JOSJust One System

Development updates

Newest first. Approximate dates are kept as recorded; their order within a month or year is not exact.

1. October 2, 2026

   Started revising JOS’s responses

   I started a personality overhaul to make JOS more consistent and direct, with less generic assistant language. I wanted its responses to feel more familiar and better matched to the conversation.

2. October 2026

   Explored a logo and startup animation

   I explored visual directions for JOS, including terminal-inspired type and simple symbols. I also considered a startup animation, but neither a final logo nor a finished animation was established.

3. October 2026

   Worked on personality controls

   I started extending personality settings into user-facing configuration. Controls for humor, directness, energy, and formality were still being developed.

4. October 2026

   Planned an offline experience

   I started designing a dedicated offline page for when Homebase is unreachable. It could show limited, non-sensitive connection information instead of a generic error, but it was not deployed.

5. October 2026

   Worked on the dashboard and navigation

   I started a broader interface redesign, including dashboard spacing, cards, typography, and grouping. I also worked on collapsible sidebar categories to make the growing navigation easier to use. This redesign was still in progress.

6. October 2026

   Improved task and scholarship pages

   I improved the organization of Codex tasks so their states were easier to scan. I also updated how individual scholarship opportunities showed details such as deadlines, eligibility, and status.

7. October 2026

   Added Codex Bridge and checked remote access

   I added Codex Bridge to connect JOS to its development environment. I was still investigating why it could appear offline away from home even when Tailscale was active.

8. September 28, 2026

   Started organizing system settings

   I worked on putting system configuration under System → Settings, starting with appearance and Codex options. More settings were planned, but the full settings system was still in development.

9. September 28, 2026

   Started planning portfolio updates from JOS

   I built my portfolio and began designing a workflow for JOS to draft updates that could be applied to its repository. Public updates would still require my approval; this did not establish a working publishing connection.

10. September 25, 2026

    Tried a wake-up trigger

    I began exploring Apple Watch health data and Sleep Focus changes as a trigger for a JOS morning briefing. I also questioned whether this would be more useful than simply scheduling the briefing. It remained an experiment.

11. September 25, 2026

    Revisited the morning briefing plan

    I revisited the briefing idea with more context about my day, upcoming exams, projects, and relevant news. This was planning work, not a completed briefing system.

12. September 22, 2026

    Added authentication for public access

    I made owner authentication the default and protected the API routes and documentation. I also tightened session handling, added login and request limits, and separated Codex worker authentication.

13. September 20, 2026

    Used one JOS instance across access methods

    I clarified that my LAN address, Tailscale address, and usejos.com all pointed to the same application. I did not need separate versions for each connection method.

14. September 18, 2026

    Added a Scholarship section

    I added a Scholarship section and planned how it could help discover and track opportunities. Ranking, eligibility checks, and automatic discovery were broader design goals, not all finished features.

15. September 18, 2026 – September 20, 2026

    Moved JOS to usejos.com

    I worked on making JOS accessible at usejos.com through Cloudflare Tunnel. The application continued running on Homebase.

16. September 18, 2026

    Updated the Courses dashboard

    I expanded the Courses page toward a dashboard with clearer course information and upcoming work. I focused on making assignments, deadlines, and course status easier to see.

17. September 17, 2026

    Explored model selection

    I started exploring how JOS could use configurable AI models. Support for different providers, local models, or models for specific tasks was still experimental.

18. September 17, 2026

    Investigated Canvas access

    I looked into connecting Canvas for assignments, deadlines, and course information. My institution restricted student-created API tokens, so the direct integration was blocked.

19. September 16, 2026

    Defined approval for code changes

    I defined a workflow where JOS can suggest adding a capability but must ask me before changing its code. I wanted to keep control of which changes get made.

20. September 9, 2026

    Fixed Calendar authorization

    Google Calendar authorization needed repair on the headless Homebase server. I used SSH port forwarding for the browser callback, renewed access, and restarted the backend to restore it.

21. September 2026

    Added an approval-based Codex workflow

    I connected the development workflow to Codex and added Codex Drafts to track proposed tasks. Code changes require my approval, followed by implementation, testing, and review.

22. September 2026

    Connected Google Calendar

    I connected JOS to Google Calendar so it could use my actual schedule. This gave it access to events and deadlines instead of relying only on information I typed into chat.

23. September 2026

    Planned a more useful daily briefing

    I worked on a briefing concept that would include my schedule, free time, study priorities, and project suggestions. It was still a plan rather than a finished daily workflow.

24. September 2026

    Found a gap in course knowledge

    Saving a syllabus did not automatically let JOS answer questions about grading, attendance, or course policies. I still needed to improve how it reads and retrieves the relevant parts of those documents.

25. September 2026

    Moved configuration out of Codex Drafts

    I moved approval and destination-conversation settings out of the normal Codex Draft interface. This let that page focus on development tasks.

26. Early September 2026

    Improved assignment review

    I improved the workflow for reviewing, approving, and rejecting extracted assignments. I kept the course name visible, added Reject All, and moved adding assignments to the calendar to the final step.

