diff --git a/server/src/ledgrab/static/css/activity-log.css b/server/src/ledgrab/static/css/activity-log.css
index 9ed094d..1adb498 100644
--- a/server/src/ledgrab/static/css/activity-log.css
+++ b/server/src/ledgrab/static/css/activity-log.css
@@ -24,8 +24,11 @@
     flex-direction: column;
     gap: var(--space-sm);
     padding: var(--space-md) var(--space-md);
-    background: var(--bg-secondary);
-    border: var(--lux-hairline) solid var(--border-color);
+    /* Match the elevated card surface used by entity cards (.dashboard-target),
+       not the near-black --bg-secondary, so the panel reads as one of the app's
+       cards rather than a separate flat sheet. */
+    background: var(--lux-bg-1, var(--card-bg));
+    border: var(--lux-hairline) solid var(--lux-line, var(--border-color));
     border-radius: var(--radius-md);
     margin-bottom: var(--space-md);
 }
@@ -137,6 +140,16 @@
 
 .al-export-btn .icon { width: 14px; height: 14px; }
 
+/* Caret signals this button opens a menu (rather than firing a direct action),
+   and rotates to point up while the menu is open. */
+.al-export-caret {
+    display: inline-flex;
+    margin-left: 1px;
+    transition: transform var(--duration-fast) var(--ease-out);
+}
+.al-export-caret .icon { width: 12px; height: 12px; }
+.al-export-wrap.open .al-export-caret { transform: rotate(180deg); }
+
 .al-export-menu {
     display: none;
     position: absolute;
@@ -151,8 +164,7 @@
     overflow: hidden;
 }
 
-.al-export-wrap:hover .al-export-menu,
-.al-export-wrap:focus-within .al-export-menu { display: block; }
+.al-export-wrap.open .al-export-menu { display: block; }
 
 .al-export-menu button {
     display: block;
@@ -166,7 +178,8 @@
     cursor: pointer;
 }
 
-.al-export-menu button:hover { background: var(--bg-secondary); }
+.al-export-menu button:hover,
+.al-export-menu button:focus-visible { background: var(--bg-secondary); outline: none; }
 
 /* Filter label */
 .al-filter-label {
@@ -311,8 +324,9 @@
 }
 
 .al-entry {
-    background: var(--card-bg);
-    border: var(--lux-hairline) solid var(--border-color);
+    /* Same elevated surface + hairline as entity cards (see .al-toolbar). */
+    background: var(--lux-bg-1, var(--card-bg));
+    border: var(--lux-hairline) solid var(--lux-line, var(--border-color));
     border-radius: var(--radius-sm);
     overflow: hidden;
     transition: border-color var(--duration-fast);
@@ -320,10 +334,11 @@
 
 .al-entry:hover { border-color: var(--text-muted); }
 
-/* New-entry flash */
+/* New-entry flash — settles on the card surface (animation-fill-mode: forwards
+   holds the 100% frame, so it must match the .al-entry background exactly). */
 @keyframes al-new-flash {
-    0%   { background: color-mix(in srgb, var(--primary-color) 18%, var(--card-bg)); }
-    100% { background: var(--card-bg); }
+    0%   { background: color-mix(in srgb, var(--primary-color) 18%, var(--lux-bg-1, var(--card-bg))); }
+    100% { background: var(--lux-bg-1, var(--card-bg)); }
 }
 
 .al-entry-new.al-entry-appear { animation: al-new-flash 1.8s var(--ease-out) forwards; }
@@ -382,7 +397,9 @@
 .al-cat-system  { background: rgba(120, 120, 120, 0.12); color: var(--text-secondary); border-color: rgba(120, 120, 120, 0.25); }
 
