checkin (volt): the gate's fourth leg recorded -- queue block, index re-render, 09:37-09:50Z check-in

Queue block appends at the foot (offset 10080 -> 10094 lines, 1271673 ->
1276470 B): the measured hole (three-leg gate rc 0 on a clone whose
checkin_check --fail is rc 1), the leg's unit and cost (124-153 ms, cheapest,
first), why one day (35 historical faults, 2026-09-24..2026-10-07), the
pick_detail tiering fix found by the first real run, and what it does not do.
Index re-rendered in this same commit: queue_index --check rc 0 (49 sections,
45 ids, 4 continuations, 9 nested, 10094 lines / 1276470 B); Q53 refs 122 -> 123
is this block's own mention. No item opened or closed; open set unchanged
Q37:5278, Q53:7303.

WORK-QUEUE.md

@@ -10078,3 +10078,17 @@ Artifact: `/root/.hermes/wizard-outputs/volt/2026-10-18-index-stale/` (`REPORT.m
 - **Nothing operational.** No queue item opened or closed; open set unchanged (Q37 `:5278` pipe, career-lane Q53 `:7303` held for Alexander); no issue/PR/release/deploy surface; no another-party file edited (the two files changed are this lane's own `tools/`); no counterparty messaged; no secret printed. Artifact: `/root/.hermes/wizard-outputs/volt/2026-10-19-lint-fclass/` (`REPORT.md`, `check.sh`, `repro-behavior-diff.sh`, `files.sha256`, `before/`, `after/`).
 
 — Volt
+
+
+**Volt tick 2026-10-19 09:49Z — the gate gets its fourth leg: the check-in contract, and a clone proves both the hole and the fix.** (Pure suffix append; clock read immediately before this edit at 09:48:09Z; the file's true last line at `5ed9da9` was `— Volt` closing the 07:34Z block, so nothing above this anchor was touched. This block opens and closes no item; the index is re-rendered in this same commit and `--check` reads rc 0 at the commit this block lands in.)
+
+- **The hole, measured before anything was changed.** `tools/verify.py` ran three legs at `3890c12` (`index-current`, `append-audit`, `selftest-sweep`), none of which grades a check-in. On a clone of that revision carrying one added file, `checkins/2026-10-19-volt-02.md`, the two instruments disagreed: `checkin_check.py --since 2026-10-19 --fail` → **rc 1** (BAD_NAME 1; DUPLICATE groups 1), `verify.py --fast` → **rc 0**, *"gate: OK -- 2 of 2 graded leg(s) passed"*. A tree that breaks the contract, certified by the repo's own gate. Captured in the artifact's `before/verify.txt` and `before/checkin_check.txt`.
+- **The leg, and the unit it grades.** `checkin` = `checkin_check.py --repo <repo> --fail --since <day>`, where `<day>` is `max()` over the `<YYYY-MM-DD>` filename prefixes in `checkins/` — read from the record itself, so there is no constant to rot and no clock to disagree with the archive. It is placed first and it is the cheapest leg by measurement: **124–153 ms**, against `index-current` 241–300 ms and `append-audit` 516–630 ms.
+- **Why one day, stated as a measurement rather than a preference.** Whole-archive grading at `3890c12` is `checkin_check --fail` → **73 files, 35 with a fault, rc 1** (BAD_NAME 25, DUPLICATE groups 10), and the 35 fault rows fall on dates **2026-09-24 through 2026-10-07** (bucketed on filename date: 09-24 2, 09-26 2, 09-28 2, 10-01 6, 10-02 1, 10-03 3, 10-04 2, 10-05 3, 10-06 8, 10-07 6). A gate wired to that number can never go green, so it stops being read. `--checkin-day DATE` sets the `--since` floor explicitly and in the open; being a `--since`, it can only widen the window, never narrow it past a newer date.
+- **A second defect, found by the first real run and fixed in the same commit.** `pick_detail()` put `SKIP README.md  (the directory's own README: not a check-in)` on the FAULT row — the weak hint `not a ` matched that note before the tool's own `FAIL:` line, so the row said FAULT beside a line about the README. Hints are now tiered STRONG > WEAK > per-file SKIP note, with cells 18/18b pinning both directions (a fault row must carry the `FAIL:` line; a clean row must carry its summary rather than the note).
+- **Proof after, same clone and same defect.** **4 legs, 2 pass, 1 fault, 0 ungradable, rc 1**, detail `FAIL: 2 file(s) violate the check-in contract`, `fault:      checkin`. Live tree, full run: **4 legs, 4 pass, 0 fault, 0 ungradable, rc 0** (*"gate: OK -- 4 of 4 graded leg(s) passed"*), the checkin row reading `checkin_check: 1 files, 0 with a fault, 0 advisory` — 2026-10-19 holds exactly one check-in.
+- **The cells.** `verify.py --selftest` **26 → 35 cells, 35 passed, 0 failed, rc 0** (cells 14/14b fault → rc 1; 15/15b no `checkins/` → rc 2 with the path named; 16/16b the leg is run with `--fail` and `--since` is the newest day present, from a two-day fixture; 17 `--checkin-day` override; 18/18b the two detail-line cases). Cells 1b, 7, 11, 12b updated for four legs. `ruff check --select F,E9 tools/` → **All checks passed**, rc 0. `doc_census_check.py --tools tools/verify.py --fail` → **6 claims, 0 STALE, 0 INTERNAL SPLIT, 0 leg failures, rc 0**.
+- **What this does not do.** It does not grade check-in *content* — A1 (Did/Blocked/Next/Ask) stays advisory inside `checkin_check.py` and this leg inherits that unchanged; it does not repair the 35 rows dated before the rule; and it does not add the ruff leg, which is still a dependency decision (`ruff 0.16.4` is on this host, not a repo dependency, so the leg would make a ruff-less host rc 2 for the whole gate).
+- **Nothing operational.** No queue item opened or closed; open set unchanged at `Q37:5278` (pipe) and career-lane `Q53:7303` (held for Alexander); no issue/PR/release/deploy surface; no another-party file edited (the only file changed is this lane's own `tools/verify.py`); no counterparty messaged; no secret printed. Reply 33's ask is done: `git config user.name Volt` / `user.email volt@agents.invalid` are set in the shell that ran this commit, so the author line no longer lands as the pipe. Artifact: `/root/.hermes/wizard-outputs/volt/2026-10-19-checkin-leg/` (`REPORT.md`, `check.sh`, `before/verify-3legs.py`, `before/verify.txt`, `before/checkin_check.txt`, `after/verify.txt`, `clone-path.txt`).
+
+— Volt

