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Ask HN: How many hours do you sit in front of a computer per day?

17 points by mwmnj 14 years ago · 38 comments


thejteam 14 years ago

Too many.

Probably 10 on weekdays, 3 on weekends. I would rather be outside.

citricsquid 14 years ago

Wake up, spend ~20 hours at my PC with a break for pizza in the middle then sleep for ~10 hours, repeat. Not recommended.

adrianwaj 14 years ago

I'm not sure. Often I recline the chair and put my feet up on the desk to the side of the screen. I think this is healthy and it feels right. I recommend trying it. I once saw that NASA determined that the correct way to position astronauts (on a trip to Mars) was lying on back but with feet above head and head raised. Recently installed http://stereopsis.com/flux/ to shade the screen at night - so far so good. Last step is to make sure I am grounded: I'll need to locate equipment to do (and test) this.

freehunter 14 years ago

Why not have a poll with some ranges?

o 1-3

o 4-7

o 7-10

etc

forgottenpaswrd 14 years ago

I stand up(not sit down) over 8 hours, maybe more. I enjoy it a lot.

I also stand barefoot(very very important as normal footwear forces your weight over your toes, witch is bad for your knees and posture), and learnt how to stand in a right posture from books.

The first thing I do in the morning is exercise, and it really helps to boost my energy(it has to do with the lymphatic system).

It took me months to get the musculature in my legs, now in the subway I don't want to sit.

ecaroth 14 years ago

GREAT poll topic, was considering doing something similar to get some data for my startup FitBolt (fitbolt.com), which helps to address this sedentary computer lifestyle.

Me personally, 8-10 hrs a day for my fulltime job, usually take ~4 hrs off for super/gym/etc, then back on the computer until 2-4am. So ~14 hrs a day on weekdays. I try to stay off the computer as much as possible on the weekends to reset myself, but that doesn't always happen..

kittxkat 14 years ago

Please make a poll out of this.

Workdays: 8-9 on work, plus 3-5 personal at home (and then about 6hrs of sleep paired with 2-4hrs of personal activity like cinema or meeting friends. A day seriously needs more hours!)

Weekends: Depends, laptop is almost always on and I just sit down, get up, sit down, but I'd say its within a 6-8hrs rate.

garethsprice 14 years ago

12-16 hours a day, 7 days a week. Scary/depressing when you put it like that.

I love what I do and the amazing things that I see and learn in that time, but when I'm lying on my deathbed am I going to be proud that I spent literally the majority of my limited time on Earth punching buttons on a glowing box?

fmstephe 14 years ago

10-12 hours per day. This is the trap of developing software for a living and trying push out your own software in your spare time. I often ask if it's worth it. I used to spend a lot more time outside. But the desire to build my own systems is too strong now. If only I had a 40 hour week of that :)

rjhackin 14 years ago

Around 10 hours during week days and 3 - 4 hours during weekends. Curious to know why this question? do you plan on doing any kind of research based on the data or is it just a random question. I would be rather interested how productive people are in those hours that we spend...

cheez17 14 years ago

12+ most days, with an hour commute each way in the middle- one hour computing, one hour commuting, nine hours computing, one hour commuting, two hours computing, bed. It's not the healthiest routine but it makes me productive as a network architect/engineer.

ollysb 14 years ago

Having spent too many hours in front of a computer every day I've just moved to Granada in Spain to redress the balance a bit. Working from home I'm now in front of the computer about 4-5 hours a day. The difference in daily output is negligible.

zanek 14 years ago

For me, I wake up around 9am and am at my computer until 2-3am everyday.

I usually take a 30m break to walk my dog and a 2hr gym excursion every other day. So most days I'm at my computer for 13 hrs at least :-) Got to love programming

koopajah 14 years ago

I'd say at least 12 hours per day without counting time spent on my Android device. Between working, personal emails, browsing, tv shows, etc. Not even counting time spent playing as it depends on the weeks

sjs382 14 years ago

8-9 throughout the week. 2-3 on the weekends.

With these numbers, I'm not considering Hulu, which is my primary source of "brain: off" entertainment.

orblivion 14 years ago

Probably 12-14? What else is there to do anymore?

wiradikusuma 14 years ago

Oh boy, reading some comments on hours spent on weekends makes me feel like I have no life other than in front of computer!

robmcm 14 years ago

If you include TV/tablets/phones then it's probably most of my waking time, especially in the week.

AznHisoka 14 years ago

hmm from 9 - 5, excluding lunch is 7 hours. from 7 to 12 is another 5 hours, so 12 hours a day. if you got mobile devices, add another 1 hour, so that's 13.

I'd trade some of it for time with a real human being, preferably someone that feels soft :)

xtrimsky_ 14 years ago

I have an average of 60 hours per week, that's about 8.5 hours in front of the PC

MsGemNicholls 14 years ago

7/8am til midnight/2am 7 days a week. So 14-16 hours a day.

Forrest7778 14 years ago

Probably 7 hours a day, this is pretty depressing.

wladimir 14 years ago

Does standing in front of a computer also count?

  • alexchamberlain 14 years ago

    You stand in front of your computer all day?

    • wladimir 14 years ago

      Not all day, I have a standing desk for my desktop PC, and my laptop on a normal table, and tend to alternate between them regularly. I have no idea whether it is healthier but for me it beats sitting all day.

whichdan 14 years ago

☑ Too F'in Many

bertocq 14 years ago

12-13 between work and home

kellros 14 years ago

over 9000 (ea, 14-20)

gespadas 14 years ago

10-12 hours a day.

pgambling 14 years ago

~10 on a weekday.

yoasif_ 14 years ago

9-11 hours a day.

netmute 14 years ago

9-16

smashu 14 years ago

8 to 12 :(

GFKjunior 14 years ago

12-15 hrs

holograham 14 years ago

average around 14 a day

tzaman 14 years ago

10-12

pcestrada 14 years ago

10

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