 [data-theme="light"] .al-cat-auth    { background: rgba(33, 150, 243, 0.08);  }
-[data-theme="light"] .al-cat-device  { background: rgba(156, 39, 176, 0.08);  }
+/* Darker purple text in light theme — the dark-theme #ab47bc fails AA contrast
+   on the pale tinted background at this small badge size. */
+[data-theme="light"] .al-cat-device  { background: rgba(156, 39, 176, 0.08); color: #8e24aa; }
 [data-theme="light"] .al-cat-entity  { background: rgba(76, 175, 80, 0.08);   }
 [data-theme="light"] .al-cat-capture { background: rgba(255, 152, 0, 0.08);   }
 [data-theme="light"] .al-cat-system  { background: rgba(120, 120, 120, 0.08); }
@@ -585,9 +602,11 @@
         gap: 4px var(--space-xs);
     }
 
+    /* Row 1: [sev] [message] [badge] [chevron]; Row 2: [time] under the message.
+       message stays in its own 1fr column so it never overlaps the badge. */
     .al-time     { grid-column: 2; grid-row: 2; font-size: 0.6875rem; }
     .al-cat-badge{ grid-column: 3; grid-row: 1; }
-    .al-msg      { grid-column: 2 / span 2; grid-row: 1; }
+    .al-msg      { grid-column: 2; grid-row: 1; }
 
     .al-toolbar-advanced .al-field-group { min-width: 100%; }
 }
diff --git a/server/src/ledgrab/static/js/features/activity-log.ts b/server/src/ledgrab/static/js/features/activity-log.ts
index 6a8d9ae..3f20482 100644
--- a/server/src/ledgrab/static/js/features/activity-log.ts
+++ b/server/src/ledgrab/static/js/features/activity-log.ts
@@ -259,7 +259,7 @@ function _renderFilterToolbar(): string {
     const catChips = CATEGORIES.map(cat => {
         const active = _filters.categories.includes(cat);
         return `<button class="al-chip al-cat-chip${active ? ' active' : ''} al-cat-${cat}"
-            type="button" onclick="activityLogToggleCat(${JSON.stringify(cat)})"
+            type="button" onclick="activityLogToggleCat('${cat}')"
             aria-pressed="${active}">${escapeHtml(_categoryLabel(cat))}</button>`;
     }).join('');
 
@@ -267,7 +267,7 @@ function _renderFilterToolbar(): string {
         const active = _filters.severities.includes(sev);
         const icon = _severityIcon(sev);
         return `<button class="al-chip al-sev-chip${active ? ' active' : ''} al-sev-chip-${sev}"
-            type="button" onclick="activityLogToggleSev(${JSON.stringify(sev)})"
+            type="button" onclick="activityLogToggleSev('${sev}')"
             aria-pressed="${active}">${icon} ${escapeHtml(t(`activity_log.severity.${sev}`))}</button>`;
     }).join('');
 
@@ -278,7 +278,7 @@ function _renderFilterToolbar(): string {
         { key: 'devices', label: t('activity_log.preset.devices') },
     ];
     const presetBtns = presets.map(p =>
-        `<button class="al-preset-btn" type="button" onclick="activityLogPreset(${JSON.stringify(p.key)})">${escapeHtml(p.label)}</button>`
+        `<button class="al-preset-btn" type="button" onclick="activityLogPreset('${p.key}')">${escapeHtml(p.label)}</button>`
     ).join('');
 
