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I do a lot of online reading & try to keep eye strain to a minimum by enlarging print.
It's one reason I dislike reading on my smartphone. For some reason it 'bugs the 'ell outta me' zooming in on just a couple words at a time. 🤨 I do get engrossed in some subjects to the point I sometimes forget, pull the laptop closer & squint my eyes. I pay for it later when I try watching a blurry TV. 😖
Many folks who work a day job may find they only have time to learn the violin online & at night - while I just find it easier/more enjoyable to learn at night with no other distractions. Everyone probably knows of all the hazards of too much 'screen' time & I realize, along with ANY mental activity before bedtime, it can screw with circadian rhythm - and I've definitely had more trouble sleeping this last couple years.
My Brother had warned me quite a while ago about the harm of too much 'blue screen light' from digital devices, but I don't remember him telling me 'why'. I wasn't having headaches so I didn't think anything of it. 😶
I didn't realize 'blue screen light', alone, can have such an impact on circadian rhythm! 😳
Filtered all my screens, but does anyone feel it's beneficial to ALSO use yellow glasses along with the screen filters?
Thoughts of anything else I can do (besides limiting my screen time) to help protect my eyes/health while learning to play the violin online?
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I prefer good ol' sheetmusic that I can make notes on and don't need a charged device for I gave digital sheet music along trial a few years ago. I did not like it. Just my preference.
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@Mouse -
Thanks!
🤔... funny, I wasn't even thinking about sheet music - guess I just don't use it enough.
I was thinking about everything else I use a laptop (or phone) for learning, e.g., playing techniques, music history, music theory, fiddling styles, learning about violinists/fiddlers, and even reading all the info on this forum.
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Inprefer switching to a paper book at night. I keep it matched up with its Kindle version, which I use elsewhere and other times. Sometimes, I will just get out the Kindle at night, but mostly a good old fashioned book.
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My orchestra has distributed parts electronically for a while now (since 2016 or so, give or take a year). About a quarter of the musicians have switched over to playing off tablets, but I still haven't done it; I'm still printing my parts and reading from paper copies. One of the main reasons is that I just don't want the risk of running out of battery charge mid-concert.
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AndrewH said
My orchestra has distributed parts electronically for a while now (since 2016 or so, give or take a year). About a quarter of the musicians have switched over to playing off tablets, but I still haven't done it; I'm still printing my parts and reading from paper copies. One of the main reasons is that I just don't want the risk of running out of battery charge mid-concert.
I think for what youre involved in that would be horrible for an ipad to die mid performance. I have the same fear, but would have to say it wouldnt be as big a disaster. still would be embarrasing.
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I don’t play in an orchestra so the threat of a mid-performance device failure is not an issue for me.
I play mainly by ear, but written scores do help me learn new music more efficiently. Once I have a new tune under my fingers I can pretty much forget about the written music, except to refresh my shaky memory when I draw a blank.
ForScore on my iPad has dramatically cleaned up the profusion of musical paper in my life. I no longer have notebooks and folders full of scores and charts. While I still print out some scores early in the learning process, I usually discard that paper pretty quickly.
ForScore makes it possible to mark up a score, and then easily and cleanly change any notations. It also allows me to organize the different scores in folders (“setlists” in ForScore jargon), which is a big help for someone who is the World’s Worst Librarian, haha.
The iPad fits easily in the pocket of my violin case, helping to keep life simple.
So yes,I’m fan of using digital devices for music. It was a challenge for me to go from paper to electrons, but the transition has been a good one for me. As a result of the switch I can spend more time with fiddle in hand, and less time shuffling papers.
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Having been an IT professional, I like to minimize screen time as much as possible. I already have chronic dry eye issues (I use Xiidra), so I don't want to do anything to make that worse.
I use paper. I use Musescore for playback on an Ipad when I practice (particularly duets), but I print everything out. I always make some annotations about fingerings or bowings--and I change them. I can't see going through that process on an electronic device.
My teacher has a couple of older Dell tablets that are really large--big enough to see two pages at once (I don't see any tablets on the market now that are this big) and I have done some sight reading on them. But I would not feel comfortable performing with an electronic copy.
I do, however, put many things in Musescore, and then print out what I've put in there. This allows me to adjust the size and format on the pages. So, I can adjust things like where a new line/new page starts, how many pages (e.g., making a tune be on 2 pages rather than 3 - so, no page turns), multiple parts together (I like to see both parts when I practice duets).
