Sleep Debt

Follow @jerome on Micro.blog.

2024-10 Hardware and Software Setup

Here is an update to my current setup (some have respective links to Amazon that help defray some of the hosting costs and get me more funding to purchase cool, new gear) for October. If you all have any questions about the items below, please feel free to reach out and I can provide my feedback and also create some content to share.

The changes plus the detailed hardware list are below:

Added:

Removed:

macOS Applications

iOS/iPadOS Applications

  • Podcast App - Castro
  • Camera App - Halide
  • Video Recording App - Kino - From the same folks who released Halide, Kino gives you fine-tuned controls over video.
  • Object Scanning App - Scan Thing
  • Document Scanning App - Simple Scan

iOS/iPadOS/macOS Applications

Hardware

Audio Hardware

Gaming

Storage/Bags

Stationary

Kitchen/Cooking

MISC

  • Car Error Code Scan Tool - BlueDrive OBDII Scan Tool
  • Hosting Service - Hetzner
  • Universal Remote - Sofabaton Remote
  • Cell Service - US Mobile and T-Mobile - US Mobile is now just being used for my iPads. The family and I have moved back to T-Mobile as the seamless integration of international roaming and pricing was too good to give up.

2024 September Setup

Here is an update to my current setup (some have respective links to Amazon that help defray some of the hosting costs and get me more funding to purchase cool, new gear) for September. Hopefully, by the end of the month, my Fellow Aiden will have arrived!

The changes plus the detailed hardware list are below:

Added:

Removed:

macOS Applications

iOS/iPadOS Applications

iOS/iPadOS/macOS Applications

Hardware

Audio Hardware

Gaming

Storage/Bags

Stationary

Kitchen/Cooking

MISC

2024 August Setup

Here is an update to my current setup (some have respective links to Amazon that help defray some of the hosting costs and get me more funding to purchase cool, new gear) for August.

The changes plus the detailed hardware list are below:

Added:

Removed:

macOS Applications

iOS/iPadOS Applications

  • Podcast App - Castro
  • Camera App - Halide
  • Video Recording App - Kino - From the same folks who released Halide, Kino gives you fine-tuned controls over video.
  • Object Scanning App - Scan Thing
  • Document Scanning App - Simple Scan

iOS/iPadOS/macOS Applications

Hardware

Audio Hardware

Gaming

Storage/Bags

Stationary

Kitchen/Cooking

MISC

  • Car Error Code Scan Tool - BlueDrive OBDII Scan Tool
  • Hosting Service - Hetzner
  • Universal Remote - Sofabaton Remote
  • Cell Service - US Mobile - Being able to move between ATT, T-Mobile, and Verizon is very helpful when I travel for work and a specific carrier is stronger than the other.

2024 June Setup

Here is an update of my current setup (some have respective links to Amazon that help defray some of the hosting costs and get me more funding to purchase cool, new gear) for June. I also utilized an AI generated featured image as a lot of changes for the next month will be tied to things like Perplexity and ChatGPT (we can also not forget the Apple WWDC lion in the room with the keynote happening on the 10th of June):

The changes plus the detailed hardware list are below:

Added:

Removed:

  • HP Color LaserJet Pro M254dw - This device has finally been retired as the Epson Inkjet printer was more reliable in my family's daily use. It has had a long life and was a great purchase in 2020.

macOS Applications

iOS/iPadOS Applications

  • Podcast App - Castro - I am testing Pocket Casts, too, as it seems stable and I can configure it to function similarly to Castro.
  • Camera App - Halide
  • Object Scanning App - Scan Thing
  • Document Scanning App - Simple Scan

iOS/iPadOS/macOS Applications

  • Password Manager - 1Password
  • Package Tracking App - Parcel
  • Calendar App - Calendar.app
  • Recipe Manager - Mela
  • RSS Reader - Reeder connected to FreshRSS.
  • Read Later Application - Goodlink
  • Email Application - Mail.app
  • Note-Taking App - Drafts - If a more complex workflow is needed for the note I took, it resides in drafts.
  • Mastodon Application - Ivory
  • Social Media - Threads

Hardware

Gaming

Storage/Bags

Stationary

Kitchen/Cooking

MISC

2024 May Setup

Here is an update of my current setup (some have respective links to Amazon, that help defray some of the hosting costs and get me more play money to purchase cool, new gear) for May.

