Software
Review of: |
| It’s
happened to me and I bet it’s happened to you to. You’re on the Internet,
or playing Flight Simulator or maybe even pounding away at the keyboard
churning out a project for work. You look at the clock. Have you really
been sitting at the computer for eight hours? Your body doesn’t lie. When
you stand up your knees creak, your neck has a vicious crick and your wrists
hurt like the devil.
You need Stretchware, the software that reminds you to stretch. Stretchware is the companion program to Bob Anderson’s best-selling book, Stretching at your computer or desk. It installs a little icon in the system tray in the lower right corner of your screen. At specified intervals it reminds you to stretch and displays a screen of recommended stretches and instructions on how to do them. You can activate the software in several ways. You can ask it to give a stretch reminder at a specified interval, such as every 45 minutes or an hour. You can key it to a specified time once a day (for example, just before lunch or before quitting time.) Finally, you can set it for a number of keyboard strokes or mouse clicks; for example, 3,000 strokes or 300 clicks, whichever comes first. You can also decide how to be reminded. You can play a sound, flash an icon or show a dialog box, which gives you the option of stretching now, not stretching now or delaying the stretch. You have control over the sequence of the 14 routines, and you can decide not to show ones you don’t like. Each routine includes six stretches and takes about a minute after you learn how to do them. If you hover your mouse key over the picture of the stretch, clear instructions appear in the left-hand panel. All of the stretches are gentle but if you suspect you are suffering from a repetitive strain injury you should, of course, see a health care provider before starting to use this program. The program also comes with some informative screen about ergonomics, repetitive strain injuries and proper stretching techniques. This might sound like a little thing but stretching can reduce your muscle tension, improve your circulation, reduce fatigue, improve your mental alertness and make you feel better. If you need to see for yourself you can download a fully functional, free, 30-day trial version from their Web site. I’ve been using this for about a month and I am a convert. The software is unobtrusive and the stretches are quick, easy to learn and effective. I’ve noticed a noticeable lessening of upper back stiffness and wrist fatigue. The software works for PC and Mac computers and comes on a CD. The system requirements are minimal. You’ll need at least Win 95 or above or Windows NT 4.0 or later. Mac users will need System 7.0 or later. It works with 486/66 processors or better. Many companies use this in the data processing departments; the monitor has to be a color or grayscale monitor 640 x 480 or larger (1-bit black-and-white monitors are not supported.) The software is available from Shelter PublicationsThe Stretchware software costs $19.95 but you can get both the software and book for $24.90 plus $3.95 shipping and handling. The book alone is $9.95. The stretches are also available as a poster for $15.95.
Susan Ives is a past president of Alamo PC and the leader of the new Healthy Hackers special interest group. |