Feature request, see below. Note that the implementation for this should be done in a more general way, such that it is easy to include e.g. a Dutch specific arbo mode.

In Italy (but in all EU there is the same rule), there is the Law n. 626 of 1994. It has been updated several times and one of these update concern VideoDataTerminals (VDT)

In Italy, it is mandatory to interrupt the continuous VDT working time  every 120 minutes with 15 minutes of break.
I Know that it is absolutely not enough and that "minibreaks" work better, but the law is mandatory.
A corporation can decide to garantee more frequent pauses bat the rule of 15 min every 120 in the MINIMUN and is mandatory here.

I can suggest you to add a feature such as "Italian Standards and Regulations Mode" in order to LOCK the maximum  interval time to 120 min af continuous working time and then start the pause. The mini breaks can be activated od deactivated as usual...

Another good feature can be LOCKING the possibility for employes to modify timing settings.

We have some more strange rule in Italy, such as the Law n.300 of 1970 witch forbib any possible monitoring on worker's working activity from remote. The statistic part of workrave can be a serious problem here.. could be desactivable or limited with passwords.

(In reply to comment #0)

That would be a nice feature indeed. In Holland there is a similar rule: There should either be a 10 minute break every 120 minutes, or a 5 minute break every 60 minutes. Then, there is an additional rule that you should work no more than two hours on a laptop. or 6 hours on a desktop.

I'm not so sure about "monitoring the users working acitivity from remote". As far as I can tell, workrave stores all statistics information locally. There is of course the "networking" functionality, but this is guarded with passwords. What exactly is your concern here?

(In reply to comment #1)

> I'm not so sure about "monitoring the users working acitivity from remote". As
> far as I can tell, workrave stores all statistics information locally. There is
> of course the "networking" functionality, but this is guarded with passwords.
> What exactly is your concern here?
> 

Holland regulation is more usefull than Italian one.

Anyway, concerning monitoring the worker, in Italy there is the L.300/1970 and is forbidden to monitor workers activity.
I know very well this regulation and it is very complicated. In 1970 ther eware no PC... now, every PC is storing every moment data and usage information. A Company can always monitor the worker... but only for thecnical reasons.
My request is necessary because workrave stores usage activity and this data can only be seen by the workers its self or by system administrators just for thecnical reasons.
Otehrwise, Workrave, can't be used in working environment and will be limited to personale purpose (home, not job).

Bye

(In reply to comment #2)
> My request is necessary because workrave stores usage activity and this data
> can only be seen by the workers its self or by system administrators just for
> thecnical reasons.
> Otehrwise, Workrave, can't be used in working environment and will be limited
> to personale purpose (home, not job).

I'm still a bit confused. Assuming you are using windows, workrave stores statistics in the "Application Data" directory under "Documents and Settings/<your username>". You can configure windows such that this directory is only accessible by you and noone else. Like you said, many other programs collect usage statistics, and store them there.

Thus, noone will be able to access your statistical data, except you and your administrator (for technical reasons).

What additionally do you require?

Hi,

Thank you for your comments. I think adding country standards, as an option, is an excellent idea. Perhaps a separate "Mandatory Break" or " EU Regulations "  tab, with an EU logo. Or a checkbutton that says "Mandatory Break - Required by Italian law c123".


I don't agree with locking the user to the standard. Although if there were a country standard option, it would be possible. For example:

Let's say an admin controls 1000 computers with Workrave, and the registry key for the italian standard is Workrave\advanced\Italian-standard "1". The admin sends that key to all computers. And the admin could also change registry permissions to lock that key. It's not a perfect example -- the "lock" could be bypassed by using an ini file for configuration.


re statistics:
<>My request is necessary because workrave stores usage activity and this data
can only be seen by the workers its self or by system administrators just for
thecnical reasons.<>

Disabling statistics has been discussed, but I don't know if it's necessary based on what you describe. There will possibly be some way to do it in future versions, although the option might not be "disable statistics."


I live in the U.S. and I'm unfamiliar with the laws you cited. If you have more suggestions please let us know, thanks.