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# Today, alerts and dashboards in Ask

> Read the Today page your agent writes from your data, edit its blocks and theme, set alerts on a number, and open dashboards shared with you in Ask.

Today is the home page of [Ask mode](https://mammoth.io/docs/learn/agent/ask-mode/). Your agent writes it from the data Ask answers from: the numbers that matter, what changed and anything far from usual. It is written again when your data refreshes. The AI Agent, including Ask mode and Today, is available on Enterprise plans.



## Open Today

Switch to **Ask** at the top of the left navigation, or click **Today** in the Ask navigation. The chat box sits at the foot of the page ("Ask about today, or anything in your data…").

While the page is written you see "Writing today's page…" and each part as it's done, for example "3 of 6 parts written". On your first visit the agent says "I'm reading your data for today's page." and "You can ask now. The page fills in when it's ready, usually within a minute."

| Message | When |
|---|---|
| "Your projects appear here once they have data." | You can edit projects but none has data yet. **Go to Build** opens Build. |
| "Nothing has been shared with you here yet." | You're a guest and nothing is shared with you. You get an email when your page is ready. |
| "Today's page could not be loaded." | The page failed to load. Click **Try again**. |
| "This block couldn't be written just now. It's tried again in a minute or two." | One block failed |

## The top of the page

The top of Today shows a greeting ("Good morning, Pat."), the date, and a status line about your data. The line ends with when the page's answers were written, for example "as of 7:02 AM".

| Status line | What it means |
|---|---|
| "data to Nov 4 · as of 7:02 AM" | Your newest data runs to that date. Hover for **Covers** and the period your data spans. "and 3 more" means 3 more files cover other ranges. |
| "Updated with October's data · as of 7:02 AM" | Shown when Mammoth knows which month your data reaches but has no date range to report |
| "Files without dates · as of 7:02 AM" | None of the files the page reads has a date column |

In a guest's first week the page can open with a note from the person who shared it.

**Since Monday** (the day you last looked) sums up what changed since your last visit.

## Blocks

Each part of the page is a block: one question about your data, answered every time the page is written. A block shows its main number with how it moved, for example "▲ 12% on the week before", and a short note, chart, table or list. Blocks far from usual move to the top and show **Far from usual today**. A block with nothing new shows "nothing new today" and how close it is to usual.

Hover a block for its tools:

| Tool | What it does |
|---|---|
| **Ask about this** | Puts the block's question and answer in the chat box, so your question has its context. **Ask without this block** clears it. |
| Bell (**Create an alert from this**) | Opens an alert on the block's number. Shown only on a block whose answer is charted over periods (weeks, months). See [Alerts](#alerts). |
| **How we got this** | Shows the proof: what was **Read** (files, projects and row counts), what was **Used**, the **Usual** value it was compared with, and **Show SQL** / **Hide SQL** for the query |

While you're in **Edit page** (see below), each block also shows a pencil (**Edit this block**) to change it and a grip (**Drag to move**) to move it.

A block someone checked shows "Checked by" with the name and date. If its file changed since, it says the file changed and wasn't checked again.

### Open a chart

Click **⤢ Open** on a chart block for a larger view. Changes here don't change the block: "These change this view only. The chart on Today stays as the agent wrote it."

| Control | What it does |
|---|---|
| **View** | **Line**, **Bars** or **Table** |
| **Break down by** | Split the chart by a column |
| **Compare with** | **Same periods last year** ("The data doesn't go back a year yet." if it can't). Compare shows one line, so clear the breakdown first. |
| **Grain** | **Week**, **Month** or **Quarter** |
| **Range** | How far back to show, for example **6 mo** or **All** |
| **Only where** | **Add a filter** on a column and value |
| **See the rows** | Shows the rows behind the chart, the first 100 at most |
| **Ask about this chart** | Starts a chat about what the chart shows |
| **Save to Snippets** | Keeps the view, grain and filter on a canvas. The breakdown stays here. |

If a chart isn't drawn from one query of your data: "This chart can't be broken down or filtered: it isn't drawn from one query of your data."

## Add, edit or remove blocks

Open the **Page options** menu (⋯ at the right of the date line).

| Item | What it does |
|---|---|
| **Add a block** | Opens **Add a block** |
| **Edit page** (Shift+T) | Lets you drag blocks by their grip, edit them with the pencil, and change the page's look on the right. **Done editing** ends it. |
| **2 parts left out** | Shown when blocks are kept off the page. Opens editing, where each says why (for example "Left out of your page: nothing to show today"). Click **Show anyway** to bring one back. |
| **Agent settings** | Opens [Your agent](https://mammoth.io/docs/learn/agent/your-agent/) |

In **Add a block** or **Edit this block**:

1. Pick from **Start from a suggestion**, or type in **Or say what it shows** ("Say what you want to see each morning").
2. Choose **Shown as**: **Words**, **Chart**, **Table** or **List**.
3. Under **Include it only when it's this far from usual**, keep **Always** or pick **1.25×**, **1.5×**, **2×** or **3×**. The modal says how often that would have shown it recently. A block that can't tell what's usual always shows.
4. Click **Update preview** to see **Its answer, written now**, then **Add block** or **Save**.

