nag

# Nag — Persistent Reminders Nag manages reminders that don't give up. Each reminder has a first-fire time, a nag window, and resets daily. ## When to Use - Recurring daily habits (supplements, workouts, practice) - Tasks that get ignored/forgotten without follow-up - Anything where "remind me once" isn't enough ## When NOT to Use - One-shot reminders ("remind me in 20 minutes") — use a cron job with `schedule.kind: "at"` - Time-critical alerts that can't wait for a heartbeat cycle - Reminders that don't need confirmation (informational only) ## Setup ### 1. State File Create `memory/nag-state.json` in the workspace: ```json { "date": "2026-02-15", "reminders": {} } ``` The date field triggers automatic daily resets — when today's date differs from the stored date, all reminders reset to unconfirmed. ### 2. Reminder Config Create `nag-config.json` in the workspace root: ```json { "reminders": [ { "id": "morning-supplements", "label": "morning supplements", "cronFirst": "0 8 * * *", "nagAfter": "09:00", "confirmPatterns": ["taken", "done", "took them", "did it", "yes"], "tone": "friendly but persistent, escalate to ALL CAPS drama after 3 nags", "messages": { "first": "Time for morning supplements!" } } ] } ``` **Fields:** | Field | Required | Description | |-------|----------|-------------| | `id` | yes | Unique identifier, used as key in state file | | `label` | yes | Human-readable name for display | | `cronFirst` | yes | Cron expression for initial reminder (create a cron job for this) | | `nagAfter` | yes | Time (HH:MM, 24h) after which heartbeat nags begin | | `confirmPatterns` | yes | Array of phrases that mark the reminder as done (case-insensitive, substring match) | | `tone` | no | Personality guidance for generating nag messages. If absent, use a neutral friendly tone. The model has creative liberty to vary the wording each nag. | | `messages.first` | no | Text sent by the cron job for the initial reminder. If absent, generate from label + tone. | | `messages.nag` | no | Suggested nag text. If absent, generate contextually from label + tone + nagCount. | | `messages.escalate` | no | Suggested text after 3+ ignored nags. If absent, generate with increased urgency from tone. | | `days` | no | Array of weekday names to restrict when this reminder fires (e.g. `["monday", "wednesday", "friday"]`). Omit for every day. | For more examples, see [references/config-examples.md](references/config-examples.md). **Message generation:** When `messages.nag` or `messages.escalate` are absent, generate them on the fly using the `label` and `tone` fields. Vary the wording each time — don't repeat the same nag verbatim. Use nagCount to calibrate urgency: low count = gentle, 3+ = escalated. ### 3. Wire Up Cron + Heartbeat **For each reminder**, create a cron job that fires `messages.first` at the `cronFirst` schedule. **In HEARTBEAT.md**, add a nag check block: ``` ## Nag Check Read nag-config.json and memory/nag-state.json. For each reminder in nag-config.json: - If date in state differs from today, reset all reminders (set confirmed: false, nagCount: 0). - Skip if today's weekday isn't in the reminder's `days` array (if specified). - If current time is after `nagAfter` and confirmed is false: send a nag message to the user. - Generate the message from the reminder's label and tone (or use messages.nag if provided). - If nagCount >= 3, escalate urgency (use messages.escalate if provided, otherwise generate with more intensity). - Increment nagCount in state. - Do NOT nag before the nagAfter time. ``` ### 4. Confirmation Handling When the user sends a message matching any `confirmPatterns` for a reminder, update `memory/nag-state.json`: ```json { "date": "2026-02-15", "reminders": { "morning-supplements": { "confirmed": true, "confirmedAt": "09:06", "nagCount": 1 } } } ``` Match confirmation by checking if any pattern appears as a substring (case-insensitive) in the user's message. When ambiguous (multiple reminders could match), match the one currently in its nag window. ## Adding a New Reminder 1. Add entry to `nag-config.json` 2. Create a cron job for the `cronFirst` schedule 3. The heartbeat nag block handles everything else automatically ## Removing a Reminder 1. Remove entry from `nag-config.json` 2. Remove or disable the corresponding cron job 3. Optionally clean up its key from `memory/nag-state.json`