27. September 2026

    Defined approval for portfolio updates

    I set the rule that JOS could help draft and organize portfolio updates, but I would approve public changes. This described the publishing policy rather than a tested integration.

28. August 31, 2026

    Saved syllabus files and course records

    I added persistent syllabus storage on Homebase and linked uploads to courses in PostgreSQL. I confirmed that a CHM 111 syllabus was stored and tracked as uploaded.

29. August 24, 2026

    Added school to the project plan

    After starting classes, I decided JOS should keep track of course information instead of making me explain it repeatedly. I focused on courses, syllabi, assignments, and deadlines.

30. August 5, 2026

    Updated the name across the project

    I started replacing Jarvis references across the code, interface, prompts, and configuration. I also registered usejos.com and moved toward keeping the assistant’s identity in one configuration.

31. August 4, 2026

    Renamed Jarvis to JOS

    I changed the name from Jarvis to JOS, short for Just One System. I wanted a name that belonged to this project rather than being tied to Marvel.

32. August 3, 2026

    Built the conversation service

    The backend, model connection, identity layer, and web interface were coming together. I built and tested a service to create conversations and save and retrieve messages before connecting it to the main chat API.

33. Late August 2026

    Built a syllabus upload workflow

    I built a workflow for uploading syllabi and planned the extraction steps around reviewing the results before saving them. I wanted to approve course and assignment information rather than trust AI extraction automatically.

34. August 2026

    Expanded what I wanted JOS to help with

    I started planning how JOS could connect school, business, projects, coding, files, and other tools. This was the direction for the project, not a set of finished integrations.

35. August 2026

    Kept conversations after a refresh

    I connected saved conversations to the interface and checked that history stayed available after refreshing. I added conversation switching, New Chat, and navigation for desktop and mobile.

36. August 2026

    Worked on mobile access

    I continued working on the desktop and mobile interfaces so I could use JOS from more than one device. Voice access was still a future goal.

37. August 2026

    Separated identity from the model

    I added a dedicated identity and personality layer for JOS. This keeps its name, tone, and communication rules separate from the AI model underneath it.

38. Early August 2026

    Set up the backend and database

    I built the backend with Python and FastAPI and added PostgreSQL for persistent data. I introduced Alembic migrations so database changes could be tracked as the project grew.

39. July 30, 2026

    Got the first conversation working

    I got the web interface to send a message to the AI model and display its response. I also designed a PostgreSQL-backed memory system for conversation context, tasks, and longer-term information; that design was separate from getting chat working.

40. July 29, 2026

    Started building Jarvis

    I started developing the assistant on Homebase under the name Jarvis. My first goal was to get an AI-powered web chat working.

41. July 28, 2026

    Planned a personal assistant

    I wanted a self-hosted assistant that could remember context and help with my calendar, tasks, projects, and detailing business. I planned to use it from my computer and phone, with voice as a later goal.

42. Late July 2026

    Planned the main parts of JOS

    I separated the design into identity, conversation, memory, planning, tools, and interface components. I wanted the AI model to be one part of the application rather than the whole application.

Logical application layers, not a network request sequence. The diagram distinguishes working capabilities from ongoing and future work.

1. 01

   User interfaces

   Web and mobile-compatible surfaces for chat, dashboard, Courses, Scholarships, Codex, and System Settings. Voice is planned.

   • Web
   • Mobile-compatible UI
   • Chat
   • Dashboard
   • Courses
   • Scholarships
   • Codex
   • System Settings
2. 02

   Identity / personality

   Defines name, tone, humor, communication style, and behavioral rules. The personality overhaul and additional controls are in development.

   • Name & tone
   • Behavioral rules
   • Personality settings · in development
3. 03

   Brain / AI layer

   Language understanding, reasoning, responses, planning, and tool selection. The model sits behind the application boundary.

   • AI model APIs
   • Reasoning
   • Planning
   • Tool selection
4. 04

   Memory / context

   Persistent conversations and messages, with a layered memory design. Richer memory and document retrieval are still in development.

   • Conversations & messages
   • Working memory
   • Episodic information
   • Task memory
   • Long-term knowledge
5. 05

   PostgreSQL

   Persistent structured application data, with Alembic migrations and separate persistent storage for uploaded files.

   • PostgreSQL
   • Alembic
   • Persistent file storage
6. 06

   Tools + integrations

   Capabilities connected through the application services. Availability and maturity differ by integration.

   • Google Calendar
   • Course data
   • Syllabus ingestion
   • Scholarship section
   • Codex & Bridge
   • Portfolio workflow · in development
   • Canvas · blocked
   • Future APIs · planned

A missing capability becomes a proposal, not silent self-modification. The owner’s approval gates implementation, and testing and review gate the resulting capability.

1. STEP 01User asks for something
2. STEP 02JOS detects missing capability
3. STEP 03JOS proposes improvement
4. REQUIRED APPROVALOwner approval
5. STEP 05Codex Draft
6. STEP 06Codex implementation
7. STEP 07Test / Review
8. STEP 08New JOS capability