The change list is below:

  • Removed
    • Fujifilm X-H2s
  • Added
    • Hetzner Hosting
    • Elgato Key Light Neo
    • Elgato Wave Neo
    • Elgato Stream Deck Neo

macOS Applications

iOS/iPadOS Applications

  • Podcast App - Castro - Testing Pocket Casts to see if it is a possible alternative (I still am a lifetime member from way back when it was a one-time purchase application).
  • Camera App - Halide
  • Scanning App - Scan Thing
  • Document Scanning App - Simple Scan

iOS/iPadOS/macOS Applications

  • Password Manager - 1Password
  • Package Tracking App - Parcel
  • Calendar App - Calendar.app
  • Recipe Manager - Mela
  • RSS Reader - Reeder connected to FreshRSS.
  • Read Later Application - Goodlink
  • Email Application - Mail.app
  • Note-Taking App - Drafts - If a more complex workflow is needed for the note I took, it resides in drafts.
  • Mastodon Application - Ivory
  • Social Media - Threads

Hardware

Gaming

Stationary

MISC

2024 April Setup

Here is an update of my current setup (some have respective links to Amazon, that help defray some of the hosting costs and get me more play money to purchase cool, new gear) for April. The change list is below:

  • Changed layout of list
  • Added UGREEN Steam Deck Dock
  • Added Anker MagGo 3-in-1 Charging Station
  • Added Steam Deck
  • Added Vehicle Diagnostic Tool (Lemur Vehicle Monitor)
  • Added Analogue Pocket

macOS Applications

iOS/iPadOS Applications

iOS/iPadOS/macOS Applications

  • Password Manager - 1Password
  • Package Tracking App - Parcel
  • Calendar App - Calendar.app
  • Recipe Manager - Mela
  • RSS Reader - Reeder connected to FreshRSS.
  • Read Later Application - Goodlink
  • Email Application - Mail.app
  • Note-Taking App - Drafts - If a more complex workflow is needed for the note I took, it resides in drafts.
  • Mastodon Application - Ivory - After moving most of my social media presence to Mastodon and Facebook, Ivory has become my go-to application on iOS, iPadOS, and macOS.
  • Social Media - Threads

Hardware

Gaming

Stationary

MISC

2024 February Setup

Here is an update of my current load-out (some have respective links to Amazon, that help defray some of the hosting costs and get me more play money to purchase cool, new gear) for the month of February:

macOS

iOS / iPadOS

  • Podcast App - With Castro now under new ownership, this is tentatively my primary podcast listening application. We will see what the future holds…I might have to move to Overcast
  • Camera App - Halide
  • Scanning App - Scan Thing
  • Document Scanning App - Notes - Agile Tortoise will be releasing their (Simple Scan)[https://agiletortoise.com/simple-scan/] application soon and, after I test it, I might be moving to this application.

iOS and macOS

  • Password Manager - 1Password
  • Package Tracking App - Parcel - Great application that has been very useful when I was tracking shipments I have been sending out for a few projects I have been working on.
  • Calendar App - Calendar.app
  • Recipe Manager - Mela
  • RSS Reader - Reeder connected to FreshRSS.
  • Read Later Application - Goodlink
  • Email Application - Mail.app
  • Note-Taking App - Drafts - If a more complex workflow is needed for the note I took, it resides in drafts.
  • Mastodon Application - Ivory - After moving most of my social media presence to Mastodon and Facebook, Ivory has become my go-to application on iOS, iPadOS, and macOS.
  • Social Media - Threads