A new block is added at the end of your page and runs every morning. To delete one, open **Edit page**, open the block with its pencil and click **Remove this block**. If saving fails: "Couldn't save your page. Try again."

What the agent learned about you (for example, from a chat) can shape a block. The block lists those facts with where they came from, such as "from a chat" or "you added it". Click **Forget** to stop using one.

## Change the page's look

**Edit page** opens the **Look** panel beside the page. Its first section, **Theme**, picks the page's layout. Each choice applies at once and is kept for you.

| Option | What it does |
|---|---|
| **Theme**: **Morning paper** (default) | A front page: lead story, briefs in columns |
| **Theme**: **Digest** | One sheet, numbered, like the morning email |
| **Theme**: **Briefing** | Key numbers, then short notes, with blocks of one shape side by side |
| **Text size** | **Comfortable** or **Compact** |
| **Sections** | Turn **Elsewhere in Ask** (the Explore, Snippets and Your data cards at the foot of the page) on or off |
| **Reset to default** | Puts the theme, size and sections back |

Light or dark follows your app color mode. Press Shift+T to close the panel.

## The foot of the page

At the foot of Today, cards link to **Explore**, **Snippets** and **Your data**. Above them, a line says how much your agent watches, for example "Your agent watches 3 things", and when your email digest comes if you get one. Its **Change it →** link opens [Your agent](https://mammoth.io/docs/learn/agent/your-agent/), where you also turn on the digest of your Today page.

## Alerts

An alert tells you when a number crosses a line. It is checked each time its table refreshes, and only full periods (a full week, a full month) are compared.

### Create an alert

Click the bell (**Create an alert from this**) on an answer in a chat or on a Today block. You can also click **New alert** in **Your agent** > **Alerts**.

1. In **Intent**, say what to watch, for example "Tell me when weekly signups from Google fall a lot". The agent builds the condition from your tables. "Change the words and the condition follows."
2. Check the **Condition**: **Watch** (a column's sum, average, highest or lowest, or **Rows (a count)**), **Each** (**Day**, **Week**, **Month**, **Quarter** or **Year**), and **Tell me when**:

| Rule | What it checks |
|---|---|
| it goes above / it goes below | The value crosses an amount |
| it rises by more than / it falls by more than | A percentage change against the period before |
| it is far above / it is far below | Against usual (the last 12 periods) |

3. Click **+ Only for…** to limit it to rows where a column has a value (up to 3 filters).
4. Read the preview: **Now** shows the latest full period, and a line says how often the alert would have told you, for example "This would have told you 2 times in the last 12 weeks".
5. Under **Delivery**, **Tell me** lists where it reaches you: **In Ask** (always on), **Email** (on by default) and **Slack**, which you can tick only when Slack is connected ("Connect Slack in Your agent to get alerts there."). **When** reads "Right away, at most once a day".
6. Click **Create alert**. "Alert created. I'll tell you when it happens."

You can have up to 10 alerts: "You have 10 alerts, the most there can be. Delete one to make another." If the agent can't build a condition: "I couldn't build a condition from that. Try naming the number and the table."

### When an alert fires

A fired alert shows at the top of Today for a week, marked **Alert** with when it fired.

| Button | What it does |
|---|---|
| **Ask why** | Asks the agent why it happened |
| **Edit alert** | Opens the alert |
| **Pause a week** | Stops it for a week |

### Manage alerts

Open **Your agent** > **Alerts**. "Each is checked when its table refreshes, and always shows on Today and in the bell." Each alert says where it came from (for example "Created from Today") and its state: **Paused** (with the date it resumes), **Needs a condition**, or "Quiet so far".

| Action | What it does |
|---|---|
| **Edit** | Opens the alert to change it |
| **Pause for a week** / **Resume** | Stops it for seven days, or starts it again |
| **History** | Lists when it fired |
| **Set its condition** | For an alert said in a chat that has no condition yet. It isn't checked until you confirm one. |
| **Delete** | Asks "Delete this alert?" then removes it |

With no alerts: "No alerts yet. Use the bell on an answer or a Today block, or make one here."

## Dashboards in Ask

When published dashboards are meant for you, Ask's navigation has a **Dashboards** section with the boards you opened last and **All dashboards**. A dot marks a board you haven't opened yet.

The **Dashboards** page groups them:

| Group | What's in it |
|---|---|
| **Shared with you** | Boards shared with you directly |
| **Published by you** | Your live boards, yours to share |
| **Made with the agent** | Boards you made in your chats |

Search with **Search dashboards**. Open a board to view it in Ask. **Ask about this** starts a chat about the dashboard, and **Previous dashboard** / **Next dashboard** step through a collection. With none: "No dashboards yet". For what viewers can do on a board, see [What viewers see](https://mammoth.io/docs/learn/dashboard/what-viewers-see/) and [Explore and Q&A](https://mammoth.io/docs/learn/dashboard/explore-and-qa/).

## Related pages

- [Ask mode](https://mammoth.io/docs/learn/agent/ask-mode/)
- [Your agent](https://mammoth.io/docs/learn/agent/your-agent/)
- [Results and the data canvas](https://mammoth.io/docs/learn/agent/results-and-canvas/)
- [The AI Agent](https://mammoth.io/docs/learn/agent/)

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Source: https://mammoth.io/docs/learn/agent/today.md · Updated: 2026-11-05