Magnifying lenses

[Gone To Lunch]

I am struggling with my eyes.

Increasingly, I find the Kontakt and VSL players almost too small to see. (Full marks to PSP for the size-adjustable plugins!)

So I am asking for advice on getting some kind of wearable magnifying glasses?

I tried some from Amazon, but sent them back as they were child-sized and I am a large adult.

Recommendations please, or any other ideas about comfortable magnification.

[N i g e l]

Are you on Windows ? Theres a magnifing function using the windows key and +/-. Might be a bit clunky to use for music tho.

[Hugh Robjohns]

Go visit an optician. They know all about prescribing glasses for optimal computer viewing.

If you use computers at work you should be able to get your emoyer to pay for the eye testing as a minimum, and possibly the actual prescription glasses too.

[adrian_k]

Yes, go to an optician. I had to get special glasses for computer work. I have to say that even then I end up squinting to see certain plugins on a high res monitor about two and a half feet away.

[ConcertinaChap]

Plus one on both of these. As another user of glasses made for use with a computer, go and see an optician. It's what they're there for. Before you go, make a note of the distance between your eyes and the screen in normal use. The optician will want to know.

CC

[Arpangel]

I have exactly the same issue, are you on a PC or Mac? It's solved on my Mac simply by pressing the Command key and zooming in with the up/down arrows.
I also got my optician to prescribe some "computer glasses" or mid distance glasses, they help a lot, but zooming in is the only thing that really helps me, software designers should really think about this, it's not good.

[N i g e l]

... software designers should really think about this, it's not good.

Its similar to an industrial problem and has a been solved,
at a price of course

OLD DAYS:
A technical draughtsman's drawing, on his A1 size drawing easel, gives a large over view but also contains fine details. The draughtsman can move his body & head to get his gaze into the required position i.e. zooming and panning is a natural process.

NOW:

Its all done on relatively small computer screens where the pan & zoom is achieved with a special "mouse" working in conjunction with a standard mouse.

This one is 6 axis, £180, more like a joystick as it doesnt move around the desk.

https://3dconnexion.com/uk/product/spacemouse-wireless/

A half hour practice tutorial is required to get the basics of flying the thing, thereafter practice makes perfect for it to become 2nd nature, an integral extension of your body.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ySLfuQc-j5U

You would need to check compatibility with your apps but a quick google of Reaper/Spacemouse brought up some interesting discussion, even using it for realtime expression.

Other Spacemice type things are available.

[OneWorld]

Same problem here. My optician on two occasions insisted I use varifocals, but they simply do not help. I think the optician was more interested in the extra cost of varifocals. Despite me asking for a pair of glasses meant for near vision, they insisted the varifocals were the best option. At the last fitting of a new pair of glasses, the optician said "Oh don't worry about them not being deal at the moment, your eyes need a few weeks to adapt" I took her word for it, after all she's the professional, and I coughed up several £100 for the glasses - in fact after several months they were worse and I am back using my older pair of glasses. Next time I go for specs, I am not going to pay unless I am satisfied I am seeing an improvement. I am almost embarrassed to say how much money I have paid out for specs in recent years, and no I haven't gone for 'designer' frames, I am more concerned with eyesight than vanity.

What has helped me is using the Windows High Contrast option, it really is useful, and the same option allows for increasing the text size. However some apps don't work in high contrast mode and the designers of the apps seem either ignorant of, or unconcerned about people with less that perfect vision. I have contacted various companies with apps that are difficult to use, but never had a reply from them.

The SOS website, on whatever browser, in high contrast works perfect., OK that's possibly more to do with the browser, but none the less, the site is easy to navigate and use

[MarkOne]

Of course, it's an inevitable consequence of getting older.

I was talking to an optician about this, and even those of us once blessed with 20/20 vision start to loose our close focus abilities.

In our youth the tissue that makes up our lens capsule is very flexible, meaning the muscles that control focus can deform it very easily. As we age (and this really starts around the age of 40) this tissue starts to progressively stiffen making it harder and harder for the optics to focus down to the required focal distance.

Like with cameras, in very bright light, the iris stops down to a very tiny size and the depth of field increases, meaning that we can see good focus close up - which is why in bright sunlight, people of my age have no trouble reading the drinks menu by the pool, but come sundown we're all reaching for reading glasses (or for the more vain, the torch on their phone )

[Hugh Robjohns]

Varifocals are good for general daily use — where focal ranges are changing all the time. Bur they're hopeless for things where the focal distance is pretty fixed, just because the relatively narrow viewing angle through varifocals at that distance is so limited.

'Business' or 'Computer' glasses solves that problem by optimising the magnification to allow best focus over the typical working distance to your computer screen.

So I have varifocals for day-to-day stuff, including driving and watching TV at the other end of the lounge.

Then I have 'business' glasses for working on the computer. Anything more than about 5 feet away is blurred!

I also have extra powerful reading glasses for soldering work, and ordinary reading glasses for night time reading in bed.

The last two are cheap standard options from Amazon. The first two are proper prescription jobs.

Finding a good optimologist who understands your specific needs is half the battle in getting a solution that works well.

...or you could use a lower resolution on your huge monitor screen.

And I agree... it's very annoying when a plugin won't allow resizing!

[N i g e l]

yes indeed, I have varifocals for the day to day and computer specs for screen work.

I also have standard single vision glasses for TV or Cinema.

Single vision glasses allow your eyes to move around, naturally tracking things, whereas varifocals require that your eyes are more fixed, to look through the part of the lens with the appropriate prescription & require head movement to do the tracking (takes a a while to get used to that).