Hardware

MISC

2024-01 Hardware and Software Picks

Here is an update of my current load-out (some have respective links to Amazon, that help defray some of the hosting costs and get me more play money to purchase cool, new gear):

macOS

  • Task Manager - Things + Reminders - I am using Reminders for shared family tasks and Things is now part of my workflow thanks to this guide: https://productivewithapurpose.com/2019/05/21/the-fu-master-productivity-checklist-using-things3/. I am testing Omnifocus 4, too, to see if it is something I might add to my workflow to replace Things. The Omni Group recently released version 4 and it looks like a great app!
  • Text Editor - BBEdit - I am fully invested in BBEdit as my text editor (with VIM being used while remotely connected to my remote instances). With the recent update to version 15, they have added ChatGPT integration (BYOApi Key).
  • Terminal App - Terminal - It is always nice to use the built-in applications as they are present on all macOS devices.
  • Automation App - Hazel
  • Online Backup Service - Backblaze
  • Backup Application - Carbon Copy Cloner

iOS / iPadOS

  • Podcast App - I have moved back to Mimir and I am not using Castro anymore as they have had multiple outages with slow responses on social media to let their users know what is going on.
  • Camera App - Halide - The best (IMHO) camera app on iOS.
  • Scanning App - Scan Thing
  • Document Scanning App - Notes

iOS and macOS

  • Password Manager - 1Password
  • Package Tracking App - Parcel - Great application that has been very useful when I was tracking shipments I have been sending out for a few projects I have been working on.
  • Calendar App - Calendar.app
  • Recipe Manager - Mela
  • RSS Reader - Reeder connected to FreshRSS.
  • Read Later Application - Goodlink
  • Email Application - Mail.app
  • Note-Taking App - Drafts - If a more complex workflow is needed for the note I took, it resides in drafts.
  • Mastodon Application - Ivory - After moving most of my social media presence to Mastodon and Facebook, Ivory has become my go-to application on iOS, iPadOS, and macOS.
  • Social Media - Threads

Hardware

MISC

2023 October Software and Hardware Load-Out

An update on my current load-out (some have respective links to Amazon, that helps defray some of the hosting costs and gets me more play money to purchase cool, new gear):

macOS

  • Task Manager - GoodTask + Reminders - GoodTask is still my favorite task manager as it integrates with Reminders and can be as powerful as I want it to be (very customizable). I have started to utilize Things a bit and I keep returning to GoodTask.
  • Text Editor - Nova + BBEdit - Depending on the situation, I am switching between Nova and BBEdit…both are great applications.
  • Terminal App - Terminal - It is always nice to use the built in applications as they present on all macOS devices.
  • Automation App - Hazel
  • Online Backup Service - Backblaze
  • Backup Application - Carbon Copy Cloner

iOS / iPadOS

  • Podcast App - Castro - I am very glad that the Castro podcast app has received updates and it looks like it is under development again so I switched back to it. The way the inbox functionality works in the app lines up with how I would like to use the application.
  • Camera App - Halide - The best (IMHO) camera app on iOS.
  • Scanning App - Scan Thing
  • Document Scanning App - Notes
  • Game - Magic Arena - Too many games to list right now! I have cut down on my gaming time to focus on creating more content.
  • Game - Dawncaster

iOS and macOS

  • Password Manager - 1Password
  • Package Tracking App - Parcel - This application was a life-saver during the holiday season in helping me keep track of gifts being shipped all over the world.
  • Calendar App - Calendar.app
  • Recipe Manager - Mela
  • RSS Reader - Reeder
  • Read Later Application - Reeder
  • Email Application - Mail.app
  • Note Taking App - Drafts - If a more complex workflow is needed for the note I took, it resides in drafts. If only a simple copy and paste is needed, I utilize Tot.
  • Mastodon Application - Ivory - After moving most of my social media presence to Mastodon and Facebook, Ivory has become my go-to application on iOS, iPadOS, and macOS.
  • Social Media - Threads

