The Sorting Hat

A chrome extension that scores your daily efficiency by cross-referencing to the actual work you did. So that "delulu is the solulu" doesn't become your reality. ;)

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Inspiration

I had this habit where I genuinely believed I was being productive. In my head, I was “grinding DSA,” “learning concepts,” “improving every day.”
Reality? I was doomscrolling through “how to solve this LeetCode problem” videos for HOURS instead of actually solving anything. Watching solutions → felt like progress
Actually coding → mysteriously avoided At some point the delusion became my reality. I felt productive but had nothing to show for it. No commits, no solved problems, just vibes and YouTube history. I realized I needed something that would call me out on my nonsense. Also… this year’s hackathon theme was Harry Potter, so obviously my brain went: “What if a Sorting Hat judged my productivity like a magical newspaper?” And that’s how this chaos was born.

What it does

The Sorting Hat Report is basically a productivity mirror.

It analyzes your day using:

  • Coding activity
  • Git commits
  • Terminal usage
  • Browser tabs & titles
  • Your stated intentions

Then it generates a Daily Prophet–style report that:

  • Evaluates focus vs distraction
  • Compares intentions vs reality
  • Assigns O.W.L. grades
  • Calculates a Delulu Score™
  • Roasts you (lovingly)

Instead of boring charts, you get a magical newspaper judging your life choices.

How we built it

The system has two main parts:

1. Chrome Extension

  • Collects browsing activity (tabs, titles)
  • Lets users set daily intentions
  • Renders the Daily Prophet UI

2. Local Node.js Daemon

  • Reads local activity signals:
    • VS Code storage
    • Git repositories / commits
    • Terminal history
  • Aggregates daily behavioral data

3. UI / Experience Since the theme was Harry Potter, I leaned all the way in:

  • Newspaper layout
  • Animated elements
  • Magical styling
  • Dramatic verdict energy

Tech stack:

  • JavaScript
  • Node.js
  • Chrome Extension APIs
  • HTML / CSS
  • Claude API (work in progress)

Challenges we ran into

Biggest struggle?
Reading meaningful signals without being creepy or invasive.

Figuring out:

  • What data is useful vs unnecessary
  • How to interpret “activity” properly
  • Avoiding false assumptions (“tab open ≠ working”)

Also:

  • Chrome extension quirks
  • File path differences on Windows
  • Designing a UI that looks fun but not messy

And of course, debugging everything at 3 AM like a true hackathon experience.

Accomplishments that we're proud of

  • Turning productivity tracking into an actual experience
  • The Daily Prophet UI (this was so fun to design)
  • Delulu Score
  • AI-generated Hat Speech that feels personal (This is still work in progress)
  • Making something that’s both funny and useful

Most importantly:

It genuinely reflects the problem that inspired it - that gap between “I swear I worked today” and “why is there zero output?”

Learning Points

  • UX matters a lot - fun makes reflection easier
  • Productivity is weirdly psychological
  • People love being roasted if it’s playful
  • Local-first design is underrated

Also learned that building Chrome extensions + daemons together is… an adventure.

What's next for The Sorting Hat Report

  • An AI integration that actually works
  • Cross-platform support (macOS / Linux)
  • Better long-term analytics
  • Smarter distraction detection
  • Optional voice narration
  • More characters / themes
  • Possibly team mode

Long term vision:

A reflection tool that doesn’t guilt-trip you but makes you aware - with humor, personality, and a bit of magic.

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