UV light for key illumination

[wolfofsin]

I been researching keyboards. I currently use a Razer Nostromo and Logitech G110. I find the keys on the G110 to be too small for my fat fingers. Decided to go mechanical and know what I want:

Cherry MX Black
Backlit
Tenkeyless

My ideal keyboard will be a mix of switches with different colored LEDs for certain keys. Maxkeyboards will do it, but I can't justify $250 for a keyboard right now.

I'm thinking a Ducky Shine II TKL will fit the bill, but I had an idea

Amazon has the CM Quickfire Rapid with black switches for $77. If I put a UV light in my desk lamp, would it illuminate the letters on the keyboard, therefore saving my $50?

[nsrexler]

It would depend on what sort of material is used for printing the keycaps. Some materials will fluoresce a lot more than others under UV light.
Also, some ABS keycaps are UV coated to prevent discoloration, which would also prevent the legends from fluorescing.

[Leslieann]

UV lights are quite bad for your eyes.
They make sunglasses specifically to filter out UV light.

[tp4tissue]

UV lights are quite bad for your eyes.
They make sunglasses specifically to filter out UV light.

It's only a problem if you work outside..

[Leslieann]

UV lights are quite bad for your eyes.
They make sunglasses specifically to filter out UV light.

It's only a problem if you work outside..

It's not as bad as being outside, but it's still not good for them.
Some UV LED's even carry warnings.

We already strain our eyes looking at computers all day. An opthamologist that I do work for told me he's now regularly seeing 20 year olds with the eyes of 30 and 40 year olds due to computer use.

Anything to reduce eyestrain should be the mantra not, adding to it.

[khaangaaroo]

*puts on his seldom-used reading glasses* 

[tp4tissue]

UV lights are quite bad for your eyes.
They make sunglasses specifically to filter out UV light.

It's only a problem if you work outside..

It's not as bad as being outside, but it's still not good for them.
Some UV LED's even carry warnings.

We already strain our eyes looking at computers all day. An opthamologist that I do work for told me he's now regularly seeing 20 year olds with the eyes of 30 and 40 year olds due to computer use.

Anything to reduce eyestrain should be the mantra not, adding to it.

Could you clarify is this "for sure" due to computer use?

And "what" exactly about the "eye" is worn ... 

Also, Here's how I personally reduce eye strain

Everything on my computer looks like this,, Gray text on Black background.....

There is also a Lamp Behind my monitor...  The monitor is a good 1 meter away from my eye as well..

If you guys don't want to get a 30", those 40" are actually even better, but they only come in 1080p, I've yet to find good 40" that has 4k... I'd gladly pay $5000  )

[Leslieann]

Could you clarify is this "for sure" due to computer use?

And "what" exactly about the "eye" is worn ... 

I'm not a doctor so this may be way off and it was over a year ago that we talked about it only briefly.
However, he said as you age, some of the receptors in the eye slowly start to degenerate, this is apparently visible on an eye test. Where he saw the most degeneration in young people was those who use computers more. It sounds like he was describing age related macular degeneration. That may not be the right name though.

I don't know if it's only from looking at too much small print or if staring at what amounts to a light all day, but he definitely can see a difference between computer users and those who are not.


Also, while looking up a possible name, I found this written by another opthamologist regarding eye strain and computers, scroll to the very bottom to the conclusion:
http://www.mdsupport.org/library/cvs.html

(Bold is mine)
"There is no one type of computer glasses that fits all or is the best for everyone. A pair of computer glasses should include:
The prescription measured at the computer working distance
The appropriate lens type for the patient
A computer tint
A UV tint
An anti-reflective (AR) coating
Prism, if needed"

Keep in mind this was written back when CRT's were still common. CRT's also aim straight at your eyes, while a panel is aimed perpendicular and is less intense. A keyboard though, is at least tilted towards you.

Oddly enough, the doctors recommendations play right into the discussion about computer glasses like Gunnars.

[Azure Flash]

We already strain our eyes looking at computers all day. An opthamologist that I do work for told me he's now regularly seeing 20 year olds with the eyes of 30 and 40 year olds due to computer use.

I hear those eye problems are also strongly correlated with off-hand wrist problems

[uJalled]

Uhhh, I'm no expert, but I'm pretty sure UV is harmful in the long run if you are exposed to a certain concentration of it for a while.

