What's the fascination with dark mode?

zebal said:

Another fascination with dark mode is that you focus on foreground (ex. text) rather than background (dark background) @CMArbres pointed it out perfectly with VS sample.

In Visual Studio 2019 the theme choices are:

• Blue
• Light
• Dark
• Blue (Extra Contrast)

I tried the Dark theme in Visual Studio. Your right about focusing on the text. That's not the problem. When in Dark mode the text is blurry to me so if I don't focus on it I will probably get a headache. I much prefer the Blue theme where reading the text is less stressful.

In Office 2019 the theme choices are:

• Colorful (default)
• Dark Gray
• Black
• White
• Use system setting

I find the default theme of Colorful best for me.

They need gray mode. Dark is too dark to me during the day. Especially if the dark mode is close to high contrast. The white text on black or dark strains the hell out of my eyes. I start seeing white ghosting lines after a few seconds.

iPanda031 said:

They need gray mode.

Finally. Someone who understands!

Now I finally understand. Some people have too much free time. I should have asked what is with this need to worry about themes?

I just use the default themes. That is good enough for me. There are too many other more important things to worry about in life.

MisterEd said:

The so called light theme has been around since Windows was released over 35 years ago. I don't know how long dark themes have been around. I only started to notice them a few years ago. I am sure that most people that have switched to a dark theme really like it. However, there may be some that have switched for other reasons such as dark themes are trendy now or are gullible enough to believe what some proponents have claimed. A little searching shows people on both sides of the issue. The problem is it is sometimes hard to separate the objective vs subjective in what claims are made.

Disclaimer: My views are totally subjective. I don't claim to have any objective evidence for or against any claims I have made.

Subjective or not, IMO it sounds trivial. I don't blame others for wanting to give it their personal touch or just follow the herd, it's just that the scientific evidence to support the claim that people who are 'HSP' (Highly Sensitive Person) are for real is overwhelming. I mean, about 1 person out of 5 seems to meet the description of HSP. They're not drama queens. The biggest challenge is still to try to convince the general public that this is so. It's just another form of neurodiversity, as fMRI research has revealed. Put simply, the 'filters' that are responsible for suppressing (or partially) sensorineural information so as to prevent information overload from millions of neural receptors are not there, or are lacking severely. Not everyone who is HSP is overly sensitive to light and/or to certain types of lighting conditions, though. It could be sound, touch, taste or smell. Or it could manifest itself as some combination of multiple of these different categories─each to some certain degree─and in various different ways, like 'traits'.

To illustrate the high level of presumptuousness that a person may encounter, and what the potential consequence might look like. If a small child expresses aversion against meat and vegetables being not kept separate on a plate, most parents would automatically conclude that this is a clear sign of attention seeking behavior. If the behavior becomes 'excessive', that would be considered to be 'abnormal' and a valid reason to either start to punish the child or to call in professional help (therapy). In a lot of cases, though, from a strictly medical-scientific point of view, that actually is child abuse (or bordering on the edge of). And an old persistent taboo.

Fortunately, being HSP also has some (very) good advantages. Being able to see/hear/feel/taste/smell what others can't is not always negative. lol But some of us (myself included) have to take precautions to avoid environments/sitiuations others don't think are stressful/exhausting. It's the only way for us to feel comfortable enough to function properly. All the criticism we typically receive about that, almost like a tradition, is not exactly contributing to productivity. It causes employees to lose focus during work activities, more leave of absence, and, ultimately, less company profit in addition to a poorer economy.