Track habits & measurements
A habit answers did this recurring behavior happen? A measurable answers what numeric value did I observe? They can support the same goal without being interchangeable: “Emperor penguin roll call” is a habit, while “Penguins accounted for” is a measurable value.
Work with habits
The Habits page organizes active definitions into what is due now, scheduled for later, and completed. Its daily summary, consistency history, streaks, and completion-rate chart help you notice patterns without treating one missed day as the entire story.
Create and find habit definitions
- Open Settings → Habits.
- Select Create habit.
- Give the behavior a concrete, repeatable name and useful description.
- Choose its category, options, and schedule.
- Save.
The definition editor includes:
- Category for filtering and visual context.
- Dashboard when the habit should appear as a chart on a selected dashboard.
- Favorite for higher prominence.
- Private to hide it unless private entries are shown.
- Active to control whether it appears on the Habits page without deleting its history.
Schedule a daily habit
The current editor is daily-first. Set a Start date, optionally delay when the habit is shown from, and optionally choose when Lotti should show an alert. The data model also understands weekly and monthly schedules, but the present editor exposes the richer time controls for daily habits.
Record what actually happened
Open a due habit or use its quick action. The detailed completion form supports three outcomes:
- Success — the behavior happened.
- Missed — it was expected and possible, but did not happen.
- Skip — it did not reasonably apply that day.
Use the state that preserves reality. A candid history is more useful than a perfect-looking chart. Completion records are journal entries, so later views can reconstruct the effective result for each habit and day.
Work with measurables
A measurable definition describes the number before you record it: its name, unit, privacy, and how multiple observations combine on charts.
Create a measurable data type
- Open Settings → Measurable data types.
- Select the add action.
- Add a name, optional description, and concise unit abbreviation.
- Choose the default aggregation used by charts.
- Decide whether it should be favorite or private, then save.
Choose aggregation based on what repeated readings mean:
| Aggregation | Use it when |
|---|---|
| No aggregation | Every individual observation matters |
| Daily sum | Readings accumulate, such as sardines consumed |
| Daily maximum | The day's peak is the important signal |
| Daily average | Readings sample a changing value, such as habitat pressure |
| Hourly sum | Accumulation needs finer hourly buckets |
The unit is display context, not a converter. If you define habitat pressure as
kPa, record values in kPa consistently. Create a separate measurable if a
different unit represents a genuinely different series.
Record a measurement
Open a dashboard that contains the measurable and select the add action on its chart. Enter the observed value; Lotti keeps the unit beside the number so it is clear what will be saved. Recent distinct values appear as Quick log actions when repeating one of them is useful.
Use Observed at for the time the reading was actually taken, rather than the time you happen to enter it. The first page selects the calendar date. Today returns directly to the current date.
Scroll to the time section to set the hour and minute. Now restores the current time. Select Done to return to the still-filled measurement draft, then Save to create the journal entry.
The comment is optional, but it is useful when a number needs operational context—for example, a delivery, an unusual shift, or a changed measurement method. Saving a measurement does not alter the measurable definition or its aggregation rule.
Connect the two without confusing them
A roll call can be completed successfully even if only 36 penguins were counted—the habit records whether the procedure happened, while the measurable records the result. Put both on a dashboard when their relationship answers a recurring operational question.