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.

Development tools

  • Everything made by JetBrains

    I simply love IntelliJ, WebStorm, PhpStorm and PyCharm. The most important reason are the plugins maintained by JetBrains which cover most of the popular frameworks and are usually reasonably up-to-date.

  • Typst

    I completely replaced LaTeX with Typst, a typesetting tool written in Rust. It has very good compile times, great error messages and a free cloud app.

  • Terminal (App by Microsoft)

    Since I am on Windows I need some good terminal to go with my Debian WSL. The most important features are customisability, UTF-8 support and it has to look amazing. I use zsh with Powerlevel10k.

Workstation

  • Windows 10, AMD Ryzen 7 3700X, 32 GB DDR4 RAM, 1TB 970 EVO M.2, GTX 1060 (custom build)

    Before this one I was using a HP Z420 workstation also with 32 GB RAM, but I ran into limitations with the quad-core CPU and repairability. All parts are proprietary and cannot be exchanged for a different manufacturer. I know it is an old graphics card, but I did not see and urgent need to upgrade it.

  • 2 × Samsung 31.5 inch 4K Monitors (LU32J590UQUXZG)

    I have one monitor in landscape and the other in portrait orientation. Portrait is great for reading documents, while the landscape is for coding and occasional gaming.

  • Bowers & Wilkins speakers

    Wooden speakers with a hi-frequency and a low-frequency speaker. Basically, some old unused speakers from my parents, but they sound incredible. They are paired with an Onkyo A-911 - the input selection jumps channels if not nudged into the perfectly correct position.

  • GMMK Pro

    I am a big fan of mechanical keyboards. I have tried different switches and for now I stick with clicky lubed switches (Glorious Panda Switches). The build quality is good, the software could be better.

  • ninjutso Origin One X

    Mouse prices are totally through the roof! And I do not get why. So, I bought a ninjutso for 30€ and its great. Some might prefer a heavier mouse.