diff --git a/MODERNIZE.md b/MODERNIZE.md
index 343617d..78bdc15 100644
--- a/MODERNIZE.md
+++ b/MODERNIZE.md
@@ -9,23 +9,28 @@ Status notes:
 - Toolchain decision: stay on nightly (channel = "nightly"). The stable-Rust
   item is listed for awareness only.
 - The item 3.2 note about the double `foundry.json` load stays true.
+- Dependency decision (2026-08-04): `itertools`, `thiserror`, `anyhow`,
+  `pretty_env_logger`, `dotenvy` stay for certain. The rest of section 1
+  is under consideration.
 
-## 1. Delete unused dependencies
+## 1. Unused dependencies
 
-Remove these from `Cargo.toml`. None are referenced in `src/`:
+None of these are referenced in `src/`. Decision: `itertools`, `thiserror`,
+`anyhow`, `pretty_env_logger` and `dotenvy` stay for certain. The rest is
+under consideration.
 
 | dependency | note |
 |---|---|
-| `itertools` | no usage |
-| `seq-macro` | no usage |
-| `leptos-use` | no usage |
-| `dotenvy` | no usage. Never wired into `main` |
-| `pretty_env_logger` | no usage. Logging uses the `log` macros |
-| `thiserror` | no usage. No error types yet |
-| `http` | optional, enabled by no feature. Code uses `actix_web::http::StatusCode` |
-| `console_log` | no usage. Only `console_error_panic_hook` is called |
-| `anyhow` | only `#[macro_use] extern crate anyhow` and prelude aliases. The `Result` alias and `bail!`/`anyhow!` are used nowhere |
-| `js-sys` | no direct usage. Resolves transitively. Keep the `wasm-bindgen =0.2.126` pin: `hydrate()` uses `#[wasm_bindgen(...)]` |
+| `itertools` | **keep for now** (decision). No usage |
+| `seq-macro` | under consideration. No usage |
+| `leptos-use` | under consideration. No usage |
+| `dotenvy` | **keep for now** (decision). No usage. Never wired into `main` |
+| `pretty_env_logger` | **keep for now** (decision). No usage. Logging uses the `log` macros |
+| `thiserror` | **keep for now** (decision). No usage. No error types yet |
+| `http` | under consideration. Optional, enabled by no feature. Code uses `actix_web::http::StatusCode` |
+| `console_log` | under consideration. No usage. Only `console_error_panic_hook` is called |
+| `anyhow` | **keep for now** (decision). Only `#[macro_use] extern crate anyhow` and prelude aliases. The `Result` alias and `bail!`/`anyhow!` are used nowhere |
+| `js-sys` | under consideration. No direct usage. Resolves transitively. Keep the `wasm-bindgen =0.2.126` pin: `hydrate()` uses `#[wasm_bindgen(...)]` |
 
 ## 2. Replace crates with std or small local code
 
@@ -68,7 +73,9 @@ Remove these from `Cargo.toml`. None are referenced in `src/`:
    in `Cargo.toml`. Phase 1 (persistence) re-adds
    `serde = { version = "1", features = ["derive"] }`.
 
-Result: `[dependencies]` drops from 27 entries to about 13.
+Result: dropping the under-consideration items takes `[dependencies]` from
+27 entries to about 18. If the five kept deps are dropped later too, it goes
+to about 13.
 
 ## 3. Idiomatic cleanups (no dependency changes)
 
@@ -87,7 +94,8 @@ Result: `[dependencies]` drops from 27 entries to about 13.
      `#![allow(dead_code)]`. They hide real warnings.
    - Remove the single-letter `log` aliases
      (`warn as w, log as l, info as i, ...`). They are unused.
-   - Remove the `anyhow` re-exports and typealiases.
+   - Remove the `anyhow` re-exports and typealiases. Keeping the `anyhow`
+     dependency does not force keeping these dead re-exports.
    - Replace legacy `#[macro_use] extern crate log;` in `src/lib.rs` with
      `use log::{info, error};` at the two call sites.
 
diff --git a/ROADMAP.md b/ROADMAP.md
index 03e9cb5..700dcdb 100644
--- a/ROADMAP.md
+++ b/ROADMAP.md
@@ -60,7 +60,9 @@ Cheap, unblocks the rest. Can happen any time; do it first.
 - [ ] decide Cargo.lock policy — currently gitignored, builds are non-reproducible; commit it
 - [ ] dependency and idiom cleanup — see `MODERNIZE.md` (drop unused deps,
       `lazy_static` → `LazyLock`, local replacements for `num-format`/`num-traits`)
-- [ ] drop unused dependencies (`leptos-use`, `dotenvy`, `pretty_env_logger` if confirmed unused)
+- [ ] decide on the under-consideration unused deps from `MODERNIZE.md`
+      (`seq-macro`, `leptos-use`, `http`, `console_log`, `js-sys`); the rest
+      (`itertools`, `thiserror`, `anyhow`, `pretty_env_logger`, `dotenvy`) stay
 - [ ] replace `end2end/tests/example.spec.ts` with a smoke test (app boots, nav renders, no console errors)
 
 ## Phase 1 — Persistence: localStorage + JSON export/import (L, ~3-5 days)