/uses

Last updated: Nov 8, 2021

I enjoy other people’s /uses pages. However, having one serves another purpose. If life topples anything over, I can come back here and see all the things I need to buy/install/set up, etc.

This is a living document.

Work Specific Apps

  • Visual Studio Code – currently running the Dracula theme and Fira Code with ligatures on
  • iTerm2 – my preferred terminal. I tried Hyper..thought it was okay, went back to iTerm2 (edit: currently trying out Hyper again!)
  • Transmit – the best SFTP/FTP tool for Mac
  • TogglDesktop – because tracking your time is a useful metric to have
  • Zoom – because meetings
  • Slack – because work comms
  • Screenflow – makes recording and editing tutorials so much easier
  • Quickbooks – I mostly prefer the desktop app to the web version
  • NordVPN – sometimes a VPN is necessary
  • Local – my preferred method way of spinning up local WordPress installations
  • 1Password – password manager
  • Kap – for super quick video recordings or gifs
  • Fontplop – when the provided webfonts are crap and I need to convert some myself
  • Firefox Developer Edition – it has some really helpful features like screenshots, etc
  • Font Awesome Subsetter – projects rarely need everything from font awesome, so I subset that ish.
  • Creative Cloud – I have all the apps. I use a lot of them.
  • Sip – colour picker and manager
  • Notion – I recently (fall 2021) transitioned to using Notion to manage a lot of my work life. So far, this is the best thing ever.

The Desktop Apps that Matter

  • Numi – best calculator for macOS
  • Alfred – a Mac without Alfred is a Mac without a soul
  • FormatMatch – so I don’t copy formatting from one app to another
  • BetterTouchTool – window management, customized gestures for my trackpad. I’m more productive because of it.
  • Rocket.app – easy access to emojis from anywhere
  • Calibre – for getting my library books onto my kindle
  • All these QuickLook plugins – what is life if you can’t quicklook your code and videos?
  • Itsycal – A much better menu bar calendar
  • Telegram – aside from iMessage, the best messaging app there is.
  • Transmission – for them torrents. It has all the features I need and no bloat
  • Ulysses – where I write all my non-code-related everything
  • VLC – because it can play anything
  • Airflow – for casting to Chromecast from my Mac

Libraries, helpers, and CLIs

Backup Strategy

  • I back up my entire computer locally to a Time Machine (Seagate or LaCie Rugged hard drive)
  • I back up my entire computer to BackBlaze
  • I use Google Drive for work things that aren’t code.

Desk Setup / Hardware

  • MacBook Pro (16-inch, 2021) M1 Max, 32 GB RAM
    • Previously: Macbook Pro 15-inch, 2016 edition. 2.9 GHz Quad-Core Intel Core i7, 16 GB RAM
  • My main monitor is a 27″ 4k LG 27UL550-W. I run this at 1692. It’s excellent.
  • On the right side of my monitor, I’ve got my MacBook Pro on a Twelve South stand. I keep it open with apps I need to monitor but not actively pay attention to.
  • I sit on a JÄRVFJÄLLET from IKEA. It’s not the best thing ever, but it does the job.
  • My desk is an old 59″ LINNMON with basic IKEA legs. It’s old, I’d like to upgrade it when I have the time.
  • I have an Apple keyboard, extended edition with touch ID, in Silver.
  • I also have the Apple trackpad in Silver.
  • My webcam is the Logitech c920 with the privacy cap thing.
  • My mic is the Blackout edition of the Blue Yeti connected to a basic arm I bought on amazon, coupled with a simple pop filter.
  • I have two Neewer lights attached to the wall behind my monitor on two mounts my spouse designed and 3D printed for me.
  • I have a fantastic USB hub from Twelve South that connects everything to my laptop.
  • I have a Rugged LaCie (4TB) hard drive for local backups
  • My brother gifted me the Ember coffee mug and it sits on my desk permanently, keeping me coffee fuelled. It sounds ridiculous, I know, but it was life-changing.
  • I have a Takeya 40oz water bottle in blue, it’s the best work water bottle I’ve ever had.
  • I use AirPods Pro for audio, and switch to Sony Extra Bass headphones if needed – I’ve been using Sony Extra Bass headphones for almost a decade, they don’t die of mangled wire disease and sound fantastic.