Hardware, software, and other recommended things.

The following hardware and software have proven the most capable, reliable, and comfortable for me over the years.

Workstation

  • 16” MacBook Pro, M4 Max, 48GB RAM (2024)

    After setting up a large project on my old 2019 MacBook Pro and trying to build it, I realized I needed a more powerful machine. Build times were extremely slow even using NX with 5 parallel processes. The old T2 mac would spin up the fan even for light tasks. Now I cannot remember the last time I heard the whir of the fan, and not to mention feeling slowness in builds.

  • LG 21:9 Ultrawide Curved IPS LED (3440x1440 @ 60hz)

    An older monitor by todays standards but I love the 21:9 aspect and how it has improved my workflow. I also utilize the laptop screen as a secondary monitor, again optimizing the workflow by having multiple windows open at once. Just realized this monitor is about 9 years old!

  • Logitech Prodigy Keyboard

    For me the durability of this keyboard are hard to beat. I've used quite a few keyboards over the years and this one has been the most reliable and comfortable to use. Has a built in wrist rest and puts up with the pounding I give it. Mac keyboards are buetiful but keys have always worn out within 3 or 4 years.

  • Logitech G403 Mouse

    A good mouse is very important for the work I do between UI and development work. I need a well crafted and precise mouse that is smooth and reliable. Mice usually are more consumable in nature and so I tried other input types, trackball, touchpad and even the magic mouse. The G403 has been the most reliable and comfortable to use.

  • Herman Miller Aeron Chair

    I've used these chairs for years and have never had a problem with them. They are comfortable, durable, and keep me cool or warm depending on the season. I would like to try the new Herman Miller options to address my new sitting style as I think the coder lean might be better with a chair with some finer adjustments and slightly different angles.

Development tools

  • Cursor

    With the agentic development shift Cursor has be a big improvement for speed and efficiency. I will still toggle using VS Code for some tasks but Cursor is my go to for most of my development work now.

  • VS Code

    The agentic development with VS Code feels more controlled and is still a great tool for development. An odd result from the transition to agentic workflows causes me to think about token usage and I mainly use VS Code to burn tokens after I've reached caps in Cursor.

  • Sublime Text 4

    I now have relegated sublime to a note taker quick editor for mostly text manipulation, formatting, and CSV tasks, like a quick loading scratchpad.

Design

  • Figma

    AI tools are proving themselves beneficial in Figma as they roll out more. I still haven't been super happy with the disconnect from design to development when it comes to the workflow and feature support. Great tool for UI design and prototyping. I've used it for years but am starting to wonder how more AI integrated tooling like Pencil will change things.

Productivity

  • Vivaldi

    I've been using Vivaldi for a few years now and I love the customization and UI features such as workspaces and tab stacking.