visual snow relief overlay

A screen overlay filter that helps people affected by the visual snow syndrome.

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Visual Snow Relief Overlay

⚠️ Medical disclaimer
The contents of this project, such as text, graphics, images, and other material are for informational purposes only and do not constitute medical advice. Always seek the advice of a qualified health provider. Click here to read the medical disclaimer.

This experimental project stems from the conjecture that the prolonged exposure to static noise (e.g. TV static) is useful at reducing the symptoms of the visual snow condition.

Several people have reported that watching static noise “freezes” their visual snow symptoms and allows to gain clear vision, although only for less than a minute on average. This video is quoted by many as providing this result. The static noise could be able to stimulate the areas of the brain that cause visual snow and trigger a response.

Try to relax while you look at your screen through the static. Many people suggest they were most successful in managing the symptoms of Visual Snow when practising meditation and relaxation. If looking at the static makes you feel dizzy, stop immediately.

The project was created as a response to a number of requests posted on the Reddit website, where it was asked for such a tool to work on Windows, Mac, and Linux. See #1, #2, #3 for more.
If you feel like contributing, open a Github issue and help me improve this project.

What is Visual Snow?

[Excerpt from the National Organization for Rare Disorders (NORD) article]
Visual snow is a neurological disorder characterized by a continuous visual disturbance that occupies the entire visual field and is described as tiny flickering dots that resemble the noise of a detuned analogue television. This “static” is typically black and white but can also be colored, flashing or transparent.

In addition to the static, or snow, patients can experience additional visual symptoms of either direct neurological origin, such as palinopsia (either in the form of preserved images from stationary scenes or as visual trailing), photophobia and nyctalopia, or the entoptic phenomena.

The causes of visual snow syndrome are currently unknown. Some key features of the syndrome however, point to a neurological disorder of visual processing in the brain cortex.

Download

❗📱 UPDATE: VS Relief Overlay is now available for Android at https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=eu.belvederef.vs_relief_overlay

Download the latest package available for your operating system from the release page. Read below for notes on the versions provided.

Windows

The app is provided as both an installer (.exe file with “Setup” in the name) and an executable (.exe only). The installer is recommended, as you will receive updates that improve the app automatically.

Mac

The app is provided as both an installer (.dmg) and a compressed executable (.7z). The installer is recommended, as you will receive updates that improve the app automatically.

The first time you lauch the app, its execution might be halted as the app is not signed. To overcome this, you need to right click on the app icon, select “Open” from the context menu, and then click “Open” again in the popup.

Linux

The app is provided as an AppImage executable file that automatically receives updates. To make the file executable after download, run the following line replacing FILE_NAME with the name of the package you downloaded:

chmod a+x FILE_NAME.AppImage

Alternatively, right click on the file and find the option to make the file executable (generally under the “permissions” tab).

Join the research

Help the scientific community find a solution to Visual Snow, your help is crucial!