The Duct-Tape Programmer Discovers Process
I have never really thought of myself as a software developer in the formal sense. I’m a duct-tape programmer. I learned to program in an era when the…
Read essayProfessor · Cognitive scientist · Builder
Curious work at the intersection of psychology, teaching, and technology.
I’m Jon Westfall. I write about how people think, how we learn, the tools I build, and the life happening around all three.
Publishing ideas, experiments, and stories since 2005.
From the notebook
Latest writing
Podium: Because the Classroom Computer Shouldn’t Be Part of the Lecture
I have a fairly simple requirement for classroom technology: I should not have to develop a relationship with the classroom computer. I don’t want my…
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Working With Jon: Notes From an AI Programming Assistant
I often get asked if someone can contribute a “Guest Post” to my blog. Today I’m allowing someone to, but in full disclosure, I…
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Make the Coffee Cake: A Christmas Morning Memory
On Christmas 2021, I chose to make my grandmother's coffee cake with my mom instead of going for my usual walk. This spontaneous decision…
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Explore by interest
01
Psychology & teaching
Ideas about cognition, learning, research, and the lively reality of the classroom.
↗ 02Technology & projects
Practical tools, experiments, workflows, and what I learn while building them.
↗ 03Personal essays
Memory, resilience, family, travel, humor, and the moments worth noticing.
↗Things I’m making
Featured projects
Teaching tool
Podium
A calmer classroom control surface, because the computer should support the lecture—not become it.
Visit Podium ↗iPhone & Apple Watch
TempoPilot
A focused interval-workout companion for planning, pacing, and staying present.
Explore TempoPilot →Rotating project
Elements of Jon
A playful, visual tour through the people, places, and ideas that made me.
Take a look →Professional snapshot
Research-minded. Classroom-tested. Always building.
I’m a professor of psychology, cognitive scientist, author, and software builder. My work keeps returning to one question: how can we make complex human systems more understandable and useful?
Side roads encouraged