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

  • 15.4” MacBook Pro 16GB RAM (2017)

    I was using an older Intel-based 15.4” MacBook Pro until now and it has served me well so far, but it's time for an upgrade in order to keep up with the requirements on working with the latest technologies including AI and multiple Docker containers.

  • Samsung Odyssey G9 49" OLED

    To match the Retina display from my MacBook Pro and extend the working space I am pairing it with a Samsung Odyssey 49" monitor that can support a higher display resolution.

  • Cooler Master SK630 TKL Low Profile RGB Mechanical Keyboard

    They don’t make keyboards the way they used to. I buy these any time I see them go up for sale and keep them in storage in case I need parts or need to retire my main.

  • Apple Magic Mouse

    Something about all the gestures makes me feel like a wizard with special powers. I really like feeling like a wizard with special powers.

Development tools

  • Claude Code

    AI coding tools has changed the way we plan, design and write code increasing productivity but also increasing the cognitive load for the developer responsible for the output. I use it daily to move faster from idea to execution in a controled way.

  • Jetbrain's Goland

    I’ve made the switch to the Goland IDE and I don’t regret it for one bit. If gives me a complete development and debugging environment for any Go codebase. From time to time I do happen to switch to Cursor for some extra AI features.

  • 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.

Productivity

  • Focus

    Simple tool for blocking distracting websites when I need to just do the work and get some momentum going.

  • OrbStack

    Got tired of installing Docker on MacOS and watching my space run away from me with no easy way to get it back. With OrbStack you can create any number of environments and remove them when no longer needed.

Automations

  • Airtable

    Started using Airtable in Around25 to experiment with new leads and resources, but it proved so powerful and easy to use that we migrated all of our data there and added automations on top to keep track of staff invoices and timesheets as well as generate public facing profiles.

  • N8N

    N8N is my go to tool for building workflows and connecting different services together based on my needed use cases.