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Comment by CommieBobDole | Hacker News Reader

To paraphrase: "I poke myself in the eye with a fork all day and it hurts, so I built an app that detects when I'm doing it and gives me a pop-up reminding me not to poke myself in the eye with a fork so much"

Seriously, though, if you're spending all day hunched over a tiny laptop screen working, the answer is not an app - the answer is to get yourself a proper keyboard and chair and monitor. Your back and wrists and eyes will thank you.

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Yep. I bought a new ergonomic chair and a new 4K monitor last year. My back pain disappeared soon, but my eyes still feel bad sometimes if I work continuously too often, like 4 hours x 2 per day. But if I take some break regularly, they will feel better. Now my configuration of Eye Monitor is working 40 mins with 5 mins break.

This is not understood well until one actually invests in a simple setup.

And, I am so glad I did. I can genuinely work all day sitting comfortably in my chair with a three monitor setup with a keyboard at a proper distance if I have to.

Same issues sitting or standing at a large monitor all day

It doesn't make a big difference to work in front of a 13' inch laptop than to work in front of a 27' inch monitor. The problem is the same: too much screen time.

I think the point is not the size but the resolution ratio of the screen. A 13' inch 4k screen will be much better for your eyes than a 27' inch 1080P screen.

But no matter how good the screen is, too much screen time will still hurt your eyes.

There is such a thing as eye muscles. And like every muscle they like it when you move them from time to time.

Make sure to put your monitor into a room where you can look easily past it into something on a different distance. Just so that every once in a while. Bonus points if you develope a feeling for what movements your eye muscles like to do right now.

I am in front of a screen for 20 years now, and I have perfect eye sight doing just that. I never had hurting eyes from computers during that time.

The key is to listen to the signs your body gives you and not ignoring them. Sounds simple, but is actually hard if you formed a habit of suppressing your body/needs.

This is not completely true.

When the monitor is at the correct hight it will put less strain on the neck.

In the neck are also nerves that are related to sight. A tight neck can also cause visual problems.

It made a huge difference for me.

I suffered years of pain from a crinked neck, sore back, herniated gut, swollen leg veins, strained wrist (RSI), and dry eyes.

Step by step, I solved the problems. (In matching order:) Higher monitors, standing desk, ergonomic chair, standing desk, better peripherals, dimmed screen (using f.lux).

The key is gradually changing things until you find local maxima that work for you. If it hurts in a new way, change again. If the same hurt comes back, intensify the change.

It’s not as simple as “too much screen time.” I spend far more time in front a screen now compared to before, and yet suffer far less.

matte display vs. glossy display seems to make a difference for me (at least psychologically). matte feels cooler and is less harsh on my eyes.

The position of the screen is important, and it's a lot easier to position correctly a 27 inch monitor than a 13 inch laptop. A properly fitting chair and desk, ergonomic keyboard and mouse, all of this can make a noticeable difference, I promise.

About four years ago I started to have some mild wrist and lower back discomfort, especially after working long hours... I decided to improve my work setup because that was the easiest thing to fix without changing my habits. Since then all discomfort was gone and haven't had any issues even though I still spend way too many hours on the computer. I know I should still change my habits, especially since I'm starting to notice I don't feel quite as young any more, but don't discount the difference a good desk setup and posture can make.

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