Sorry for the long post. TL,DR: The streak counter should be based on meeting any one (or maybe two) of the suggested parameters instead of just creating 13 new LingQs each day. For example, if you don’t create 13 new LingQs but you listened and spoke for more than the recommended time for your level, your streak is maintained.
As the streak counter works now, you only get “credit” for the day if you create 13 new LingQs and this makes sense as the whole point and philosophy of the site is to keep learning new words every day. I think it would be better if the streak counter were a little more rounded though.
For example, sometimes I do not have time to read enough to create 13 new LingQs. However, I might speak on Skype for an hour and log this time on LingQ. But the website doesn’t count this as practicing the language so I lose my streak. Or I might be busy working so I won’t have time to read but I will listen to my target language for 5+ hours in a day. Even though I use the LingQ playlist or otherwise log this listening time on LingQ, all that speaking and listening practice doesn’t seem to matter for LingQ’s streak counter. In short, LingQ doesn’t really allow for variety in one’s language learning routine.
My suggestion is that the streak counter be based on a more rounded approach to language learning that allows for a day off from creating LingQs to focus on listening, speaking, and writing. Or on rereading some old texts and perhaps racking up a good score in “words read” or “LingQs learned”. Right now the Activity tracker has seven parameters (Known Words, LingQs, LingQs Learned, Hours of Listening, Words of Reading, Words of Writing, and Hours of Speaking). I think it would be great to emphasize all of these by making the daily streak based on meeting any of the objectives or (in my opinion even better), on meeting any two of the objectives. So you need to create 13 new LingQs and read a certain number of words. Or you could listen a certain number of hours and write a certain number of words. Any of these scenarios could help you maintain your streak.
(Of course, your “level” would still be based on the number of words known.)
I hope people like the suggestion or have helpful explanations for why they don’t like the suggestion or don’t think it is feasible.
Thank you for reading my novel of a post!