Site: wekex35.github.io/avert · Download: notarized DMG
Avert lives in your Mac menu bar and soft-blurs your screen when you look away — so people beside you see less of what’s on it. It uses your AirPods’ head motion, not a camera.
| When you… | Avert… |
|---|---|
| Look left or right | Soft-blurs that side of the screen |
| Look down (optional) | Gently dims the whole screen |
| Look up (optional) | Covers the screen until you clear it |
| Press ⌘⇧B | Instant full-screen cover (panic blur) |
| Sit still too long | Can nudge you to take a neck break |
| Want a stretch | Guides a short neck exercise set |
Everything runs on your Mac. No account, no camera, no uploading of what you look at.
 Status |
 Neck exercise |
 Privacy |
 Neck care |
 Schedule |
 General |
Watch avert-demo.mp4 (~1 min) — Status, calibrate, neck care, privacy, general.
- A Mac on macOS 14 Sonoma or later
- AirPods (or compatible Beats) that support head motion, worn in your ears
- Allow Motion & Fitness when asked (needed for look-away blur)
Optional but helpful: Notifications (reminders), Bluetooth (bring AirPods back after a phone call), Launch at Login.
- Open Avert — you’ll see its icon in the menu bar.
- Put your AirPods in and make sure audio is on this Mac.
- Click the menu bar icon → Open Avert, then turn Enable on.
- Follow the calibration steps: face the screen, then practice looking left, right, down, and up.
- Work as usual. Look left or right past a comfortable amount — that side should soft-blur. Look back to center — it clears.
That’s it. Recalibrate anytime from the menu or Status if your seating position changes.
- Look-away veil — Turning left or right soft-blurs that side; intensity grows as you turn further.
- Calibration — Sets “facing the screen” as your center. First time you enable, Avert walks you through it.
- Look-down dim — Optional soft dim when you look down (e.g. at your phone).
- Look-up cover — Optional full cover when you look up; stays until you clear it (menu or ⌘⇧B).
- Panic blur — Same full cover on demand (menu or ⌘⇧B).
- Custom cover — Use a solid black screen or your own image.
- Sensitivity — Adjust how far you turn before blur kicks in, how strong it is, and how fast it fades (Privacy settings).
- Stillness reminders — If you’ve been facing the screen with little movement for a while, Avert can suggest a neck break.
- Posture nudge — If your head stays tilted for a long stretch, you can get a gentle reset reminder.
- Guided exercises — A short 3-move set (look down/up, tilt left/right, turn left/right) with on-screen guidance. Optional voice coach counts holds and reps.
- Exercise reminders — Optional repeating reminder so you don’t forget to stretch.
Neck care is a wellness helper, not medical advice. Stop if anything hurts.
- Works while you wear them — Tracking needs AirPods motion. Without it, look-away blur pauses; panic hotkey and settings still work.
- After a phone call — If motion goes to your phone, Status may show “On call / other device.” Use Bring AirPods to Mac (or reconnect in Bluetooth) to resume.
- One ear — Fine if you wear a single bud; Avert can follow which ear is active.
- Schedule — Always on, only during work hours, or only outside work hours.
- Launch at login — Optional, so Avert is ready when you start your Mac.
- Multiple displays — Cover all screens or just the main one.
Click the Avert icon for:
| Item | What it does |
|---|---|
| Status | Quick view of tracking and protection |
| Open Avert (⌘O) | Opens the main window |
| Enable (⌘E) | Turns protection and tracking on or off |
| Calibrate (⌘C) | Sets or refreshes “facing the screen” |
| Bring AirPods to Mac | Appears when motion is elsewhere — tries to reclaim them |
| Panic blur (⌘⇧B) | Full-screen cover on / off |
| Quit (⌘Q) | Exits Avert (overlays go away) |
Open Avert from the menu. Use the sidebar:
| Tab | Use it for |
|---|---|
| Status | Live state, Enable, Calibrate, Bring AirPods, Start exercise |
| Privacy | Blur sensitivity, look-down / look-up, panic cover image |
| Neck care | Break reminders, exercises, voice coach |
| Schedule | When protection is allowed to run |
| General | Launch at login, panic hotkey, about |
- Sit how you normally work, then calibrate facing the middle of the screen.
- Recalibrate after you change chairs, desk height, or how the Mac is angled.
- If blur feels “off center,” recalibrate — don’t fight the thresholds first.
- Avert may gently suggest recalibrating if your usual pose drifts.
- ⌘⇧B or menu Panic blur toggles the full cover.
- Look-up cover (if enabled) also sticks until you clear it the same way.
- Looking down does not clear a panic cover.
- Are AirPods in and connected to this Mac?
- Is Enable on?
- Have you calibrated?
- Did macOS allow Motion & Fitness for Avert?
- Check Schedule — protection may be paused outside your chosen hours.
- During a call, motion may be on the phone — reclaim AirPods when you’re done.
Avert uses AirPods motion on your Mac only. It does not use a camera, does not read other apps’ content, and does not send your head pose or screen to a server.
Full details: Privacy policy · docs/PRIVACY.md.
1.0.0