FAQ
Do I still have to start timers or tag my work?
Section titled “Do I still have to start timers or tag my work?”No. drifty runs quietly on your Mac, records app, site, and session context in the background, and turns the day into a timeline you can review later. It is meant to understand the work, not just the app name.
Does drifty record my screen or save screenshots?
Section titled “Does drifty record my screen or save screenshots?”No. drifty is not a screen recorder and does not save screenshots. The product is built around activity context, not visual surveillance.
Where does the AI run?
Section titled “Where does the AI run?”You choose. Classification can run through Drifty Cloud, on your Mac with Local AI, or with your own OpenRouter key. You can switch modes later.
What happens when I work without internet?
Section titled “What happens when I work without internet?”Activity capture stays local on your Mac. Cloud and OpenRouter classification need a connection; when you are back online, drifty can catch up and classify the captured sessions together. Local AI can classify on-device after you set up a local model.
Is the download safe to install?
Section titled “Is the download safe to install?”Yes. Every production release ships as a signed Mac disk image, notarized by Apple, so macOS Gatekeeper verifies it before it opens. Downloads are versioned and served from the public drifty releases repository.
Do I have to pay to track my time?
Section titled “Do I have to pay to track my time?”No. Local tracking, the timeline, and on-device classification can stay free. Pro is the hosted Drifty Cloud AI route: $5 / month or $4 / month billed yearly, with a 7-day trial and up to 2 Macs. See Account & Billing.
Does joining a leaderboard share my timeline?
Section titled “Does joining a leaderboard share my timeline?”No. Join leaderboard publishes rank totals only. Profile visibility is separate. Apps, sites, window titles, and sessions stay off the public board. See Leaderboard & Profile.
The timeline is empty, idle looks wrong, or classification is late
Section titled “The timeline is empty, idle looks wrong, or classification is late”Start with the tracking issues checklist: pause state, Accessibility, idle detection, and the AI route.