So, although I like the hard copy page, I'm using the technology to make the hard copy be what I want it to be.
And I try not to spend too much time in Musescore at once--so that I'm not staring at the screen too long 
Characterize people by their actions and you will never be fooled by their words.
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@SharonC -
Thanks, I figured you had some experience with this.
I thought I was taking enough breaks, but some times I notice issues with dry eyes & focusing.
I'm surprised, there aren't more concerns about eye strain, dry eyes, focusing issues, or sleep cycle disruption - potential issues from viewing digital device screens.
I was thinking it's been a few years since covid forced kids & adults to start learning/working from home - many stopped in-person music lessons for quite a while & also many new folks started choosing to be self-taught... figured everyone was using their computers/smartphones/tablets more & some info from the video might be of interest.
Age-related eye issues are a given, for me. I definitely notice it's not so easy for my eyes to focus on small, fine detail work as I get older... and even though I still rely heavily on my eye-hand co-ordination for everything I do, I hadn't considered how much the way I learn has changed. Where I might've physically taken workshops or classes in the past, everything is on some sort of digital screen for me, nowadays.
🤔... this thread's been kinda 'eye-opening' for me - very interesting how everyone focused on reading sheet music.
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There used to be a lot of talk about eyes and device/computer screens. Remember the yellow tinted glasses they said to use? All that talk seems to have almost disappeared. I think because most people did not pay attention. I wonder, because I think young people almost live with their face to the screen, how many will have eye issues.
My daughter did not let her two little girls even look at a screen, TV included, until after they were two. The TV was off when they were in that room. Now, they do have a periodic FaceTime issue with us, but that is it. They have a Movie Night maybe once a month, but for the most part, TV is not watched by them. They have a LOT of activities to do and are very creative and happy.
I don't know who will win when the girls are older and the battle begins, "But, Sophia gets to watch!", 😂.
Funny thing, we were visiting when the first one was maybe 5 months old. I was carrying her around. The dining room is open to the living room, or was, they have moved. There was a mirror in the dining room. It was right across from the TV in the living room, and it was on, hey, Notre Dame Football was on! My granddaughter grinned and stretched her head back to the mirror as I walked by it. I thought she saw herself. I brought her back. Nope, she spotted the TV. We moved on. Not that that would have exactly been an issue, I didn't want to start anything. My daughter said, "Yep, she figured that out a week ago." Little stinker! She sure was happy.
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I use forscore for keeping copies of sheet music with specifics weve covered in a lesson or class. also keep the yearly concert sets contained there. Its awesome for that. i just didnt trust that in the middle of needing it that an electronic malfunction wouldnt occur. For classes or even on a session ill take it for reference.. may not use it for playing but everything is there if i wanna pull up an old piece of music.
as far as eye problems.. i think if looking at a screen all day..for either work or surfing videos..most peoples eyes will get tired. i think you have to give them a break. now i dont think the everyday routine type violin practice with a computer or ipad will hurt... its when you rack up hours on end looking at a screen regardless of reason that problems happen. my opinion.
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I tend to agree, ABitRusty. Unless are using the digital sheet music often for long periods, probably not a problem, but I would think professionals might have problems, or even non-professionals who regularly practice and play for audiences, might. I think that in the end, it depends on each person's eye health.
I don't think it would bother my eyes, but it also depends on how much, that day, I had to be using my device screen for other things.
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heres an aryicle i found about windows settings. sorry if its in any of the above.
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As far as eyestrain and sleep disruption are concerned, I think it's mostly important to be aware of screen distance and time of day.
The two main ways I use screens for music are online lessons and score study. For me, taking Zoom lessons is not a big problem for either eyestrain or sleep: the screen is in my distance vision (more than 2 meters from my eye) during lessons, and my viola teacher is on US Eastern time while I'm on Pacific time so I'm never going to have late night lessons. Score study, for the purpose of becoming more familiar with what the rest of the ensemble is doing, sometimes happens late at night because I can follow the score and listen to the music at a low enough volume to avoid bothering neighbors. For the most part, I just try to avoid sleep disruption by turning down the screen brightness; it also helps that I'm not looking closely at the score the whole time, but focusing more on specific things that I'll need to listen for when playing.
Interestingly, the two people in my orchestra's viola section who use digital sheet music are (I think) the second and third oldest people in the section.
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