How tracking works

Our time tracking system provides intelligent, automated tracking of your work sessions while maintaining privacy and giving you full control. The system includes automatic activity detection, focus state tracking, and manual session creation capabilities.

Automatic Tracking

Activity Detection

• The system automatically detects your active applications and windows
• Tracks actual time spent in applications (not just open time)
• Intelligently handles application switching and idle time
• Privacy-focused: all tracking happens locally on your machine

Activity States

The system recognizes four distinct states:

1. Active

   • Basic working state
   • Tracks when you’re actively using your computer
   • Automatically transitions to other states based on behavior

2. Focus

   • Automatically detected when:
     • You’ve been actively working for some period of time.
     • Using the same application consistently
     • Showing regular mouse/keyboard activity
   • Tracks interruptions and app switches

3. Break

   • Automatically triggered after some minutes of inactivity
   • Can be manually started (defaults to 5-minute breaks)

4. Interrupted

   • Tracked when switching between non-related applications
   • Helps maintain focus awareness
   • Contributes to focus session quality metrics

Sleep Detection

• Automatically detects when your computer goes to sleep
• Handles sleep periods appropriately in tracking data
• Adjusts sessions and activities when resuming from sleep
• Prevents inaccurate time tracking during sleep periods

Manual Session Creation

Drag to Create

1. Click and drag across the timeline to create a new session
2. Adjust start and end times visually
3. Add session details:
   • Title
   • Project
   • Tags
   • Description
   • Hourly rate (if applicable)

Session Management

• Edit existing sessions
• Delete sessions
• Export session data

Auto-Suggestions

Smart Window Grouping

• Automatically groups related windows and applications
• Learns from your usage patterns
• Suggests “in-progress” projects for sessions which have not been saved

Project Matching

• Suggests relevant projects based on:
  • Application being used
  • Window titles
  • Recent activity patterns
  • Previous session data

Time Corrections

• Suggests adjustments for overlapping sessions
• Identifies potential gaps in tracking
• Helps maintain accurate time records

Privacy & Data Control

Local First

• All tracking happens locally on your machine
• Data syncs to cloud only for teams
• Full control over what data is recorded and shared

Customizable Tracking

• Set applications to ignore
• Define work hours and break patterns
• Customize notification preferences

Data Export

• Export your tracking data in multiple formats
• Control what data is included in exports

Best Practices

1. Regular Breaks

   • Take advantage of automatic break detection
   • Use manual break timer when needed
   • Follow suggested break patterns

2. Focus Sessions

   • Minimize application switching during focus time
   • Use the focus timer feature
   • Review focus session quality metrics

3. Session Management

   • Review and adjust sessions regularly
   • Tag sessions appropriately
   • Keep project assignments up to date

4. System Performance

   • The tracker is designed to be lightweight
   • Minimal impact on system resources
   • Operates efficiently in the background

Troubleshooting

Common Issues

• Tracking not starting automatically
• Incorrect activity state detection
• Missing sessions or activities
• Sync issues

Solutions

• Check system permissions
• Verify work hours settings
• Review ignored applications list
• Ensure proper internet connection for sync
• Contact support for persistent issues

For additional support or feature requests, please contact our support team or visit our community forums.