Why First

Intent confirmation before entering distraction sites

Why First is a mindful browsing extension that introduces brief, intentional friction before you enter distracting websites — turning mindless surfing into a conscious choice. Most website blockers rely on hard restrictions that are easily bypassed, ignored, or turned off during work. Why First takes a calm, soft-friction approach: before opening user-designated websites, it pauses to ask a simple question — "Why are you visiting this website right now?" Taking 5 seconds to clarify your intention breaks the dopamine feedback loop, helping you stay focused on what truly matters without stressful rigid blocking. ================================================== KEY FEATURES ================================================== 1. Mindful Intent Confirmation • Before accessing your selected distraction websites, a clean, distraction-free pause screen appears. • Type your short intention or take a mindful breath before continuing. • Easily click "Go Back" to safely close the tab if you realize you opened it on autopilot. 2. On-Device Privacy & Fact-Based Insights • View your daily mindfulness statistics: visit attempts, mindful pauses taken, entered vs. abandoned ratio. • See real facts about your web habits without judgment. • Your domain lists, reason texts, and usage statistics are stored in your browser's local storage. 3. Flexible Rule Management • Add rules with a single click from the toolbar popup or the options dashboard. • Supports exact domain matches or wildcard subdomains. • Pause rules during scheduled focus windows or temporary deep-work blocks. 4. Optional AI intention review • Optional, opt-in assistance to help you evaluate whether your entered reason aligns with your focus goals. • Off by default. When you switch it on, the note you typed, the domain you are opening, and any site purpose or site agreement you wrote for that site are sent to the AI endpoint you choose: your own provider API key, or the WhyFirst hosted endpoint (api.whyfirst.app, which forwards each judgement to our AI provider). • It never sends your browsing history, full URLs, or page content. 5. Free and Pro • Free includes up to 5 site rules, a fixed pause, and local statistics. • Pro is a one-time purchase with no subscription: unlimited rules, URL path rules and allowlist exceptions, a configurable pause, and AI intent judgments. ================================================== PRIVACY GUARANTEE ================================================== • Zero Tracking: No analytics SDKs, no behavioral trackers, no affiliate links. • Local by Default: Your domain rules, notes, and statistics live only in your browser's local storage. Nothing is sent anywhere unless you turn on AI intent review, which sends only the note you typed, the domain, and any site purpose or site agreement you wrote for that site to the endpoint you chose — never your browsing history, full URLs, or page content. • No Page Reading: Why First runs a small script only on the sites you add, and only to draw its check-in over the page. While the check-in is showing it locks scrolling and keystrokes and pauses playing audio or video, then puts everything back. It never reads what is on the page — no page text, no form fields, no browsing history — and never sends page content anywhere. • Complete Control: Export, clear, or delete your entire local history at any time with a single click. ================================================== QUICK START (30 SECONDS) ================================================== 1. Click the puzzle icon in Chrome toolbar and pin Why First. 2. Open Why First Settings -> Rules tab. 3. Add a distracting website (e.g., reddit.com or youtube.com). 4. Open that site in a new tab to experience your first mindful pause! For questions, feedback, or support: Website: https://whyfirst.app Support: https://whyfirst.app/support Privacy: https://whyfirst.app/privacy