Avoid glare and you won't go blind reading e-books - Page 2

alex_d · 05-12-2007, 02:57 AM

Light emitted by a device should not affect your eye's focusing system. (The lens is on the opposite side of the retina, lest anyone forgot.) There is no research that says backlights hurt vision over the long term. There are only people whose eyes ache and who want to make up reasons for why they're getting old. It's like walking until your legs hurt and thinking, "well, walking was a lot easier when I was young and it must have been all the leg aches that have screwed me up over the years." The same bs about bright lights in the dark has been going around since they first invented movie theaters (yes, seriously).

As opposed to backlights, viewing things close up for a very long time may indeed reduce your ability to see things far away. But putting on your glasses and then moving the monitor 6 feet away is just ignorance of physics. Glasses make all objects float (focus-wise) a few feet from your face. Things that are a few feet from your face become a few inches. If viewing things close up reduces vision, then wearing glasses reduces vision. Period.

Fighting discomfort, not wearing glasses when you can get away with, and doing eye excercises until you're dizzy will indeed make your eyes stronger. Figuring out ways to put your eyes on a pillow definately will not.

i'm sorry guys. it's just people bitching about display devices destroying their vision is one of my pet peeves.

astra · 05-12-2007, 05:37 AM

(I belive) Backlight affect adversely your eyes because of the type of a lamp that is being used to make this backlight, the lamp is flickering, even if you don't see it it is. This is why I believe any backlight in LCD type of a screen is not very healthy for your eyes.

You have given a nice comparison about walking/getting old, however I feel a HUGE difference if I compare what I feel today when I read from a very good LCD in a very well lit rooms and when I read from eInk device. Frankly speaking I cannot even compare those two.
Frankly speaking at the end of the day, who cares why? The end result, is that reading from any type of the computer screen tyres me and reading eInk device doesn't. Although even laptop LCD was a big improvement on a good CRT with refresh rate 120Hz.

NatCh · 05-12-2007, 11:32 AM

Sounds to me like the bottom line is that if something works better for a person then it works better for them, regardless of what it may or may not do for anyone else.

There doesn't really need to be some obscure overriding cosmic truth to explain the why.

astra · 05-12-2007, 02:02 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by NatCh

Sounds to me like the bottom line is that if something works better for a person then it works better for them, regardless of what it may or may not do for anyone else.

There doesn't really need to be some obscure overriding cosmic truth to explain the why.

Religion

katania · 05-12-2007, 07:06 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bob Russell

Interesting. My eyesight is going downhill fast also. Of course I stare all day at a computer screen (with plenty of glare) also.

And I'm sure it has nothing to do with getting old.

Reminds me of how suit coats, shirts and pants all seem to shrink in the closet if I don't wear them for a few years. It's a great mystery. Must be a reaction caused by stagnant air and darkness. But, oddly enough, socks don't seem to be susceptible!

Funny I am a woman, but seem to have the same symthoms from season to season, Spooky!!

05-12-2007, 02:57 AM	#16
alex_d Addict Posts: 303 Karma: 187 Join Date: Dec 2006 Device: Sony Reader	Light emitted by a device should not affect your eye's focusing system. (The lens is on the opposite side of the retina, lest anyone forgot.) There is no research that says backlights hurt vision over the long term. There are only people whose eyes ache and who want to make up reasons for why they're getting old. It's like walking until your legs hurt and thinking, "well, walking was a lot easier when I was young and it must have been all the leg aches that have screwed me up over the years." The same bs about bright lights in the dark has been going around since they first invented movie theaters (yes, seriously). As opposed to backlights, viewing things close up for a very long time may indeed reduce your ability to see things far away. But putting on your glasses and then moving the monitor 6 feet away is just ignorance of physics. Glasses make all objects float (focus-wise) a few feet from your face. Things that are a few feet from your face become a few inches. If viewing things close up reduces vision, then wearing glasses reduces vision. Period. Fighting discomfort, not wearing glasses when you can get away with, and doing eye excercises until you're dizzy will indeed make your eyes stronger. Figuring out ways to put your eyes on a pillow definately will not. i'm sorry guys. it's just people bitching about display devices destroying their vision is one of my pet peeves. Last edited by alex_d; 05-12-2007 at 03:00 AM.

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05-12-2007, 05:37 AM	#17
astra The Introvert Posts: 8,307 Karma: 1000077497 Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: United Kingdom Device: Sony Reader PRS-650 & 505 & 500	(I belive) Backlight affect adversely your eyes because of the type of a lamp that is being used to make this backlight, the lamp is flickering, even if you don't see it it is. This is why I believe any backlight in LCD type of a screen is not very healthy for your eyes. You have given a nice comparison about walking/getting old, however I feel a HUGE difference if I compare what I feel today when I read from a very good LCD in a very well lit rooms and when I read from eInk device. Frankly speaking I cannot even compare those two. Frankly speaking at the end of the day, who cares why? The end result, is that reading from any type of the computer screen tyres me and reading eInk device doesn't. Although even laptop LCD was a big improvement on a good CRT with refresh rate 120Hz.

05-12-2007, 11:32 AM	#18
NatCh Gizmologist Posts: 11,615 Karma: 929550 Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Republic of Texas Embassy at Jackson, TN Device: Pocketbook Touch HD3	Sounds to me like the bottom line is that if something works better for a person then it works better for them, regardless of what it may or may not do for anyone else. There doesn't really need to be some obscure overriding cosmic truth to explain the why.

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