Software I use, gadgets I love, and other things I recommend.
I get asked a lot about the things I use to build software, stay productive, or buy to fool myself into thinking I’m being productive when I’m really just procrastinating. Here’s a big list of all of my favorite stuff.
Workstation
14” MacBook Pro, M3 Max, 128GB RAM (2023)
I am using an overkilled MacBook Pro and the performance is off the chart. I’ve never heard the fans turn on a single time, even under the incredibly heavy loads I put it through running local LLMs.
Apple Pro Display XDR (Nano-Texture Glass)
The only display on the market if you want something HiDPI and bigger than 27”. When you’re getting old, every pixel you can get counts.
Keychron S1 Pro (Brown Switch)
This is an out of production keyboard and I have been buying them extras to keep for future. I have a lot of mechanical board. This is closest to heart"
Logitech MX Master 3
Something about all the gestures makes me feel like a wizard with special powers. I really like feeling like a wizard with special powers.
Herman Miller Aeron Chair
If I’m going to slouch in the worst ergonomic position imaginable all day, I might as well do it in an expensive chair.
Development tools
Cursor
The latest and greatest productivity IDE. All the nay-sayers can cringe now but for someone like me that code for fun. This is a no brainer.
iTerm2
I’m honestly not even sure what features I get with this that aren’t just part of the macOS Terminal but it’s what I use.
TablePlus
Great software for working with databases. Has saved me from building about a thousand admin interfaces for my various projects over the years.
Design
Figma
We started using Figma as just a design tool but now it’s become our virtual whiteboard for the entire company. Never would have expected the collaboration features to be the real hook.
Productivity
Alfred
It’s not the newest kid on the block but it’s still the fastest. The Sublime Text of the application launcher world.
Notion
Using a daily notes system instead of trying to keep things organized by topics has been super powerful for me. And with Notion, it’s still easy for me to keep all of that stuff discoverable by topic even though all of my writing happens in the daily note.
TidyCal
Great tool for scheduling meetings while protecting my calendar and making sure I still have lots of time for deep work during the week.
Focus
Simple tool for blocking distracting websites when I need to just do the work and get some momentum going.