     const hasFilters = _filters.categories.length || _filters.severities.length ||
@@ -300,12 +300,12 @@ function _renderFilterToolbar(): string {
         aria-label="${escapeHtml(t('activity_log.filter.clear'))}">${ICON_X_CIRCLE}</button>` : ''}
     <div class="al-export-wrap">
       <button class="btn btn-secondary al-export-btn" type="button"
-          onclick="activityLogExport('csv')"
-          title="${escapeHtml(t('activity_log.export.csv'))}"
-          aria-label="${escapeHtml(t('activity_log.export.csv'))}">${ICON_DOWNLOAD} <span>${escapeHtml(t('activity_log.export'))}</span></button>
-      <div class="al-export-menu">
-        <button type="button" onclick="activityLogExport('csv')">${escapeHtml(t('activity_log.export.csv'))}</button>
-        <button type="button" onclick="activityLogExport('json')">${escapeHtml(t('activity_log.export.json'))}</button>
+          data-al-export-toggle aria-haspopup="menu" aria-expanded="false"
+          title="${escapeHtml(t('activity_log.export'))}"
+          aria-label="${escapeHtml(t('activity_log.export'))}">${ICON_DOWNLOAD} <span>${escapeHtml(t('activity_log.export'))}</span><span class="al-export-caret" aria-hidden="true">${ICON_CHEVRON_DOWN}</span></button>
+      <div class="al-export-menu" role="menu">
+        <button type="button" role="menuitem" onclick="activityLogExport('csv')">${escapeHtml(t('activity_log.export.csv'))}</button>
+        <button type="button" role="menuitem" onclick="activityLogExport('json')">${escapeHtml(t('activity_log.export.json'))}</button>
       </div>
     </div>
   </div>
@@ -320,7 +320,7 @@ function _renderFilterToolbar(): string {
       <label for="al-actor-input" class="al-field-label">${escapeHtml(t('activity_log.filter.actor'))}</label>
       <input type="text" id="al-actor-input" class="al-field-input"
              value="${_escapeAttr(_filters.actor)}"
-             placeholder="system, api-key-name…"
+             placeholder="${_escapeAttr(t('activity_log.filter.actor.placeholder'))}"
              oninput="activityLogOnActor(this.value)"
              aria-label="${escapeHtml(t('activity_log.filter.actor'))}">
     </div>
@@ -328,7 +328,7 @@ function _renderFilterToolbar(): string {
       <label for="al-entity-type-input" class="al-field-label">${escapeHtml(t('activity_log.filter.entity_type'))}</label>
       <input type="text" id="al-entity-type-input" class="al-field-input"
              value="${_escapeAttr(_filters.entity_type)}"
-             placeholder="output_target, led_device…"
+             placeholder="${_escapeAttr(t('activity_log.filter.entity_type.placeholder'))}"
              oninput="activityLogOnEntityType(this.value)"
              aria-label="${escapeHtml(t('activity_log.filter.entity_type'))}">
     </div>
@@ -395,6 +395,15 @@ function _renderList(): string {
 
 let _delegatedClickAttached = false;
 
+/** Collapse the export dropdown if open (idempotent). */
+function _closeExportMenu(): void {
+    const wrap = document.getElementById('tab-activity_log')
+        ?.querySelector<HTMLElement>('.al-export-wrap.open');
+    if (!wrap) return;
+    wrap.classList.remove('open');
+    wrap.querySelector('[data-al-export-toggle]')?.setAttribute('aria-expanded', 'false');
+}
+
 function _attachDelegatedClicks(): void {
     if (_delegatedClickAttached) return;
     const panel = document.getElementById('tab-activity_log');
@@ -404,6 +413,24 @@ function _attachDelegatedClicks(): void {
     panel.addEventListener('click', (e: MouseEvent) => {
         const target = e.target as HTMLElement;
 
+        // Export menu: toggle button opens/closes the CSV/JSON dropdown.
+        const exportToggle = target.closest<HTMLElement>('[data-al-export-toggle]');
+        if (exportToggle) {
+            const wrap = exportToggle.closest<HTMLElement>('.al-export-wrap');
+            const open = wrap?.classList.toggle('open') ?? false;
+            exportToggle.setAttribute('aria-expanded', open ? 'true' : 'false');
+            return;
+        }
+        // Export menu: a menu item's inline onclick triggers the download (it
+        // runs first, on the deeper element) — we just collapse the menu after.
+        if (target.closest('.al-export-menu')) {
+            _closeExportMenu();
+            return;
+        }
+        // Any other click in the panel dismisses an open export menu, then
+        // continues to row / entity handling below.
+        _closeExportMenu();
+
         // Entity navigation: click on data-entity-type button
         const entityBtn = target.closest<HTMLElement>('button.al-entity-link[data-entity-type]');
         if (entityBtn) {
@@ -424,6 +451,15 @@ function _attachDelegatedClicks(): void {
     });
 