checkins/2026-10-19-volt.md

@@ -337,3 +337,78 @@ at `a2d9bc0`, the revision it was measured at.
 ## Ask
 
 None. No queue item opened or closed.
+
+## Did (fourth tick, 09:37–09:50Z) — the gate gets a fourth leg: the check-in contract
+
+`tools/verify.py` graded the index, the newest queue-touching commit and every
+tool's selftest. It did not grade a check-in — the one artifact every lane writes
+every tick — even though `tools/checkin_check.py` has existed since 2026-10-18 with
+`--fail`, `--since` and 29 cells.
+
+**The hole, measured before the change.** A clone of `3890c12` with one added file,
+`checkins/2026-10-19-volt-02.md`:
+
+    $ python3 tools/checkin_check.py --repo . --since 2026-10-19 --fail
+    FAIL: 2 file(s) violate the check-in contract          # rc 1
+    $ python3 tools/verify.py --repo . --fast
+    gate: OK -- 2 of 2 graded leg(s) passed                # rc 0
+
+A tree that breaks the contract, certified by the repo's own gate.
+
+**The leg.** `checkin_check.py --repo <repo> --fail --since <day>`, where `<day>`
+is `max()` over the `<YYYY-MM-DD>` prefixes in `checkins/`. The day is read from
+the record, so there is no constant to rot and no clock to disagree with the
+archive. First in the leg order because it is the cheapest by measurement —
+124–153 ms, against 241–300 ms for `index-current` and 516–630 ms for
+`append-audit`. `--checkin-day DATE` sets the `--since` floor in the open and can
+only widen it.
+
+**One day, not the archive, and that is measured too.** `checkin_check --fail` at
+`3890c12` → 73 files, **35 with a fault, rc 1** (BAD_NAME 25, DUPLICATE groups 10),
+the fault rows dated **2026-09-24 through 2026-10-07**. A gate wired to that number
+can never go green, so it stops being read; the newest day is the only one on which
+a new fault can appear.
+
+**A second defect, found by the first real run.** The FAULT row read
+`SKIP README.md  (the directory's own README: not a check-in)` — `pick_detail()`'s
+weak hint `not a ` matched that note before the tool's `FAIL:` line. Hints are now
+tiered STRONG > WEAK > per-file SKIP note; cells 18/18b pin both directions.
+
+**Measured after, same clone and same defect:**
+
+    $ python3 tools/verify.py --repo . --fast
+      checkin          FAULT   rc=1  124ms  FAIL: 2 file(s) violate the check-in contract
+    verify: 4 legs, 2 pass, 1 fault, 0 ungradable, 1 skipped
+    gate: FAULT -- 1 leg(s) ran and graded a fault: checkin        # rc 1
+
+**Measured on this tree, full run:** 4 legs, 4 pass, 0 fault, 0 ungradable, rc 0
+(*"gate: OK -- 4 of 4 graded leg(s) passed"*); checkin row
+`checkin_check: 1 files, 0 with a fault, 0 advisory`. `verify.py --selftest`
+**26 → 35 cells, 35 passed, 0 failed**. `ruff check --select F,E9 tools/` All
+checks passed. `doc_census_check --tools tools/verify.py` 6 claims, 0 STALE, 0
+INTERNAL SPLIT, rc 0.
+
+**Git identity.** Reply 33's ask is done: `user.name Volt` /
+`user.email volt@agents.invalid` are set in the shell that ran these commits, so
+the author line stops landing as the pipe.
+
+## Blocked
+
+Nothing. The only thing I chose not to do is a ruff leg on the gate: `ruff 0.16.4`
+is installed on this host and is not a repo dependency, so the leg would turn a
+ruff-less host into rc 2 for the whole gate. That is a dependency decision, not a
+wiring step, and the 07:34Z block already records it as an open question.
+
+## Next
+
+- Read the full 14-tool census at this commit (running now, artifact
+  `census-full-at-5ed9da9.txt`): the new leg adds printed output to `verify.py`,
+  so the claim totals and `SELF_NOT_RUN` set should be read at this revision, not
+  at the previous one.
+- If Alexander wants the 35 historical rows graded rather than skipped, the switch
+  is `--checkin-day 2026-09-24` on the gate — one flag, and the gate goes rc 1
+  until history is relabelled. That is his call, not this lane's.
+
+## Ask
+
+None. No queue item opened or closed.

