The tools that have stuck around after 25 years of building software.

After a quarter-century of writing code, I've learned that the best tools are the ones that fade into the background and let you focus on the actual work. These are the pieces of hardware and software that have earned their place in my daily workflow through years of trial, error, and countless late-night debugging sessions.

Workstation

  • MacBook Pro 14-inch 2023 Apple M2 Pro 16 GB

    Strikes the right balance between portability and performance. The 14-inch size travels well, and the M2 Pro chip delivers impressive battery life that consistently outlasts my longest work sessions.

  • Mac mini 2023 Apple M2 Pro 16 GB

    My stationary powerhouse for deep work sessions. No laptop hinge to tempt me into ’just checking one thing’ mode. Compact footprint but doesn’t compromise on processing power.

  • Dell UltraHD P2715Q

    Solid 4K panel that delivers sharp text rendering and ample screen real estate. Nothing fancy, but dependable and reasonably priced for the quality you get.

  • Keychron K11 Max (Alice Layout)

    Ergonomic Alice layout that reduced my wrist strain significantly after the initial adjustment period. The mechanical switches provide satisfying tactile feedback without being too loud for video calls.

  • Logitech MX Master 3

    Exceptional pointer precision and that legendary MagSpeed scroll wheel that adapts to your scrolling speed. The gesture controls streamline navigation across applications and workspaces.

  • Steelcase Series 2

    Proper lumbar support that eliminated the back pain I’d accepted as inevitable from long coding sessions. Well-built with adjustments that actually stay put once you find your sweet spot.

Development tools

  • Zed

    Blazingly fast editor built in Rust with seamless collaboration features. Combines the speed I loved in Sublime Text with the extensibility of VS Code, minus the electron bloat.

  • Ghostty

    Minimal terminal emulator that prioritizes performance over features. Refreshingly straightforward - no configuration rabbit holes, just a fast, reliable terminal that works.

  • Claude Code

    AI coding assistant that excels at understanding context and architectural patterns. Particularly useful for exploring new codebases or when I need a second perspective on complex problems.

Productivity

  • Raycast

    Modern launcher that replaced Alfred in my workflow. Rich extension ecosystem lets me control everything from music playback to calendar management without leaving the keyboard.

  • Arc

    Rethinks browser UI with a sidebar approach that eliminates tab chaos. Spaces feature keeps personal and work contexts cleanly separated without the overhead of multiple browser instances.

  • Aerospace

    Window tiling that respects macOS conventions while adding powerful keyboard-driven organization. Much gentler learning curve than traditional Linux tiling managers.

  • Perplexity

    Research tool that provides focused answers with proper source attribution. Helps me avoid the usual pattern of opening twenty tabs and losing track of what I was originally looking for.