Tripple vision glasses are available but theres less area of "active" glass for each prescription and more scrap areas.

Supermarkets & Boots sell off the shelf cheap glasses, for reading or magnifing I think, I dont know exactly, worth checking out.

[resistorman]

What's wrong with just getting reading glasses off the shelf? As far as prescriptions go, in the states I just got a prescription and bought mine online from Zenni. A fraction of the cost and good quality. So it gave me the freedom to order different strengths for different jobs. After I got my cataracts removed I didn't need glasses anymore except for very close up, and I was able to order just straight up x1 glasses from them for very cheap .Some of my old glasses are good for working on circuit boards

[N i g e l]

Any one tried those cheap adjustable glasses with the adjustment knobs on each side ?

I dont hold out much hope for lens quality, its more the basic concept Im curious about.

[OneWorld]

Any one tried those cheap adjustable glasses with the adjustment knobs on each side ?

I dont hold out much hope for lens quality, its more the basic concept Im curious about.

I've seen those advertised, I read quite a few news sites and especially the US adverts for 'miracle glasses'....... new space age invention (I've never seen a spaceman wearing glasses?).......the secret opticians don't want you to know.........buy now and save 99%"

So they're reduced from $99 to $9, and it's at that point I get to thinking nah, don't bother, just snake oil in the form of glasses

But in looking for what's available in the UK I came across all manner of them, on yer eBays and Amazons but they all seem too cheap to be any use, and as we all know, if it seems to good to be rue - it is

[Gone To Lunch]

Thank you all for your comments.

I am on a Mac M1, and yes I know about the screen zoom. But it does not help much with the VSL and Kontakt. GRRR!

I did go to an optician and got a pair of reading specs, but the trouble is they are fine for reading a book, but I have my wide screen at a further distance, just enough to make the reading glasses useless, and I was hoping to avoid another £80 for a pair of additional ‘screen’ glasses, which is probably the best solution.

[MarkOne]

Yes, for everyday reading duties I have several pairs of the 'ready readers' type things from Boots and the like.

The really cheap ones are a bit c*&p, but pay enough to get better optics and maybe some multicoating (I reckon about £20 and you start to get half decent lenses) and I've found them fine for reading.

Get something from an optician after a test for computer use. Your eyes will thank you!

Oh, yes and stop mixing in dim 'viby' lighting, your depth of field goes into the toilet in a dark room.

[Drew Stephenson]

Not a cheap option, but I have 'occupational' glasses. They're a varifocal but they only cover the close and near-mid range. So they're good for up to about 12 feet in my case. I then have a cheap distance pair that live in the car.
The advantage of the occupational ones is that because the focal range doesn't change that much the effective area of the lens is greater.

[OneWorld]

Not a cheap option, but I have 'occupational' glasses. They're a varifocal but they only cover the close and near-mid range. So they're good for up to about 12 feet in my case. I then have a cheap distance pair that live in the car.
The advantage of the occupational ones is that because the focal range doesn't change that much the effective area of the lens is greater.

I've not come across those before but seem to be a workable compromise

[Drew Stephenson]

They work very well for me. I wear the same set of glasses for everything I do in the house or at work and only switch to the other ones when I'm going outside for a bit. (I also have a set of sports glasses that have the distance prescription for cycling / football / touch rugby etc.)

[Zukan]

Small county sized TV screens work well. However, you need to buy the county first to house said screen.

[amanise]

I can also vouch for varifocals. I have different focal lengths in each eye - and that changes from short to long vision. So I have multiple prescriptions and would need at least two pairs of glasses for everything. Self tinting multi focals brought all of this into a single pair for me. Amazing! They don't tint in a car though - so I got used to wearing a baseball cap for driving.

Early varifocals were - as people have noted - a bit clunky and narrow field. But the new ones I have are much better with a much wider field of focus than the olden days. It's really worth seeing if you can raise the dosh for a pair of these nowadays IMHO. They make everything so much easier. Best value I've seen is SpecSavers (would you believe). They have some great stuff and all the right gear for checking your prescription - recommended.

Good luck!

[alexis]

I wear progressives (i.e., no visible lines; different prescription gradient from top to bottom of the lenses), have recently restarted playing tennis, and found that's a terrible combination, as a quick google search confirmed.

I ordered two sets of "tennis glasses" - they have one prescription only from top to bottom of the lenses. That's supposed to be better, to allow me to track the ball my simply moving my eyes (like when I was young), rather than having to move my chin up as the ball approached to keep the ball in the right part of the lenses.

I haven't tried them out in competition yet, just practice ... I hope it makes things better, I''m telling myself it does but we'll see, they were expensive as all get out so I hope so!

[amanise]

I wear progressives (i.e., no visible lines; different prescription gradient from top to bottom of the lenses), have recently restarted playing tennis, and found that's a terrible combination, as a quick google search confirmed.
...

Hmmm. I hadn't thought of the sports angle. Thinking about it - you don't see many professional boxers wearing them either.

[Drew Stephenson]

Hmmm. I hadn't thought of the sports angle. Thinking about it - you don't see many professional boxers wearing them either.

Yeah, I have to cope with everything being fuzzy when I play rugby. Making sure I have at least half-an-hour with no glasses beforehand is key.

[alexis]

Hmmm. I hadn't thought of the sports angle. Thinking about it - you don't see many professional boxers wearing them either.

Yeah, I have to cope with everything being fuzzy when I play rugby. Making sure I have at least half-an-hour with no glasses beforehand is key.

Very interesting, thanks!