docs/queue-index.md

@@ -56,7 +56,7 @@
 | 46 | Q44 | 6162-6705 | 88496 | opening | The pin class: redirect every constant composed from the live data root, not only `SNAPSHOT_PATH` *(Helm lane; opened 2026-10-12 by the pipe, per Q43's own closing sentence — "extend the redirect … | DONE 2026-10-12 — `recoveries/helm-root-redirect.md` (Merlin, Helm lane); the closure block is at the foot |
 | 47 | Q48 | 6706-6825 | 15123 | opening | The runtime-resolution redirect: close the class Q45's literals cannot see | DONE 2026-10-13 — `recoveries/helm-runtime-redirect.md` (Merlin, Helm lane), scratch tree |
 | 48 | Q49 | 6826-7593 | 92050 | opening | The runtime-resolved root's live write path: name it, reproduce it, then close it | open and unclaimed. Opened by the pipe 2026-10-13 |
-| 49 | Q45 | 7594-10080 | 379412 | opening | §9 follow-on — the home-directory channel *(Helm lane; Merlin)* | -- |
+| 49 | Q45 | 7594-10094 | 384209 | opening | §9 follow-on — the home-directory channel *(Helm lane; Merlin)* | -- |
 
 ## Ids with no `## ` heading
 
@@ -71,7 +71,7 @@ Opened as records inside another section. `line` is the record's own opening lin
 | Q50 | 6990 | 6990 | 46 | Q49 | BULLET+BOLD | BOLD-LEAD |
 | Q51 | 7106 | 7106 | 37 | Q49 | BULLET+BOLD | BOLD-LEAD |
 | Q52 | 7167 | 7167 | 90 | Q49 | BULLET+BOLD | BOLD-LEAD |
-| Q53 | 7292 | 7246 | 122 | Q49 | BULLET+BOLD | BOLD-LEAD |
+| Q53 | 7292 | 7246 | 123 | Q49 | BULLET+BOLD | BOLD-LEAD |
 | Q63 | 9918 | 9909 | 17 | Q45 | BULLET+BOLD | BOLD-LEAD |
 
 **Not in this document.** Ids the prose corpus names that the queue has never mentioned (`checkins/`, `replies/`, `recoveries/`, `audits/`, `docs/`, the top-level documents; `tools/` excluded). That set moves with the prose, not with the queue, so embedding it here would make `--check` go RED for a reason that has nothing to do with the queue being current. It is reported on demand: `python3 tools/queue_index.py --outside`.
@@ -217,7 +217,7 @@ The block below is the parse this document renders, byte for byte. `--check` com
    "form": "BOLD-LEAD",
    "id": "Q53",
    "line": 7292,
-   "refs": 122,
+   "refs": 123,
    "section": "Q49",
    "shape": "BULLET+BOLD"
   },
@@ -236,9 +236,9 @@ The block below is the parse this document renders, byte for byte. `--check` com
   "end_line": 8,
   "line": 1
  },
- "queue_bytes": 1271673,
+ "queue_bytes": 1276470,
- "queue_lines": 10080,
+ "queue_lines": 10094,
- "queue_sha256": "064e3872dc38156dd90c9c2471e03ff3c1a75098231674db5b325865d1785bfb",
+ "queue_sha256": "a145bebb1b0c70738c3d284d4ac638feec7f97833f4800db483dc7a8464efe27",
  "sections": [
   {
    "bytes": 3139,
@@ -817,11 +817,11 @@ The block below is the parse this document renders, byte for byte. `--check` com
    "title": "The runtime-resolved root's live write path: name it, reproduce it, then close it"
   },
   {
-   "bytes": 379412,
+   "bytes": 384209,
-   "end_line": 10080,
+   "end_line": 10094,
    "id": "Q45",
    "line": 7594,
-   "lines": 2487,
+   "lines": 2501,
    "role": "opening",
    "role_detail": "",
    "status": null,