Using

Analogue

I’ve adopted the Bullet Journal method in December 2022. It helps me keep track of my tasks and habits, and is very satisfying to use. As much as I admire the gorgeous page templates I see around the internet, I never have time to do anything sophisticated myself, although every now and then I tweak the format.

I prefer paper books and like to read two or three concurrently. Very often I carry one around with me.

When out and about, I carry my stuff in a Timbuk2 Classic messenger bag. It’s tough, rain-proof, and spacious without being cumbersome, with loads of pockets and compartments for organisation.

Hardware

I try not to have too many devices around me, and while I keep previous ones as backup, I dislike the idea of using two of anything on a daily basis. I also don’t tend to be running the latest and greatest, I can go five or more years before I decide to upgrade my hardware.

My daily driver is a company-issued 14″ MacBook Pro from 2024 with the Apple M4 Pro processor, hooked to an ultra-wide curved 34″ Samsung CJ79 monitor. My keyboard is a mechanical Epomaker TH80 with linear Flamingo switches and an ANSI layout, and since I prefer trackpads over mice, I use a first-generation Magic Trackpad from Apple. Since I spend a significant part of the day pair programming or in calls, I wear a pair of AirPods Pro 2 wireless noise-canceling earbuds.

I always have on me an iPhone 15 Pro Max that I also use to test the mobile applications I develop, and an Apple Watch SE from 2020 mostly for fitness tracking.

At home, I make fairly constant use of a couple of HomePod Minis and an Ikea Symfonisk speaker frame. I practice piano on an entry-level Yamaha P-45 digital piano. Occasionally, I play games on the PlayStation 5 and Nintendo Switch consoles.

Finally, I keep an 11″ iPad Air mostly to read music scores, although I sometimes take it with me for video and reading while traveling.

Software

Since I use an Apple computer, it goes without saying that I’m on macOS. My main browser is Safari because it’s lightweight and doesn’t drain my laptop’s battery like other browsers do.

I regularly keep the Notes app open for general notes. It’s not perfect, and I could do with less fuss, but it’s good enough for my uses. I like to keep a backup of my (non-confidential) notes in plain text, eschewing proprietary formats or anything fancy that might get lost in a data migration. I also try to write a more contemplative journal entry each day with Day One.

TickTick has kept me organised for several years now and I’ve found the experience of using it mostly frictionless, although I’m starting to prefer the analogue bullet journal for most tasks. TickTick is still great for shopping lists, keeping track of friends’ birthdays¹, and anything that needs to have a reminder attached.

Most of the applications I use for work, I use out of necessity. I wouldn’t recommend a lot of them. When programming, I do enjoy using Visual Studio Code, Wez’s Terminal Emulator is my preferred terminal (with the Z shell and tmux), and I’m liking Tuple for screensharing and pair programming.