It’s been over ten years since I discovered that my spinal vertebrae are smashing collectively like an anatomical ten-car pileup. Since then I’ve used standing desks to attempt to restrict the period of time I spend sitting. But the straightforward undeniable fact that my desk can arise doesn’t truly drive me to, which is a disgrace — I nonetheless discovered myself sitting for complete workdays if I used to be notably centered on some job or one other. Which is the place right this moment’s app suggestion is available in.

I resolved that so as to remind myself to really put my desk in standing mode and transfer round regularly, I wanted a timer. An old style egg timer, $5 at any grocery retailer, would do the trick — simply an audible and unignorable reminder to change from sitting to standing each hour or so.

But then I reasoned that, since I’ve a phenomenally highly effective hand-built desktop proper in entrance of me, it will be silly to not use it for the duty. After all, I’m already engaged on it. So I went in the hunt for a instrument that might match my wants, and ideally save me 5 bucks higher put in the direction of a Bacon Double Stack. I commenced trialing a number of choices.

Finding a small, free software with none strings hooked up is surprisingly troublesome in 2024. For instance, the dozen or so I checked out on my iPad (which I carry on my desk as a clock and e-mail/social alert instrument) had been crammed to the brim with advertisements and/or in-app purchases. One of them needed a $3 a month recurring subscription. While I’m definitely prepared to pay builders their due, $36 a 12 months, yearly for an app {that a} center schooler may make appeared greater than a bit grasping.

Michael Crider/Foundry

After a few weeks of trial and error, I settled on the humbly-titled Free Timer, accessible in each the Microsoft Store and as an old-fashioned EXE download in each installer and standalone varieties. It’s nothing a lot to take a look at, however digging beneath the floor I discovered that it delivers precisely what I wanted.

Michael Crider/Foundry

First of all, the large, high-contrast show is nice for an at-a-glance have a look at my aspect monitor to see how a lot time I’ve left in my hour interval. Combined with a parked place utilizing the FancyZones feature of PowerTools, it’s now a everlasting addition to my desktop. If I occur to have it coated up, it’s nonetheless ticking down on its entry within the taskbar. A easy click on anyplace within the open window begins or pauses the timer if I have to reply the door or attend to a name of nature, one thing that the $5 egg timer couldn’t do.

When my hour timer runs down, I’ve the app set to its loudest, most obnoxious setting, a cuckoo clock set with an additional repeater. (There are much less annoying choices as effectively.) That makes it unattainable to disregard even when I’m deep within the guts of one other keyboard assessment. Another easy click on after I’ve modified my desk place to sitting or standing units the timer in movement once more, but it surely additionally has the choice to start counting down once more mechanically.

Michael Crider/Foundry

There are a stunning variety of different choices in there too — gentle and darkish coloration schemes with totally different colours for remaining time, a fullscreen mode for a quasi-screen saver, and a tick field in the principle menu besides with Windows so I don’t neglect it if I have to reboot. You may even set it to “metronome” mode, if you would like it to audibly tick each second. You weirdo.

Free Timer makes me truly use my standing desk, and after a couple of weeks my again can really feel the distinction. It restored my religion that builders are nonetheless making easy, helpful apps with out demanding a month-to-month cost to banish promoting or unlock fundamental options. I slipped the developer a $10 PayPal tip on their web site, as a lot to spite the competitors as to say thanks.