brightness of the general workspace.
Finally, there's matching the color temperature. That is, daylight is basically kind of blue, and is "hotter" than incandescent, which is a more orangey-red light, or florescent, which is a more yellowish light. WIRED recommends trying a free app called F.lux. that "uses your location to automatically adjust your display to pre-determined color temperatures that match your lighting environment based on whether the sun is up or down."
Thanks for the advice, WIRED! And my eyes thank you, too!
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