Hardware

MISC

2023 July Gear and Software Picks

A July update to my current gear and software:

macOS

  • Task Manager - GoodTask + Reminders - GoodTask is still my favorite task manager as it integrates with Reminders and can be as powerful as I want it to be (very customizable).
  • Text Editor - Nova + BBEdit - Depending on the situation, I am switching between Nova and BBEdit…both are great applications.
  • Terminal App - Terminal - It is always nice to use the built in applications as they present on all macOS devices.
  • Automation App - Hazel
  • Online Backup Service - Backblaze
  • Backup Application - Carbon Copy Cloner

iOS / iPadOS

  • Reddit App - Apollo - Since Apollo is now gone due to Reddits very developer-hostile API changes, this app has been retired since 6/30. If you want to still support the developer, head over to Apollo Website, as this app was a nice chunk of his income.
  • Podcast App - Mimir - Fantastic support and the app works really well (it helps the app is a part of Setapp, too). Mimir is now my primary podcast app and is continuously being improved.
  • Camera App - Halide - The best (IMHO) camera app on iOS.
  • Scanning App - Scan Thing
  • Document Scanning App - Notes
  • Game - Magic Arena - Too many games to list right now! I have cut down on my gaming time to focus on creating more content.

iOS and macOS

  • Password Manager - 1Password
  • Package Tracking App - Parcel - This application was a life-saver during the holiday season in helping me keep track of gifts being shipped all over the world.
  • Calendar App - Calendar.app
  • Recipe Manager - Mela
  • RSS Reader - Reeder
  • Read Later Application - Reeder
  • Email Application - Mail.app
  • Quick Note App - Tot
  • Note Taking App - Obsidian - I might be moving over to just utlizing Tot, for now, and using something like iA Writer when I need to write long articles in markdown.
  • Mastodon Application - Ivory - After moving most of my social media presence to Mastodon and Facebok, Ivory has become my go-to application on iOS, iPadOS, and macOS.

Hardware

MISC

2023 January Load-Out

An update on my current load-out:

macOS

  • Task Manager - GoodTask + Reminders - GoodTask is still my favorite task manager as it integrates with Reminders.
  • Text Editor - Nova - Also using BBEDIT…torn between these two! (This hasn’t changed)
  • Terminal App - Terminal - It is always nice to use the built in applications as they present on all macOS devices.
  • Automation App - Hazel
  • Online Backup Service - Backblaze
  • Backup Application - Carbon Copy Cloner

iOS

  • Reddit App - Apollo
  • Podcast App - Mimir - Fantastic support and the app works really well. Mimir is now my primary podcast app and is continuously being improved.
  • Camera App - Halide - The best (IMHO) camera app on iOS.
  • Scanning App - Scan Thing
  • Document Scanning App - Notes
  • Game - Magic Arena - Too many games to list right now! I have cut down on my gaming time to focus on creating more content.

iOS and macOS

  • Twitter App - Tweetbot - I am starting to test the Spring Twitter application per a recommendation from a colleague. I am still formulating my thoughts about it!
  • Password Manager - 1Password
  • Package Tracking App - Parcel - This application was a life-saver during the holiday season in helping me keep track of gifts being shipped all over the world.
  • Calendar App - Calendar.app - I have been utilizing more of standard built-in iOS applications so BusyCal has taken a backseat for now. We will see if I return to that application or possibly Fantastical.
  • Recipe Manager - Mela
  • RSS Reader - Reeder
  • Read Later Application - Reeder
  • Email Application - Mail.app
  • Quick Note App - Tot
  • Note Taking App - Obsidian - Obsidian not only lets me take notes it functions as a task manager and many more thing due to the plugins that are available. It is also cross-platform and runs very well. I have not decided if this application will be part of my permanent workflow.

