What's new with WhatPulse?

Website word counts

Word counting now extends to websites tracked via the browser extension (pending an extension update, this is preparation so the app is ready for it). See how many words you type on each website, with counts visible in the website stats window, per-application stats, and exports.

Redesigned the keyboard heatmap app filter dropdown

The application filter dropdown is now a searchable dropdown, making it much easier to find applications that you want to view the keyboard heat map for.

Native Wayland support on Linux

The Linux AppImage now runs natively on Wayland instead of falling back to X11 compatibility mode. This should improve display scaling, input handling, and overall integration on modern Linux desktops running Wayland.

Bug fixes

• Windows: Fixed a high CPU usage issue that could occur on startup when running as administrator.
• Fixed word counts incorrectly increasing when switching apps with Cmd+Tab or Alt+Tab,
• Fixed the keyboard heatmap occasionally showing empty results when switching layouts quickly.

Word counting

Track how many words you type with a new word count statistic. Visible on the overview, input history, per-application stats, Geek Window, and exports. No text is ever stored, only counts. More details later, it's inferring the word count from keystroke patterns (not actual text), so it works with any language and input method.

Redesigned input history

New grouped bar chart with interactive legend, flexible time period selection, replacing the fixed period dropdowns to make it easier to explore your input history data.

Other changes

• Redesigned toggle - A new shiny animated pill toggle to switch between chart and data views. This is replacing the mix of buttons and dropdowns we had before, giving a more consistent and modern look across the app.
• Status bar actions - Reset and Export buttons moved to the status bar, giving stats pages more room.
• Bug fixes - Fixed an application upload loop that caused repeated re-uploads, improved Windows application version detection, fixed application sync window sorting, and various smaller fixes.

Dynamic keyboard heatmap

The keyboard heatmap now detects your keyboard layout and dynamically updates the key labels and positions accordingly. This means that the heatmap will correctly reflect the keys you are using, even if you switch between different keyboard layouts — or have a layout that wasn't supported before.

Non-alphabetic input methods (such as Chinese, Japanese, and Korean) fall back to the standard QWERTY layout for now. We're planning to add support for non-alphabetic layouts in a future update.

Geek Window formulas

Formula support in Geek Window labels using {= expression } syntax, allowing calculated values and custom displays. Further customize your Geek Window to display anything you'd want. You can find more information about Geek Window formulas in the help center.

Patch update system

A new lightweight patch update system for macOS and Windows that downloads and applies smaller patches instead of full installers. This means faster and less intrusive updates going forward. One-click updates for Windows, zero-click updates for macOS.

Redesigned login wizard

Redesigned the login wizard to be more user-friendly and informative, with clearer messaging about account status and restoration options. If you have online backups of the stats database, the wizard will now prominently offer to restore from those backups.

Other improvements

• Mouse heatmap exclusions: Mouse heatmap points are now skipped for applications you've excluded from tracking.
• Focus events tracking (alpha): Added early support for tracking application focus changes. This feature is experimental and disabled by default — we're working with specific users to test and refine it before a wider release.
• The dashboard data sync now starts 10 minutes after launch, so frequent computer restarts no longer cause sync delays.

Fixed

• Resolved duplicate entries in application statistics that could occur when apps used versioned installation paths.
• Fixed a bug where the realtime network chart could draw loops.
• Addressed around 30 edge-case fixes stemming from crash reports and user feedback, improving overall stability.

Good news for keyboard warriors: We've added a command palette to the dashboard — press ⌘K on Mac or Ctrl+K on Windows/Linux to open it from anywhere on the site. It's the fastest way to get around.

Start typing to search across everything at once:

• Pages — jump to any dashboard page instantly. Account settings, privacy, billing, etc. — they all show up as you type.
• Applications, users & teams — the same search you know from the search page, right in the palette.
• Help articles — find answers from the help center without leaving the page. Results open in a new tab so you don't lose your place.

Navigate with arrow keys, press Enter to go, and use PageUp/PageDown to jump between result sections. There's also a ⌘Enter / Ctrl+Enter shortcut to open the full search page with your current query.

You'll also notice the search icon in the navigation bar now shows the keyboard shortcut — give it a click or just hit ⌘K.