     panel.addEventListener('keydown', (e: KeyboardEvent) => {
+        // Escape closes the export menu and restores focus to its trigger.
+        if (e.key === 'Escape') {
+            const toggle = panel.querySelector<HTMLElement>('.al-export-wrap.open [data-al-export-toggle]');
+            if (toggle) {
+                _closeExportMenu();
+                toggle.focus();
+            }
+            return;
+        }
         if (e.key !== 'Enter' && e.key !== ' ') return;
         const row = (e.target as HTMLElement).closest<HTMLElement>('.al-entry-row[data-toggle-id]');
         if (row) {
@@ -488,6 +524,12 @@ async function _fetchPage(beforeSeq: number | null = null, append = false): Prom
         _nextBeforeSeq = page.next_before_seq;
         _hasMore = page.has_more;
         _total = page.total;
+        // Reset the loading flag BEFORE rendering: _renderList() shows the
+        // spinner whenever (_loading && _entries.length === 0), so a zero-result
+        // page (e.g. an unmatched entity-type filter, or a fresh install) would
+        // otherwise render the spinner here and spin forever — the finally below
+        // clears _loading but does not re-render.
+        _loading = false;
         _updateListContainer();
     } catch (e: unknown) {
         if (e && typeof e === 'object' && 'isAuth' in e) return;
diff --git a/server/src/ledgrab/static/locales/en.json b/server/src/ledgrab/static/locales/en.json
index c334c2f..0b48d2a 100644
--- a/server/src/ledgrab/static/locales/en.json
+++ b/server/src/ledgrab/static/locales/en.json
@@ -30,9 +30,11 @@
     "activity_log.export.error":  "Export failed.",
     "activity_log.export.json":  "Export JSON",
     "activity_log.filter.actor":  "Actor",
+    "activity_log.filter.actor.placeholder":  "system, api-key-name…",
     "activity_log.filter.category":  "Category",
     "activity_log.filter.clear":  "Clear filters",
     "activity_log.filter.entity_type":  "Entity type",
+    "activity_log.filter.entity_type.placeholder":  "output_target, device…",
     "activity_log.filter.search":  "Search messages…",
     "activity_log.filter.severity":  "Severity",
     "activity_log.filter.since":  "From",
diff --git a/server/src/ledgrab/static/locales/ru.json b/server/src/ledgrab/static/locales/ru.json
index f26a4e0..6b8223e 100644
--- a/server/src/ledgrab/static/locales/ru.json
+++ b/server/src/ledgrab/static/locales/ru.json
@@ -30,9 +30,11 @@
     "activity_log.export.error":  "Ошибка экспорта.",
     "activity_log.export.json":  "Экспорт JSON",
     "activity_log.filter.actor":  "Субъект",
+    "activity_log.filter.actor.placeholder":  "system, имя API-ключа…",
     "activity_log.filter.category":  "Категория",
     "activity_log.filter.clear":  "Сбросить фильтры",
     "activity_log.filter.entity_type":  "Тип сущности",
+    "activity_log.filter.entity_type.placeholder":  "output_target, device…",
     "activity_log.filter.search":  "Поиск сообщений…",
     "activity_log.filter.severity":  "Уровень",
     "activity_log.filter.since":  "С",
diff --git a/server/src/ledgrab/static/locales/zh.json b/server/src/ledgrab/static/locales/zh.json
index df39718..82110d2 100644
--- a/server/src/ledgrab/static/locales/zh.json
+++ b/server/src/ledgrab/static/locales/zh.json
@@ -30,9 +30,11 @@
     "activity_log.export.error":  "导出失败。",
     "activity_log.export.json":  "导出 JSON",
     "activity_log.filter.actor":  "操作者",
+    "activity_log.filter.actor.placeholder":  "system、API 密钥名…",
     "activity_log.filter.category":  "类别",
     "activity_log.filter.clear":  "清除过滤",
     "activity_log.filter.entity_type":  "实体类型",
+    "activity_log.filter.entity_type.placeholder":  "output_target, device…",
     "activity_log.filter.search":  "搜索消息…",
     "activity_log.filter.severity":  "严重性",
     "activity_log.filter.since":  "从",