Hardware

MISC

2022 November Favorites

An update to the tools I use:

macOS

  • Task Manager - GoodTask + Reminders - Sticking with GoodTask and Reminders for now. I moved over to Omnifocus for a while and fiddled around too much with the settings versus actually using it as a tool.
  • Text Editor - Nova - Also using BBEdit…torn between these two!
  • Terminal App - Terminal - I have been using iTerm and continue to return to Terminal.app as it is on all the macOS devices I use.
  • Automation App - Hazel
  • Online Backup Service - Backblaze
  • Backup Application - Carbon Copy Cloner

iOS

  • Reddit App - Apollo
  • Podcast App - Mimir - Fantastic support and the app works really well. Mimir is now my primary podcast app!
  • Camera App - Halide
  • Scanning App - Scan Thing
  • Document Scanning App - Notes
  • Game - Magic Arena - Too many games to list right now! I have cut down on my gaming time to focus on creating more content.

iOS and macOS

  • Twitter App - Tweetbot - Moving between Spring, Twitterriffic, and Tweetbot.
  • Password Manager - 1Password
  • Package Tracking App - Parcel - Since the developer of Deliveries stated they will not be fully supporting their application anymore (not their fault…the changes that all the shipping companies put the devs through make it difficult to maintain), I need to find a replacement application. For now, Parcel is this application…it might meet the same fate as Deliveries later down the road.
  • Calendar App - Calendar App
  • Recipe Manager - Mela
  • RSS Reader - Reeder
  • Read Later Application - Reeder
  • Email Application - Mail.app
  • Quick Note App - Tot

Hardware

MISC

2022 October Favorites

An update to the tools I use:

macOS

  • Task Manager - GoodTask + Reminders - I might be moving over to Omnifocus and Reminders. It is dependent on what is best for my workflow.
  • Text Editor - Nova - Also using BBEdit…torn between these two!
  • Terminal App - Terminal - I have been using iTerm and continue to return to Terminal.app as it is on all the macOS devices I use.
  • Automation App - Hazel
  • Online Backup Service - Backblaze
  • Backup Application - Carbon Copy Cloner

iOS

  • Reddit App - Apollo
  • Podcast App - Mimir - Fantastic support and the apps works really well. Mimir is now my primary podcast app!
  • Camera App - Halide
  • Scanning App - Scan Thing
  • Document Scanning App - Notes
  • Game - Magic Arena - Too many games to list right now! I have cut down on my gaming time to focus on creating more content.

iOS and macOS

  • Twitter App - Tweetbot - Moved fully to Tweetbot.
  • Password Manager - 1Password
  • Package Tracking App - Parcel - Since the developer of Deliveries stated they will not be fully supporting their application anymore (not their fault…the changes that all the shipping companies put the devs through make it difficult to maintain), I need to find a replacement application. For now, Parcel is this application…it might meet the same fate as Deliveries later down the road.
  • Calendar App - BusyCal
  • Recipe Manager - Mela
  • RSS Reader - Reeder
  • Read Later Application - Reeder
  • Email Application - Mail.app
  • Quick Note App - Tot

Hardware

MISC

2022 August Favorites

Aloha all,

Small update to my favorite gear and software:

  • I only own one camera now: The Fujifilm X-H2S.
  • My favorite podcast app is now Mimir.
  • My go-to calendar app on both iOS and macOS: BusyCal.

Other than that, no huge changes from June!

2022 June Gear + Tool Evolution

An update to the tools I use:

macOS

  • Task Manager - GoodTask + Reminders - I might be moving over to Omnifocus and Reminders. It is dependent on what is best for my workflow.
  • Text Editor - Nova - Also using BBEDIT…torn between these two!
  • Terminal App - Terminal - I have been using iTerm and continue to return to Terminal.app as it is on all the macOS devices I use.
  • Automation App - Hazel
  • Online Backup Service - Backblaze
  • Backup Application - Carbon Copy Cloner

iOS

  • Reddit App - Apollo
  • Podcast App - Castro - Starting to use Overcast.fm more due to the fact that I don't see as much support / forward momentum with the Castro app.
  • Camera App - Halide
  • Scanning App - Scan Thing
  • Document Scanning App - Notes
  • Game - Magic Arena - Too many games to list right now! I have cut down on my gaming time to focus on creating more content.

