Decision — drop activity heatmap from v1 scope
Activity heatmap (calendar grid colored by entry kind) was in the v1 plan but dropped after evaluation. Status header carries the bulk of the portfolio signal; heatmap is self-reflection tooling that does not need to be public-surface.
Context
v1 plan included a 13th criterion: an activity heatmap on /projects/<slug> showing calendar-style density colored by entry kind. After completing the status header and judgment-kind counts, the user asked specifically why the heatmap is needed.
Options considered
A. Public heatmap on /projects/<slug> (original v1 plan)
- Public-facing calendar grid, kind-colored, interactive tooltip
- Cost: 4-6 hours (SVG/Canvas viz + tooltip + mobile responsive)
- Value: would give recruiters a visual at-a-glance density signal; secondary signal for self-reflection
- Reversibility: easy
B. Admin-only heatmap on /admin/heatmap
- Same viz but gated behind admin auth
- Cost: 2-3 hours (no mobile/marketing polish needed)
- Value: self-reflection tool only; portfolio surface unaffected
- Reversibility: easy
C. Skip entirely (chosen)
- No heatmap at all
- Cost: 0
- Value: nothing visible, but status header already carries the portfolio signal — the judgment-layer counts (decisions / discussions / learning-gaps) are the differentiating numbers, not entry frequency
- Reversibility: easy — can add later
D. Different temporal view (timeline strip with kind markers)
- Linear strip instead of calendar grid
- Cost: 3-4 hours
- Value: marginal over status header
- Reversibility: easy
Chosen + Why
C — skip entirely.
The recruiter-facing portfolio signal is judgment artifact density, not commit frequency. Status header already shows N decisions · M discussions · K learning-gaps which is the actual differentiator. A heatmap adds visual chrome but no new signal.
For self-reflection (when did I crank, when did I burn out), the user said it was not a primary use case. Heatmap as admin-only tool (option B) is defensible but mid-priority compared to forming the .human.mdx annotation habit and writing first real Tier-1 decision entries.
Trade-off accepted
- No visual density indicator on project pages — recruiters with no patience for reading entries don't get the at-a-glance graphic
- Loss of self-reflection "when was I most active" surface — must fall back to
git logif curious - v1 ships with 12 criteria fully done instead of 13 partially done
Reversibility
two-way. The underlying log data already supports the visualization. Adding a heatmap later is a pure UI task with no schema or data-layer dependencies.
Verified by
- Conversation in this session: user explicitly questioned whether heatmap was needed
- Audit data: status header counts (decision / discussion / learning-gap) emerged as the differentiating portfolio signal; heatmap is secondary
- Compared to other v1 items: heatmap was the only criterion explicitly deferrable without breaking the system
Decision criteria to flip (when to add it back)
- If 1 month of usage shows user repeatedly asking "when was I most active" — admin-only heatmap (option B) becomes worth shipping
- If recruiter feedback indicates the project pages feel "text-heavy" — public heatmap (option A) worth reconsidering
- If a v2 sprint has slack capacity (4-6 hours unallocated) — easy add
Commit
This entry is the artifact. The decision is content, not code — no implementation change accompanies it.