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

  • MSI M7 ACK, 128GB RAM

    Its time to get more portable I know. The laptop is a bit behind with the amount of load I put through it for testing, debugging, and rendering models. I would much prefer to have a Macbook to be able to cross plat build for mobile. Loving art I gotta have all the cores ready to paint the canvas in every medium.

  • LG 144hz LED 39 Ultra-Wide

    The best display for multi-tasking, video editing, designing, and all else you can split for your processes that's bigger than 27”. When you’re working to create masterpieces, every pixel you can get counts.

  • SteelSeries APEX Pro

    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.

  • Secret Lab - Titan

    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

  • WebStorm

    Its like a bag full of all the power-tools I need to build a house without all the weight. I get everything I need in one place.

  • IDEA Ultimate

    The C#, Java, C++ stuff I use to create cool stuff in all kinds of environments. Games, APIs, programmed graphic animations, and more neat stuff. I typically follow it with Shadron to render the graphic bits of my code.

  • 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

  • Rize

    If you find yourself not knowing when to take a break because everything is so interstellar. This is the definition of time management and productivity. The past few years this has helped train my instincts to time, and how just a short break can solve your current problem(s).

  • Jira

    Its been around for a while. The classic KANBAN board which I love for any project to organize the priority of tasks and bugs.

  • Stashpad

    Using a daily notes system instead of trying to keep things organized by topics has been super powerful for me. And with Stashpad, it’s still easy for me to keep all of that stuff discoverable by topic even though all of my writing happens in bucket.

  • SavvyCal

    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.