Fixed

• Keyboard heatmap stability: Fixed an issue where the keyboard heatmap could briefly flicker between showing data and appearing empty.
• Application stats accuracy: Resolved duplicate entries in application statistics that could occur when apps used versioned installation paths.
• Realtime network chart: Fixed a bug where the realtime network chart could draw loops.
• Crash fixes: Addressed 8 additional edge-case scenarios that could cause the application to crash.

Improvements

• New focus events tracking (alpha): Added early support for tracking application focus changes, allowing WhatPulse to detect when you switch between apps. This feature is experimental and disabled by default. We're working with specific users to test and refine it before a wider release.
• Mouse heatmap exclusions: Mouse heatmap points are now skipped for applications you’ve excluded from tracking.

WhatPulse 6.1 beta 1 includes a dynamic keyboard heat map that detects your keyboard layout, math in the Geek Window (making it more nerdy and we're loving it!), a new patch update system for faster updates, and a redesigned login wizard with better account restoration options - and a ton of crash fixes and quality-of-life improvements.

Dynamic keyboard heat map

The keyboard heat map now detects the keyboard layout and dynamically updates the key labels and positions accordingly. This means that the heatmap will now correctly reflect the keys you are using, even if you switch between different keyboard layouts - or have a layout that we didn't support before!

If you have a non-qwerty keyboard layout, please give this a try and let us know how the heat map looks! We're looking for exports/screenshots. 😊

Geek Window

Formula support in Geek Window labels using {= expression } syntax, allowing calculated values and custom displays. Further customize your Geek Window to display anything you'd want. You can find more information about Geek Window formulas in the help center.

Patch update system

A new lightweight patch update system for macOS and Windows that downloads and applies smaller patches instead of full installers. This means faster and less intrusive updates going forward.

Login wizard

Redesigned the login wizard to be more user-friendly and informative, with clearer messaging about account status and restoration options. For instance, if you have online backups of the stats database, the wizard will now prominently offer to restore from those backups.

Other improvements & fixes

• The dashboard data sync now starts 10 minutes after launch, so frequent restarts no longer cause sync delays
• Around 30 fixes stemming from crash reports and user feedback, improving overall stability.

The new issue reporter in 6.0 worked wonders! It gave us a lot of useful insights into what was causing crashes and instability on various computer configurations and corner cases. We’ve fixed a lot of those issues, and this update should be much more stable across all platforms.

Crash fixes

• Notifications – Fixed crashes when clicking or dismissing banners multiple times during animation.
• System tray – Fixed crashes from rapidly clicking/tapping the tray icon.
• Charts – Fixed crashes when hovering over charts while data was refreshing.
• Profile switching – Fixed crash when switching profiles from the tray without opening Settings first.
• Shutdown stability – Hardened cleanup of network monitor, browser extension server, database, and heatmap components to prevent crashes on exit. Nothing you'd notice, but it should reduce the chance of crashes during shutdown or sleep.
• Heatmap settings – Fixed crashes when changing monitor setups while the heat map is open, and specifically when it was refreshing.

Platform-specific fixes

• macOS

  • Safer GeoIP database updates (no more file overwrite crashes).
  • Fixed timestamp bug that could cause timezone-related crashes.

• Windows

  • Third-party shell extensions (e.g., OneDrive/Dropbox) could cause crashes when WhatPulse was retrieving application icons. This is now handled more robustly, ignoring the extension if it causes issues.
  • Fixed rare double-launch after automatic update.
  • Improved MSI uninstall cleanup.

• Linux

  • Fixed crashes during network changes and WhatPulse exits.
  • Properly stopped packet capture thread on exit.
  • Upgraded Qt to fix monitor hotplug crashes.
  • Hid non-functional “pending apps” indicator.

Improvements

• Faster time series sync – Catch-up sync is now much faster after being offline.

A solid stability update to keep WhatPulse running smoothly in the background.

WhatPulse 6.0 is a major release, with Web Insights bringing website activity into your stats for the first time. Alongside that, this release delivers a more flexible UI, improved exports, and a long list of stability and performance improvements, especially on Windows. This version lays the groundwork for deeper insights into how you actually use your computer, while making the core app more robust and pleasant to use day to day.

