Even as I write this, it’s two minutes past midnight and my eyes are getting fatigued. I work from home (or rather, wherever I’m at – tonight I’m sleeping on a train in Norway), which means I spend a downright scary percentage of my time looking at my Macbook.
Even if you’re not as chained to your computer as I am, chances are you’re looking at a screen most of your day – and into the night. I got so messed up from reading computer screens late at night (not to mention the midnight sun) that I finally researched ways to take the lowest brightness on a Mac and make it even lower. I found several candidates, but the best is Tranquility.
Tranquility is simple and free, and yet it has all the tweaks and toggles you could need. Unlike the Invert Colors function that most computers come with, it won’t give you glaring cyan characters and other negatives that draw your eyeballs. Instead, it’s simple black and white – and even then lets you dim your screen far lower than normal.
Another app I didn’t like, but seemed intriguing, is called f.lux. It calibrates your screen to match the daylight outside, so that you’re not staring into ‘the sun’ while you work on your laptop in bed.
Sorry for the lack of screenshots – apparently I can only coax so much wifi out of a train in northern Norway. This Lifehacker review has screenshots of Tranquility, if you’re hesitant. Sweet dreams!