Computer Hardware
My home office is packed around a standing desk with the Mac I spend most of my time on, and a Windows machine for games and taxes. These share a monitor, and gleeful cable management limits the spaghetti effect.
My desktop machine is a Mac Studio M1 Ultra with an LG 34BK95U ultra-wide monitor. My hands are busy between an Apple Magic Keyboard with its sweet Touch ID key, and a Logitech MX Master 3 that’s worn with age but still comfortable to use. The keyboard and mouse sit on a Cordura Pulsar Paraspeed XXL gaming mat that’s a more practical work and gaming surface than the leather desk pad it replaced. (A Sharpie permanent laundry marker toned down the white print.) My webcam is a Canon M200 with a $5 HDMI-to-USB dongle, perched atop Elgato Multi Mount + Flex Arm, with an ancient Blue Yeti on a Blue Compass boom.
I use AirPods Pro 2 for calls and browsing, and pull out the Sony WH-1000XM4 headphones for music and deeper work with noise cancelling.
My office is fairly dark, so an Elgato Key Light, a Godox SZ150R, and a Yongnuo YN360 III brighten things up. I have a Falcon Eyes RX-18T flexible LED panel kit I trot out for some videos and photography. As I write this, I’m realizing I should be making more photos or videos so it doesn’t look like a streamer let me borrow their desk.
To avoid accumulating paper clutter, I scan documents and receipts with the trusty Fujitsu ScanSnap S1300i I’ve had since 2013.
I sometimes print shipping labels on an HP LaserJet P1006 I’ve had since the dawn of time. It clings to life with such tenacity I can’t bear to part with it.
Every now and then I leave my desk and work on an M1 MacBook Air. I’ll draw and scrawl notes, most often for 3D printing, on a reMarkable 2 tablet and read news and feeds on a 4th-gen iPad Air. I read most books on a 10th-gen Kindle Paperwhite.
I take photos of my dog and pretend to do other things with an iPhone 14 Pro.
Tucked into a shelf next to my desk, sharing the same monitor, is my COVID gaming PC, Thunder Nugget. It’s a Ryzen 5 hodgepodge I built and upgraded to an ASUS AP201 case to fit an RTX 4080 Founders Edition GPU. Its keyboard is a Keychron K1, and after a series of mice the latest is a Lamzu Thorn. I’ve been pretty happy with a wired HyperX Cloud Alpha headset.
I went overboard with a pair of Gladiator NXT EVO (omni throttle + “Space Combat”) sticks that make space and flight sims more fun. Creating a control layout for them in Star Citizen was one of my great technical achievements.
Underneath that is a 2-bay Synology DS214 we use mostly for photos and cold storage.
A Prusa MINI+ 3D printer lives in the garage, now managed wirelessly with a Raspberry Pi 4 running OctoPrint.
Camera + AV
I occasionally record and play with video using a Panasonic GH5 and a Deity V-Mic D3 Pro. I’ll either use a handle grip rig, sometimes with an Andycine A6 Plus monitor, or a DJI Ronin-SC gimbal that takes me a while to set up and remember how to use.
I have a Tascam DR-05X for recording conversations or dog sounds with surprisingly great quality.
Narrowly fitting into the “AV” category is the M-Audio Hammer 88 that sits in front of a makeshift window nook. It has a little laptop stand so I can plug in and play with GarageBand.
Not-Computer Hardware
The most important equipment in my home is a Stone Grey Moccamaster KBG drip brewer and a KM5 Burr Grinder. When I have the patience for it, I grind espresso with a 1Zpresso JX-Pro S manual grinder and pull shots from a La Pavoni Europiccola. I can pour a decent latté with Rorschach art only. In the summer, cold brew happens with a handmade Japanese Oji WD-150, and a Royal Brew nitro kit. I’ve been getting 5lb. bags of Middle Fork’s Back Pedal Brew since 2018 because it’s a forgiving and flexible roast that I can use for all three brew types.
If we’ve been on a call, you’ve probably seen the geometric acoustic tiles behind me, which are a “Shaded Mountain” Felt Right kit.
I work on an 60" UPLIFT v2 standing desk and an Aeron chair I bought in 2009.
My current wallet is an Outlier Alienskin Billfold, which is a weird and durable break from the super-thin Allett ones I’ve carried for many years.
I drive a manual 2010 Volkswagen Jetta I’ve upgraded with more modern (near-OEM) lighting and a factory CarPlay head unit.
Software
This page seems long enough just for hardware, so I’ll do us both a favor and link to my 2023 list of default apps.