Web Insights: website activity tracking

Web Insights introduces website-level activity tracking through new browser extensions, integrating your browsing activity directly into WhatPulse.

• Track time spent and activity on websites, including keys, clicks, scrolling, and mouse movement
• View website activity alongside applications inside the WhatPulse app
• Associate website stats with profiles to separate work, personal, or other contexts
• Exclude specific websites or patterns from tracking
• Export your website activity data for deeper analysis or reporting
• Privacy-first by design:
  • Only website domains are tracked; never full URLs or page content
  • Browser extensions don't run in private or incognito mode
  • Website stats are private and never publicly visible on your profile

Exports include aggregated website activity such as active time and input effort per domain, with flexible time grouping and profile filtering. Web Insights is available as part of WhatPulse Premium.

UI and usability improvements

WhatPulse 6.0 makes the app more flexible and consistent across platforms:

• The main window is now fully resizable and remembers its size and position
• Application Activity charts are easier to navigate, including forward and backward day navigation
• Dialogs, buttons, and confirmations have been polished throughout the app
• New application sync status window with detailed logging
• Time series handling has been separated from pulsing, making sure the dashboard data is not interrupted

Stability and performance improvements

• Keyboard and mouse heatmaps now render in the background to avoid UI freezes
• Better detection of hardware, input devices, and network interfaces with newer Windows versions
• Multiple fixes for startup, shutdown, and input monitoring crashes
• More reliable updater behavior, especially during restarts
• Improved handling of unusual display and multi-monitor configurations
• Integrated Sentry crash reporting on Windows, respecting the existing bug reports setting. This should help us identify and fix issues much easier.

Overall, WhatPulse 6.0 should feel noticeably more stable and responsive, especially for long-running sessions.

Professional and managed deployments

For Professional users and enterprise environments, this release includes improvements aimed at managed and shared systems:

• Kiosk mode for per-computer data collection
• Support for custom data directories and managed settings
• Cleaner startup behavior for locked-down environments
• Improved installer options for automated deployments

A few final improvements & fixes! 🛠️

• Windows: Fixed input tracking for laptops with a trackpad (issue starting beta 3).
• Improved the updater to take better care of restarting WhatPulse - which it sometimes didn't (mostly on Windows).
• Improve the design of the setup wizard, and link to the browser extensions.
• Fixed the cloud icon in the "Check for Updates" button being big on Windows computers with retina displays.
• Fixed a possible app crash on Windows shutdown (not that you'd notice).
• Fixed radio boxes not being shown in the maintenance tool, so you couldn't see what you were selecting.

WhatPulse 6.0 beta 3 focuses on Windows stability, with a significant overhaul of platform APIs for better compatibility with modern Windows versions, crash reporting improvements, and a handful of new features.

Website export

You can now export your website activity data from the Export Wizard, with four different export options:

• Active time per domain
• Input activity per domain (keys, clicks, scrolls, mouse distance)
• Activity per domain per browser
• A flat domain list with first seen, last seen, and total stats

All time-based options support grouping by hour, day, week, or month and filtering by profile.

Windows stability improvements

This release addresses a number of crashes and compatibility issues on Windows, especially on newer Windows 11 versions:

• Improved computer hardware detection on Windows 11 25H2 and newer
• Improved network interface detection with IPv6 support
• Improved keyboard and mouse device detection on minimized or headless systems
• Fixed several crashes related to startup, shutdown, and input monitoring
• Fixed dark mode detection failing on some systems
• Fixed mouse click heatmap issues on systems with unusual display configurations

Crash reporting

Integrated Sentry crash reporting on Windows, replacing the previous approach which produced unusable crash reports. This respects the existing bug reports setting and should help us identify and fix crashes much easier.

Bug fixes

• Fixed popup window titlebars not following the system appearance on macOS
• Added a hardware info window under Settings > Advanced for easier debugging and bug reports

Kiosk mode improvements (Professional)

• Kiosk mode is now only shown in Professional builds
• Registry startup is skipped in kiosk mode, as Task Scheduler is used instead
• Fixed settings-overrides.ini creation in kiosk mode install