[khaangaaroo]

So you're saying OP should get QFR + blacklight + UV glasses

[uJalled]

So you're saying OP should get QFR + blacklight + UV glasses

They make UV light products to disinfect stuff, so I'm making the assumption that it wouldn't be great to skin either

[TotalChaos]

UV lights are quite bad for your eyes.
They make sunglasses specifically to filter out UV light.

It's only a problem if you work outside..

It's not as bad as being outside, but it's still not good for them.
Some UV LED's even carry warnings.

We already strain our eyes looking at computers all day. An opthamologist that I do work for told me he's now regularly seeing 20 year olds with the eyes of 30 and 40 year olds due to computer use.

Anything to reduce eyestrain should be the mantra not, adding to it.

Could you clarify is this "for sure" due to computer use?

And "what" exactly about the "eye" is worn ... 

Also, Here's how I personally reduce eye strain

Everything on my computer looks like this,, Gray text on Black background.....

Hey ur computer looks just like mine!

Whoever promulgated the concept of white backgrounds on websites needs to be shot.

If you guys don't want to get a 30", those 40" are actually even better, but they only come in 1080p, I've yet to find good 40" that has 4k... I'd gladly pay $5000  )

The larger your monitor is the further you can sit away from it.

The further away the monitor is from your eyes, the longer your eyes will last.

Refusing to constantly "upgrade" your eyeglass prescription will also make your eyes last longer.

The reason LeslieAnn's doctor is seeing an upsurge in patients is because millions of ppl have been tricked into using laptops where the screen is very very close to their eyes.  This wears out your eyeballs faster than sitting away from the monitor a healthy distance.

And I agree that using a UV light for hours a day every day sounds like a really stupid thing to do.

[tp4tissue]

UV lights are quite bad for your eyes.
They make sunglasses specifically to filter out UV light.

It's only a problem if you work outside..

It's not as bad as being outside, but it's still not good for them.
Some UV LED's even carry warnings.

We already strain our eyes looking at computers all day. An opthamologist that I do work for told me he's now regularly seeing 20 year olds with the eyes of 30 and 40 year olds due to computer use.

Anything to reduce eyestrain should be the mantra not, adding to it.

Could you clarify is this "for sure" due to computer use?

And "what" exactly about the "eye" is worn ... 

Also, Here's how I personally reduce eye strain

Everything on my computer looks like this,, Gray text on Black background.....

Hey ur computer looks just like mine!

Whoever promulgated the concept of white backgrounds on websites needs to be shot.

If you guys don't want to get a 30", those 40" are actually even better, but they only come in 1080p, I've yet to find good 40" that has 4k... I'd gladly pay $5000  )

The larger your monitor is the further you can sit away from it.

The further away the monitor is from your eyes, the longer your eyes will last.

Refusing to constantly "upgrade" your eyeglass prescription will also make your eyes last longer.

The reason LeslieAnn's doctor is seeing an upsurge in patients is because millions of ppl have been tricked into using laptops where the screen is very very close to their eyes.  This wears out your eyeballs faster than sitting away from the monitor a healthy distance.

And I agree that using a UV light for hours a day every day sounds like a really stupid thing to do.

I need to read up on eye degenerative diseases..

Black on white is carry over from "print", those poor fools.

[TotalChaos]

So you're saying OP should get QFR + blacklight + UV glasses

They make UV light products to disinfect stuff, so I'm making the assumption that it wouldn't be great to skin either

It isn't that UV light is a "disinfectant".  It is a simple fact that of all lifeforms tested, UV light murders all known forms of life.  Not just "germs".  Not just the life forms you don't like.  But ALL known life forms.

> But plants spend all day in the sun and don't suffer any ill health.
1. BS!

2. They have spent billions of years evolving to the point where they can tolerate the sun's UV light without falling over dead in a few days of summertime exposure like a human.  Increase the UV exposure and even plants and scorpions and other UV-hardened lifeforms still fall over dead.

3. Plants do suffer enormously.  All plants studied live much longer healthier lives when grown in an environment without the most harmful UV. (I can't remember ottomh which UV they removed in the experiments and in any case it was a bunch of different experiments by a bunch of different ppl so each experiment was conducted differently.)

[TotalChaos]

I need to read up on eye degenerative diseases..

Good luck with that.

Most degenerative eyesight is totally avoidable and fixable, at least if you start early.  But this information is purposely kept from ppl until their eyes are already ruined.  Then they get stuck in a cycle of degenerating eyesight.


