VisiTimer is a handy and relianle countdown timer designed to enable you to time anything from baking a cake, taking a break, or rationing out time for kids to do things like play video games or use the computer. VisiTimer gradually reveals an image with a sweeping radial motion similar to the movement of the arm of a clock. It’s a great choice both for kids and for adults who do better with visual representations than with numbers.

VisiTimer interface is plain and easy to navigate. You can choose either an image to use with VisiTimer or a plain circle in the color of your choice. The program comes with a variety of high-quality images, including some that will appeal to kids (cute cartoon animals) and others for adults (such as nature scenes and cars). We were impressed with the number of audio alerts that the program comes with; there are traditional alarm sounds as well as animals, horns, chimes, nature sounds, and more.

Once you’ve configured the timer’s appearance and sounds, simply enter the number of hours, minutes, and/or seconds that you want counted down. Clicking on the timer’s image will hide or show the numbers, which will count down once the timer starts. A built-in Help file provides an overview of how VisiTimer works, but it’s easy to figure out without assistance. VisiTimer would be a great idea for kids who need to time how long they brush their teeth, stay in time-out, practice the piano, or anything else, especially if they don’t have a firm grasp on how time works yet.

The program is also a fun and flexible choice for adults who’d rather look at a pie chart representation of the time elapsed than a set of numbers ticking away. The program features an extensive library of fun, built-in images to use as well as the ability to use your own image or even just a simple circle to be “painted” as time counts down. You can also run several instances of the timer and label each one so that you know what it is being used to time.

Need to use the same set time more than once? Set the timer for any amount of time and save it as a preset for quick and easy re-use in the future.