Support
LifeDots browser extension
Something not working, or not sure what it is doing? Most of it is below. If your question is not here, email me and I will actually reply — it is one person, not a support queue.
Common things
The dot is not filling
LifeDots counts a minute only when all three of these are true: the tab in front is one of your sites, Chrome has focus, and you have touched the keyboard or mouse in the last minute.
The most common cause is the second one — Chrome being visible on another monitor is not the same as Chrome being focused. Click the extension icon: it tells you plainly whether it is counting, and why not if it isn't.
It says "not the work" on a site I want counted
That site is not on your list. Click the extension icon and use + also count <site> — one tap adds it permanently. Chrome will ask permission for that one site.
If you do not want to be asked about a site again, press the × next to the offer. It will never suggest that site again.
The toolbar icon has not changed
The icon fills in quarters, so the first visible change is at a quarter of your daily target — about six minutes if your target is 25. The popup shows the exact seconds long before the icon moves.
I want my data out
Click the extension icon, then Export. You get a JSON file with your habit, your sites, every day's minutes and a recent activity log. It is yours; nothing is held anywhere else.
I want to stop it, or start over
Uninstalling removes everything it stored — there is no account to close and no copy elsewhere. To change your habit or sites without losing your history, click the icon and choose Edit habit.
Does it work if I use another browser as well?
It only sees Chrome. Time spent in another browser, or in any other application, is not counted — and during a focus session it is recorded as drifted rather than as work.
What it deliberately does not do
- It never blocks anything. If you wander off during a session it says so once, then leaves you alone.
- There are no streaks. A filled dot is permanent and a missed day cannot take one away.
- It cannot see your browsing. Only the sites you named yourself, which you grant one at a time.
- Nothing leaves your computer. No server, no account, no analytics, no network requests at all.
Reporting a bug
Email me with what you expected, what happened, and — if you can — the Recent activity list from the popup, which shows what the extension thought was going on. That list alone usually explains it.