Understanding Focus Types
FlouState automatically tracks your coding time and categorizes it by work type. No judgment, no productivity scores - just insights into where your time actually goes.
How Automatic Tracking Works
FlouState starts tracking automatically when you open VS Code:
- ✅ No manual start/stop needed
- ✅ Tracks in 30-minute windows
- ✅ Only counts active coding time
- ✅ Categorizes work by type automatically
- ✅ Shows notifications every 2 hours
The Four Focus Types
Creative Work
Building new features, writing new code, greenfield development.
Detected when:
- • High ratio of lines added
- • New files created
- • Minimal deletion
Real-world example:
Building a new user authentication system, creating React components for a feature, implementing a new API endpoint, or starting a fresh microservice.
Maintenance Work
Refactoring, updating dependencies, improving existing code.
Detected when:
- • Balanced adds and deletes
- • Modifying existing files
- • Code restructuring
Real-world example:
Converting class components to hooks, upgrading from Webpack 4 to 5, extracting common logic into utilities, or renaming variables for clarity.
Debugging Work
Finding and fixing bugs, using debugger, reading error logs.
Detected when:
- • Debug sessions active
- • Small targeted changes
- • Console/log file activity
Real-world example:
Tracking down why users can't log in, fixing a memory leak in production, resolving race conditions, or debugging why tests are flaky.
Exploration Work
Learning codebase, reading documentation, understanding systems.
Detected when:
- • Many files opened
- • Minimal changes
- • Jumping between files
Real-world example:
Onboarding to a new project, understanding how authentication works before adding features, reviewing PR changes, or exploring third-party library source code.
Why Focus Types Matter
Traditional time trackers treat all coding time the same. But we know better:
All work has value: 3 hours debugging a critical bug is just as important as 3 hours building a new feature.
Better insights: Know if you're spending too much time debugging vs creating.
No judgment: There's no "good" or "bad" - just understanding your patterns.
Status Bar Information
FlouState shows your current focus time in the VS Code status bar:
- Focus Time: Total active coding time today
- Updates: Every 5 minutes automatically
- Click to see: Detailed breakdown by work type
Focus Notifications
Every 2 hours, you'll get a notification like:
🚀 Last 2 hours: 1h 23m of focused creating new code.
🐛 Last 2 hours: 45m of focused debugging. Includes 32m of deep focus!
🔧 Last 2 hours: 1h 10m of focused refactoring.
Deep Focus Periods
FlouState also detects when you enter deep focus - uninterrupted coding for 10+ minutes:
- • No file switching for 10+ minutes
- • Continuous coding activity
- • Highlighted in your dashboard
- • Mentioned in notifications when achieved
Using Insights to Improve Your Productivity
If you're spending too much time debugging:
- ✅ Add more unit tests to catch bugs earlier
- ✅ Use TypeScript or better type checking
- ✅ Set up better error logging and monitoring
- ✅ Schedule debugging for your peak focus hours
If you're doing lots of maintenance work:
- ✅ Block dedicated time for refactoring
- ✅ Document patterns to avoid future tech debt
- ✅ Consider automation for repetitive updates
- ✅ Balance with creative work to stay motivated
If you're exploring code frequently:
- ✅ Create documentation as you learn
- ✅ Use code navigation tools (Go to Definition)
- ✅ Set up better IDE search and indexing
- ✅ Ask for architecture overviews from teammates
To maximize deep focus periods:
- ✅ Notice when they naturally occur (morning? afternoon?)
- ✅ Block calendar during peak focus times
- ✅ Turn off notifications during these periods
- ✅ Save routine tasks for low-focus times
Recognizing Your Patterns
After a week of tracking, you'll start to see patterns like:
Morning Person:
80% of creative work happens before lunch. Schedule complex features for mornings.
Debug Fridays:
Debugging peaks on Fridays. Plan accordingly or improve test coverage.
Context Switch Cost:
30 minutes lost when switching between projects. Batch similar work together.
Language Efficiency:
3x faster in TypeScript than Python. Consider team expertise for project planning.
💡 Understanding Your Patterns
- • Check your dashboard weekly to see trends
- • Notice when you do different types of work
- • No need to optimize - just be aware
- • All coding work is valuable work
- • Focus on deep focus periods, not total time
Next Steps
Ready to see your focus patterns? Check out your dashboard for insights.
View Your Dashboard