I don’t know about you, but when I get on the computer I lose track of time. I get into whatever it is I’m looking at, and before I know it hours are gone. Needless to say, I don’t always give my eyes the rest that they need. Not because I don’t want to, but because I forget to. That is no longer a problem with xTheEye.

WHAT IS IT AND WHAT DOES IT DO

Main Functionality

In a nut shell, xTheEye is a program that is used to help prevent eye strain. It does this in the easiest possible way. Periodically, the program will signal for you to relax your eyes. Once you are reminded, you can take a bit of time to rest your eyes and avoid strain.

Pros

• No installation required
• Runs virtually unnoticed in the background
• Simple yet effective

Cons

• Doesn’t magically fix eye strain (you still have to be responsible)
• If you don’t use your computer a lot, this program won’t help you much

Discussion

Have you ever found yourself staring at your computer screen for hours on end and forgetting to take a break? Well, it happens to me from time to time. By the end, my eyes hurt and sometimes it can cause a headache. The funny part is, if I would have just remembered to take a break every so often, I could have avoided the whole thing. Well, that is where xTheEye comes in.

No, xTheEye is not some magical program that keeps your eyes from becoming strained (although that would be pretty sweet). It is a program that periodically reminds the user to take a break. xTheEye is a very small, but effective tool to help you.

The way it works is simple. After downloading the program, simply click on it to start. No installation required. Now, every 20 minutes the program is going to dim your screen for about five seconds as a reminder to take a break. This is a good time to do a simple eye exercise. The site recommends taking a break for 20 seconds, every 20 minutes. You can do this by focusing on an object that is about 20 meters away from you.

When I first tried out the program, I was skeptical at best. I did not think that I would need to be reminded every 20 minutes to take a break. On top of that, I did not think that a 20 second break would do much for my eyes. However, I was wrong. Not only did the 20 minute reminder always catch me off guard, but the 20 second break actually helped. By the end of a normal computing session, my eyes did not feel nearly as tired as usual.

CONCLUSION AND DOWNLOAD LINK

If you don’t use your computer a lot, this program is not going to help you. However, for those of us who can spend hours surfing the internet, you owe it to your eyes to give this program a try. Even if you find xTheEye to not be particularly useful to you, you have little to nothing to lose — the program is smaller than most Word documents, and there is no installation required.

Price: Free

Version reviewed: 1.0.0.1

Supported OS: Windows XP / Vista / 7

Download size: 71.5KB

VirusTotal malware scan results: 0/43

Is it portable? Yes

xTheEye homepage (scroll to the bottom of the page)