What stays on your Mac
To decide when a break should land, Vista keeps track of a few things while it runs: how long since you last touched the keyboard or mouse, which app is in front, whether something is full screen or playing video, and whether a Focus is on. It uses them in the moment and doesn't keep a log of them.
What it does keep is your settings and a history of your breaks: when each one was due, whether you took it, skipped it or snoozed it, and how long you were at the screen. That is what the dashboard, your streak and the Friday summary are made from. It lives in Vista's own files on your Mac, and deleting the app deletes it.
Calls, microphone and camera
Vista never opens your microphone or camera, and it can't hear or see anything. To tell whether you're in a call, it asks macOS which apps are currently using the microphone or camera, the same signal that lights the orange and green dots in your menu bar. It learns an app's name, never the audio or the picture.
Your calendar
Holding breaks during meetings is off until you turn it on, and macOS asks for your permission first. When it's on, Vista looks at when your events start and end and whether they mark you as busy. It doesn't read titles, attendees, locations or notes, and it doesn't store your events.
Every time the app goes online
This is the complete list.
- Update checks. Once a day, Vista fetches a small file from vista.coursion.studio to see whether a new version exists, and downloads it from GitHub if you choose to install it. Like any download, these requests reveal your IP address and the app version. You can turn this off with Check for updates automatically in Settings.
- iCloud sync, if you turn it on. See the next section.
There are no crash reporters, no usage counters and no advertising code in Vista.
Sync through your iCloud
If you turn on Sync via iCloud, your settings, streak and recent breaks are kept in the private database of your own iCloud account, so your Mac and phone share one schedule. Apple stores that data under your Apple Account; we have no access to it and can't read it. Turn sync off and Vista stops writing there.
iPhone, Apple Watch and Health
The iPhone and Apple Watch apps aren't out yet. When they are, they'll ask before reading anything from Health. Vista uses steps and walking to tell that a move break really happened, and can record breaks as mindful minutes if you allow it. Health data is read on your devices, and only what Vista needs, such as "walked during the break", travels to your Mac, through your own iCloud.
This website
vista.coursion.studio sets no cookies and runs no analytics or tracking scripts. It is hosted on GitHub Pages, which, like any web host, sees your IP address when you load a page. The break demo on the front page runs entirely in your browser and sends nothing anywhere.
If you write to us
"Get notified" opens an email to support@coursion.studio. We keep your address only to tell you when Vista is out, and we'll write once. Feedback sent to feedback@coursion.studio is read by the person who makes Vista and used to make it better. Ask and we'll delete your messages.
Your choices
- Every sensor Vista uses for smart pause has its own switch in Settings.
- Calendar and Health access can be withdrawn at any time in System Settings.
- Turning off iCloud sync stops it; you can remove the stored data from your iCloud settings.
- Since we hold none of your app data, there is nothing for us to export or delete. Email is the exception, and we'll remove it on request.
Changes and contact
If this changes, the date at the top changes with it, and anything that sends more data will be opt-in and said plainly in the release notes.
Vista is made by Coursion Studio. Questions about privacy go to support@coursion.studio.