iOS and macOS

  • Twitter App - Tweetbot - Also started using Twitterriffic…trying to figure out which one I like using more…with Elon Musk's purchase (whenever that happens) I am bit worried about the 3rd party support for the platform.
  • Password Manager - 1Password
  • Package Tracking App - Parcel - Since the developer of Deliveries stated they will not be fully supporting their application anymore (not their fault…the changes that all the shipping companies put the devs through makes it difficult to maintain), I need to find a replacement application. For now, Parcel is this application…it might meet the same fate as Deliveries later down the road.
  • Calendar App - Fantastical
  • Recipe Manager - Mela
  • RSS Reader - Reeder
  • Read Later Application - Reeder
  • Email Application - Mail.app
  • Quick Note App - Tot and Drafts

Hardware

MISC

My 2021 Gear

To start the new year with actually writing an article, I wanted to share with you the tools (both software, hardware, and some miscellaneous items) that I have personally been using to get stuff done (amongst other things): https://www.jeromekoehler.com/my-gear/.

I'll continue to add my reasoning behind my choices and update the list as my preferences continue to change.

A few of these links are Amazon affiliate links as I plan to write more reviews + provide my feedback and those help offset the costs of the items and the hosting!

May 2019 Pick - Anker USB-C Hub

Products Mentioned in this article:

TD;LR Summary: A great, affordable USB-C hub, that has most of what you need minus power passthrough and a built-in media card reader.

With the all of the different USB-C hubs I have purchased over the past, I have begun to rely mostly on two different companies for my gear: OWC and Anker. In this weekly pick, I will give some feedback on the Anker USB-C Hub that I purchased due to my Satechi hub becoming hot enough to cook on (I might be exaggerating a bit)!

The Anker USB-C hub has three USB 3.0 Ports, 4K HDMI output, and an ethernet port! The only thing that this hub does not have is the power pass-through, more than likely leading to a much cooler running temperature. I have hooked up everything ranging from a media card reader to a 4K dell monitor to the hub and it has handled everything like a charm. I have also used Anker hub to hook my iPad Pro (the newer models rock a USB-C port) to troubleshoot an EdgeRouter on-site when I didn’t have my MacBook Pro with me.

App Pick - WordPress Mobile App

As more and more users flock to content management systems like WordPress (I personally utilize this CMS for my art business’s storefront), more and more business professionals need to update their blogs on the go. You might have an important event that needs to be publicized as soon as possible or you want to take advantage of some down time to update the information on your site. At first, the Wordpress mobile application wasn’t that great due to a lack of features and stability so I only used it for. It has come a long way, though, and now I don’t know how I was updating my blog without the application. The universal WordPress mobile application runs great on both your iPad and iPhone and allows you to manage multiple sites’ comments and blog posts, check on a site’s statistics via JetPack, and easily access the admin module if required to make changes that are not available in the application itself. For users of 1Password, the WordPress mobile application integrates 1Password for easy vault access. Best of all, this application is free download making it a great bargain. Happy posting!

Pick for October 6, 2014

Pick for October 6, 2014

iWerkz Bluetooth Keyboard(Jerome)

I have been searching for a great, portable bluetooth keyboard for a while now and ended up purchasing the iWerkz Bluetooth Keyboard due to its portability, price, and ability to connect wirelessly to my iPad. The keyboard folds in half and fits into a small case that doubles as a stand for either an iPad or iPhone as needed. Due to its minuscule size, it doesn’t take up as much space as my Logitech K760, with its photovoltaic panel, in my bag. The iWerkz keyboard charges via a microUSB cable that is included with the device. All in all, I love this keyboard and it has made my iPad and iPhone even more powerful when I need to type fast!

Pick for September 29, 2014

Deliveries by Junecloud

I have a need to track a lot of deliveries that are incoming and outbound and needed an applicatio to consolidate tracking information for all of the different services that are utilized by my business and by the likes of Amazon, Apple, etc. My go-to app to keep track of all the deliveries is the aptly named Deliveries by Junecloud. I am able to enter my tracking numbers and it automatically detects the service via the number I entered. There is also a widget available for free where you use Junecloud’s free sync service to sync the information between devices.

All in all, Deliveries is a well designed app that does one thing very well: track my deliveries!