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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 M4

    This thing is a beast. I can throw anything at it - data analysis, local LLMs, 4K video editing, batch photo processing - and it just handles it without breaking a sweat. The M4 chip is seriously impressive.

  • Apple Pro Display XDR

    6K of glorious screen real estate. I can have multiple code windows, terminals, and documentation all visible at once. The color accuracy is spot-on for photo editing too - those mini-LEDs and 1600 nits of brightness really make a difference.

  • Surface Laptop 6

    Need to test something on Windows or work with Microsoft-specific tools? This is my go-to. The keyboard is fantastic and the build quality is solid.

  • Herman Miller Aeron Chair

    Worth every penny. I had years of back pain from crappy chairs and poor posture - this thing fixed it all. Now I can work for hours without any discomfort.

  • Uplift Standing Desk

    Game changer for those long work days. I got the commercial 4-leg version - this thing is rock solid, no wobble at all. Being able to switch between sitting and standing keeps me way more productive.

Development tools

  • Visual Studio Code

    My daily driver for most coding. It handles every language I throw at it, integrates beautifully with Azure, and the extension ecosystem is incredible. Built-in terminal? Chef's kiss.

  • PyCharm

    For serious Python work, this is it. The code completion is scary good and the debugger has saved me countless hours.

  • Xcode

    Love it or hate it, you need it for iOS dev. SwiftUI previews are actually pretty great though - being able to see changes in real-time is huge.

  • Miniconda

    Conda without all the stuff I don't need. Perfect for juggling Python versions and keeping dependencies from fighting each other.

  • Eraser.io

    Need a technical diagram? Just describe it and boom - the AI generates it. Saves me hours of dragging boxes around.

  • GitHub

    Where all my code lives. GitHub Actions has completely changed how I deploy stuff - push to main and let the robots do the rest.

Photography

  • Canon R5 Mark II

    My workhorse camera. This is what I grab for any serious work or professional shoots. Canon's RF glass is just insane - nothing else comes close in the mirrorless world.

  • Canon RF 28-105mm

    Lives on my R5 most of the time. Wide enough for landscapes, long enough for portraits - it's the do-everything lens.

  • Sony A7CR

    My travel camera. Tiny body, huge sensor. The A7C line's G lenses are so light I can pack the whole kit without thinking twice.

  • Sony 40mm G

    This basically lives on my A7CR. So small, so sharp. Perfect walk-around lens.

  • Adobe Creative Cloud

    Yeah, I'm all in on the Adobe ecosystem. Lightroom for organizing and basic edits, Photoshop when I need to get serious. It all just works together.

Productivity

  • Microsoft 365

    Look, it just works. Email, calendar, OneNote for all my meeting notes - everything talks to everything else. No friction.

  • Large Language Models

    I'm that guy who uses different LLMs for different things. Copilot for coding, Claude when I need to think through something complex, ChatGPT for quick questions. They each have their strengths.

  • Todoist

    Keeps my brain organized. I can just type “email Bob tomorrow at 2pm” and it figures it out. Works everywhere, syncs instantly.

  • Quicken Classic

    Old school? Maybe. But the classic version does exactly what I need without trying to sell me a subscription every five minutes.

  • Parallels

    Windows on Mac done right. I can jump between macOS and Windows apps like they're all running natively. Magic.

Smart Home

  • UniFi

    Running enterprise networking at home because why not? I've got 10Gbps flowing through this setup. The whole UniFi ecosystem gives me crazy control over everything, and their Protect cameras tie right in for security. It's overkill and I love it.

  • OPNsense

    My extra layer of paranoia. This firewall can actually keep up with my network speeds while filtering everything. Total control over what goes in and out.

  • Home Assistant

    This is what runs my entire smart home. The crazy thing is it integrates with literally everything - and I mean everything. I can surface it all up into Apple Home so my family doesn't have to deal with the complexity. Plus it's all local, so no cloud dependency.

  • Apple Home

    The spouse-approval interface. Home Assistant does the heavy lifting, but Apple Home is what my family actually uses. Simple, clean, just works.

  • Lutron RadioRA3

    Rock solid lighting. Set it up once and forget it exists - it just works. No “smart” switch BS, this is the real deal.

  • Z-Wave

    Smart home protocol done right. Stays off the crowded 2.4GHz band that Zigbee and WiFi fight over. My locks and sensors just work, batteries last forever, and the mesh network is rock solid.

  • Sonos

    Music everywhere. Every streaming service just works, and I can group rooms however I want. No complicated AV receiver setups needed.

  • Tempest Weather Flow

    My own weather station because why trust the weather app when you can know exactly what's happening in your backyard? Feeds right into Home Assistant for automations based on actual conditions.