Software I use, gadgets I love, and other things I recommend.

I love my tech, and having the right tools for the job is important. Spending a lot of time in from of your computer can be difficult. So why not treat yourself to the best? Here’s a list of all of my favorite apps and gadgets.

Workstation

  • Custom Desktop Build (2022)

    There is nothing better than a custom build. That is just my opinion but it is also correct. I went with AMD prodcuts this time and equipped this puppy with a Ryzen 9 5900X processor and Radeon RX 6800 graphics card. The thing hauls and scoffs at my multiple instances of VS Code.

  • ASUS - TUF Gaming 34" Ultrawide Monitor

    An ultrawide monitor will save your life. In college, I loved using three monitors but one ultrawide replaces the need for all of them. Highly recommend.

  • Dell S2721HS 27" Monitor

    Why get rid of every other monitor, right? Call it a bad habit but working from a single monitor seems so very wrong. This monitor was an experiment but has contiuously paid dividends. I have it rotated to portrait and use it to for discovery articles, file mangers, videos, music or whatever other support apps I need. It has been a bigger upgrade than I thought it ever could be.

  • Apple iPad Air 10.9" (2022) with Apple Pencil

    An iPad is a useful tool when it comes to sketching and whiteboarding. This setup with the Concepts app is extremely helpful for real-time brainstorming and collaboaration. A bit of a pricy tool for sketches but, hey, might as well enjoy the premium tech this industry provides.

  • Eureka Ergonomic 60" L-Shaped Electric Standing Desk

    I LOVE a good standing desk and this one more than delivers. Most standing desks have paid addons for basic features like cord management but not the Eureka. I've been really impressed with this desk and the extra L adds much more room than I would have thought.

  • Razer Iskur XL Gaming Chair

    I try to stand as much as possible but when I need to get off of my feet, nothing works better than a gaming chair.

Development tools

  • Cursor

    An AI-first code editor built on top of VS Code that's designed to speed up development with powerful in-editor assistance. If you're already familiar with VS Code, you'll feel right at home, but with one of the better AI tools out there.

  • React & React Native

    My go to for building user interface. Both use the same core principles, like components and state management, making it easy to share knowledge across platforms.

  • TypeScript

    Strong types do matter. you catch bugs early and write more reliable code. TypeScript makes it easier to scale codebases with confidence.

  • Tailwind CSS

    Tailwaid still makes life easy. I continue to love not writing boiler plate CSS.

  • ShadCN

    A component library built with Radix UI and Tailwind CSS, designed for React developers who want flexibility without starting from scratch.

  • Vercel

    Jeez Vercal makes deployment easy. Nothing like contiuous deployment with a commit to git.

  • Expo

    Build React Native apps faster and easier. It handles a lot of the setup and native configuration for you, so you can focus on writing JavaScript and shipping features.

Design

  • Figma

    Figma quickly took over as my primary design tool and I won't be looking back. Not only that, but it's whiteboarding, prototyping and community make it second to none.

  • Concepts

    I was never much of a doodler but Concepts has made it easy to become one. I really enjoy this app for my iPad and it has quickly become my go to for product sketches.

Productivity

  • Notion

    How can you not love templates? Notion is extremely good for many things but capturing and organizing test results is my favorite use.

  • FigJam

    Do whatever you want with this whiteboard by Figma. It's a lightweight, fun space where I can map out ideas.