The normal way ppl damage their eyesight is by reading books for 12 hours a day every day, year after year or by looking at anything else that is up close for long periods of time, day after day, year after year.

The eyesight does not come into focus by magic.  It is focused by muscle tissue.

All muscles have a "memory".  If you take any of your muscles and tense it up and lock it into position and hold it there for long periods of time each day.  Day after day.  Year after year.  Your muscle gets stuck in that shape and loses its ability to stretch out into other shapes.  When this happens to ppl in their arms or legs or fingers, doctors call it a "contraction".  When it happens in ppl's eyeballs doctors say "just buy a new pair of glasses".  But glasses are a crutch that reinforce the original muscle problem and make it worse.

If you lock your eye muscle into a certain shape by focusing on the same closeup exact distance all day long, for years on end, then you will become nearsighted.  Some ppl have truly exceptional DNA that allows them super flexible muscles so the degeneration in eyesight can take a while.  Regular folks though will degenerate more quickly.  And if you are unlucky with DNA that grows muscles that like to get stuck then you are really screwed and you will be legally blind by age 35 or so, unless you understand what is going on and take steps to avoid your fate or delay it.

If you force your eyeballs to focus on something really close up, like a book or laptop then you are making them tense up quite a lot.  This just speeds up the rate of your vision degradation.  If you will just buy a giant monitor and set it at a more reasonable distance that will help a lot.  But "just" buying a large monitor and using it at a distance is not going to 100% fix everything for everyone.  You will still sit there all day long with your eyes focused at a certain distance and since it will probably not be the "perfect" distance for your eyes you will still need to take breaks and do other things so your eyes can focus on different distances.

This is why it is really NOT COOL to buy your 4 year kid a handheld gaming system and then watch him play on it all day every day until they are half blind at age 21 when they go to visit LeslieAnn's eyedoctor.

Handheld gaming systems and laptops are just really a bad idea for children.  Make ur kids use a proper gaming system (or computer) hooked up to a large monitor at a good distance.  Their eyeballs will last a lot longer that way.

You were warned.

[Leslieann]

If you will just buy a giant monitor and set it at a more reasonable distance that will help a lot.  But "just" buying a large monitor and using it at a distance is not going to 100% fix everything for everyone.  You will still sit there all day long with your eyes focused at a certain distance and since it will probably not be the "perfect" distance for your eyes you will still need to take breaks and do other things so your eyes can focus on different distances.

I used to actually put a stand behind my desk to put  my monitor on, rather than placing the monitor on the desk because it was too close.  Most desks are too shallow and now with LCD's and cheap Chinese production have gotten even more shallow. Today my desk is pulled out from the wall a bit and my monitors are wall mounted.

I never liked being right up against the monitor, it just felt unnatural and stressfull. It probably saved my eyes all of these years.

[tp4tissue]

If you will just buy a giant monitor and set it at a more reasonable distance that will help a lot.  But "just" buying a large monitor and using it at a distance is not going to 100% fix everything for everyone.  You will still sit there all day long with your eyes focused at a certain distance and since it will probably not be the "perfect" distance for your eyes you will still need to take breaks and do other things so your eyes can focus on different distances.

I used to actually put a stand behind my desk to put  my monitor on, rather than placing the monitor on the desk because it was too close.  Most desks are too shallow and now with LCD's and cheap Chinese production have gotten even more shallow. Today my desk is pulled out from the wall a bit and my monitors are wall mounted.

I never liked being right up against the monitor, it just felt unnatural and stressfull. It probably saved my eyes all of these years.

so how thick are your glasses??...

what degree of saved... are we talking here...


I've got 475 right and 425 left.

[Leslieann]

so how thick are your glasses??...

what degree of saved... are we talking here...


I've got 475 right and 425 left.

I don't wear glasses.

Last test I had they said I was borderline for them (40 and 60 or something). Admittedly, it was a while ago, but as far as I can tell, my eyes are just as good as they were and I can see better than most people with glasses.

[tp4tissue]

so how thick are your glasses??...

what degree of saved... are we talking here...


I've got 475 right and 425 left.

I don't wear glasses.

Last test I had they said I was borderline for them (40 and 60 or something). Admittedly, it was a while ago, but as far as I can tell, my eyes are just as good as they were and I can see better than most people with glasses.

Life just isn't fair... that or you don't use the puter as much as you claim.