BlinkBreak
A quiet desktop companion for long screen sessions. Small reminders to blink, look away, and move.
- Status
- Released
- My contribution
- Built and maintain the desktop app and its public, MIT-licensed source.
- Made for
- People who spend long stretches working or studying on Windows computers.
- Built with
- Tauri · React · TypeScript · Rust
The problem
Long stretches at a computer make it easy to forget to take a break. An intrusive reminder can be just as distracting as no reminder at all.
What it does
- Timed reminders for blinking, looking away, posture, movement, and longer rests.
- An active-use scheduler with snoozing, quiet hours, and fullscreen deferral.
- A system-tray interface, settings, local daily statistics, and light and dark appearances.
Reminders that fit around the work
I built BlinkBreak around a simple idea: a reminder should fit around the work you’re already doing. It lives in the system tray and uses brief reminders, with settings for when and how they appear.
The React interface handles the dashboard and preferences. Tauri connects it to native desktop behavior, and a separate scheduler decides when a reminder is due. Settings and daily statistics stay on the device. The repository includes installation instructions, tests, release notes, and contribution guidance.
Design takeaways
- A reminder app needs to consider focus, idle time, and fullscreen activity alongside its timer.
- Separating scheduling decisions from native window behavior makes the different parts easier to test.
Current limitations
- The installation guide targets Windows. Check the current release before using another operating system.
- BlinkBreak encourages break habits; it is not a medical device.