Guide
Open ARChie any time for a shelf pick, a tiny challenge, encouragement, or one promise you chose.
Published 2026-09-12 · Reviewed 2026-09-28
On a computer or tablet, the top of the Focused Dashboard is ARChie, Today’s plan, and Now reading. ARChie speaks in his own column: his latest note appears in a speech bubble above him (the unread count lives on his badge in the page header), and a real note stays until you dismiss it. Today’s plan lists up to three things for today (log today’s reading, start the next book that’s due, clear an overdue review, promotion or return) and ticks them off as you do them. Now reading shows your current book, today’s page target and the next deadline; choose Update progress to set the page, or confirm that you finished it. On very wide screens, Coming up and your conversation with ARChie join the same row.
On a phone, ARChie’s greeting is one line at the top, followed by the Now reading card and Today’s plan. In the Custom Dashboard, ARChie’s Notifications and Daily Brief remain available as separate cards; the redundant conversation card is no longer part of the card tray. Use Focused and Custom in the page header to change the Dashboard view without moving the pinned stack.
Choose Reply to ARChie to open a centered conversation on computers and tablets or a full-screen chat on phones. Your selected books and unfinished promise choice stay with that conversation. When praise, a deadline, progress, or a promise needs his attention, the note carries its useful action. Notifications remain in ARChie’s separate notification bubble and Notification Center.
What you can ask
- Pick my next read suggests an unread book you already track and gives a reason based only on known shelf details.
- Help me decide compares two books you choose.
- Judge my TBR uses real monthly TBR information and respects your plan’s access.
- Tiny challenge offers ten pages, ten listening minutes, or one review sentence.
- Encourage me is always kind. Not today, ARChie keeps your saved personality but uses Gentle ghost for the rest of the day.
- I can explain appears when ARChie notices a stalled read. It asks whether life got busy, the book is not clicking, or another book distracted you; your answer alone never changes a promise.
- Talk about my promise lets you make, change, complete, or end one deliberate reading promise.
Promises save to your account. If the connection drops, ARChie keeps your proposed choice on screen and leaves the last confirmed promise in place. If another device changed it first, review the latest saved version before applying your draft again.
Choose his voice
Open ARChie’s settings to preview Gentle ghost, Sassy sidekick, and Roast me, darling. This choice is separate from the app’s Fun or Professional wording. ARChie also uses the selected voice when he introduces a real notification on the Dashboard. The original notification and its action remain unchanged in Notification Center.
The first time this feature appears, ARChie asks how you would like to be addressed. Choose pronouns, whether playful good-news lines may use spicy praise, an optional reader title of your own, and whether ARChie should favour your name, title, or naturally mix them. You can dismiss the question and return later through Settings → ARChie & tone → Name and title. Until you choose, ARChie uses your first name or username when available, otherwise reader. He does not guess pronouns or enable spicy praise for you.
Routine reminders may tease the calendar, and good news may celebrate. Application decisions, access changes, account notices, support, billing, security, and moderation always use protected wording without automatic spicy titles. A title you wrote yourself can still be used because it was your choice.
Daily, Weekly, and Off control spontaneous notes. Off still lets you open ARChie yourself. Hiding the companion removes him from the Dashboard; you can re-enable him in Settings.