Whack-a-Tab

About

Whack-a-Tab is a calm "read it later, but with surprises" tab manager that helps you deal with interesting tabs you don't want to lose, but also don't want to think about right now. Instead of leaving dozens of half-read pages open, you can "whack" a tab into a local holding area and let the extension bring it back at a better time.

Key behaviors:

• Manual whack: A toolbar button instantly saves the current tab's URL, title, and metadata, then closes it so your browser stays clean. An optional one-line note lets you remember why you saved the page without slowing you down.

• Auto-whack mode: When turned on, inactive "drive-by" tabs (no scroll, no clicks, no typing, and then losing focus for a configurable duration) can be silently captured and closed, reducing clutter without punishing genuine reading sessions.

• Soft resurfacing: Saved tabs come back using a gentle exponential schedule so you see them occasionally rather than constantly. Older tabs get a small preference when choosing what to resurface, but their history is never reset or spammed.

• Context awareness: Resurfacing only happens in calmer moments, such as when a new tab is opened or the browser becomes idle, and never when Chrome is in fullscreen or likely being used for meetings, presentations, or focus-heavy tasks.

• Respecting limits: The extension enforces a hard cap of one resurfaced tab per day. If multiple saved tabs are eligible, they are deferred instead of stacked on you. Ignoring resurfaced items slows down how often they reappear instead of speeding them up.

The resurfacing UI is intentionally simple and non-intrusive. When a tab returns, it appears with a small in-page prompt including buttons to "Open Now", "Snooze Longer", or "Archive".

All data—including URLs, timing information, notes, and state—is stored locally in your browser. There are no external servers, no analytics beacons, and no AI calls.