What does latest complete period mean?

The most recent finished period at the granularity the file claims. A quarterly export means the last finished quarter, a monthly one the last finished month, and the two answers can be far apart on the very same rows.

Why did two people get different headlines from one file?

Because each picked a different grain for the same phrase, and nothing in the file or the page recorded the choice. Both figures tie to the source, which is why arithmetic checks cannot separate them.

What if the file states no period at all?

Record the grain as a proposed ruling with the reading chosen, and publish it behind a visible flag. Never let an unattended run stamp a person's name on a decision they did not make.

Failure catalogue · The metric means something else · 23 of 51

OBSERVED FAILURE MODE

Two honest headlines from one file.

Latest complete period is not one window. Read at quarter grain it means the last finished quarter; read at month grain it means the last finished month, and the same rows can produce headline figures five times apart. Two careful builders reading one file can ship two different headlines, both defensible. Neither the file nor the page states the grain.

What we saw

In our own audits, one export produced two headline figures five times apart, and both were built correctly. One builder read latest complete period at quarter grain and published the last finished quarter. The other read it at month grain and published the last finished month. Same rows, same filter language, same tie to the file's own totals. Neither page recorded which grain it used, so the two headlines could sit in one folder, each certified, with nothing on either page to explain the gap.

Why it passes a glance

Both headlines tie, both reproduce, and both survive a dual read, because the disagreement is about which window to publish rather than about any value inside it. A default grain gets chosen silently by whichever code path ran first, and a silent default leaves no artifact for a reviewer to question later.

What addresses it

The interactive-reports skill pins latest complete period to the granularity the file itself claims, quarter for a quarterly export, month for a monthly one, and where the file claims none it records the choice as a visible PROPOSED ruling rather than a silent default. Principle 10, a metric without its definition is not a number, extends to the period a headline covers.

Check your own file in two minutes

Read the coverage dates of the newest rows and decide what period the file claims to be.
State the grain your headline uses, in words, on the page itself.
Rebuild the same headline at the next coarser grain and compare the two figures.
Where nothing in the file settles the grain, publish the choice as proposed and name it unratified.

What this does not catch

Pinning the grain to the file's own claim removes the silent default. It does not tell you which window the reader wants, and a file that claims no period still needs a decision from someone. A proposed ruling is visible, not settled, until a named person ratifies it.

Quick answers

What does latest complete period mean?: The most recent finished period at the granularity the file claims. A quarterly export means the last finished quarter, a monthly one the last finished month, and the two answers can be far apart on the very same rows.
Why did two people get different headlines from one file?: Because each picked a different grain for the same phrase, and nothing in the file or the page recorded the choice. Both figures tie to the source, which is why arithmetic checks cannot separate them.
What if the file states no period at all?: Record the grain as a proposed ruling with the reading chosen, and publish it behind a visible flag. Never let an unattended run stamp a person's name on a decision they did not make.

Nearby failures

The calendar forkThe metric means something else The filename that lies about the periodThe file lies Two churn definitions, 3.4 points apartThe metric means something else

Last updated 2026-09-02 · Dylan, founder · one of 51 observed failure modes, every one seen in a real build or in our own audits, none invented.

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