Recommendations you can check.
Full-stack developer and creator of Tailwind CSS; writes at adamwathan.me and makes courses and screencasts for web developers.
32 things
MacBook ProHardware Apple
This machine is more powerful than my iMac and feels just as portable as my 13" did — really love this computer.
His /uses page covering every part of his setup; the page discloses that a few of the links are affiliate links. Page carries no date; 2019-08-20 is its first Internet Archive snapshot.
2019-08-20·adamwathan.me ↗
Herman Miller Aeron chairHardware Herman Miller
Herman Miller Aeron chair Super expensive but worth every penny for me.
His /uses page covering every part of his setup; the page discloses that a few of the links are affiliate links. Page carries no date; 2019-08-20 is its first Internet Archive snapshot.
2019-08-20·adamwathan.me ↗
Sublime Text 3Software Sublime HQ
Still the most productive text editing environment I've ever used. Any time I try something else, within minutes I run into dozens of things it's missing or that Sublime does better.
His /uses page covering every part of his setup; the page discloses that a few of the links are affiliate links. Page carries no date; 2019-08-20 is its first Internet Archive snapshot.
2019-08-20·adamwathan.me ↗
iTerm2Software George Nachman
Love this terminal, I especially like being able to create keyboard shortcuts that run terminal commands.
His /uses page covering every part of his setup; the page discloses that a few of the links are affiliate links. Page carries no date; 2019-08-20 is its first Internet Archive snapshot.
2019-08-20·adamwathan.me ↗
FigmaSoftware Figma
Figma is like Sketch but a million times more performant and cross-platform. It's the most impressive web app I've ever used.
His /uses page covering every part of his setup; the page discloses that a few of the links are affiliate links. Page carries no date; 2019-08-20 is its first Internet Archive snapshot.
2019-08-20·adamwathan.me ↗
NetlifyService Netlify
For my static sites (like this one), I use Netlify. It is probably my favorite app that I interact with on a regular basis. The UI is beautiful, the experience is awesome, and the app is insanely fast.
His /uses page covering every part of his setup; the page discloses that a few of the links are affiliate links. Page carries no date; 2019-08-20 is its first Internet Archive snapshot.
2019-08-20·adamwathan.me ↗
Laravel ForgeService Laravel
All of my Laravel projects are managed by Forge. Been a customer since day one and don't know what I'd do without it.
His /uses page covering every part of his setup; the page discloses that a few of the links are affiliate links. Page carries no date; 2019-08-20 is its first Internet Archive snapshot.
2019-08-20·adamwathan.me ↗
1PasswordSoftware AgileBits
Such a great password manager, installing this for the first time was life-changing.
His /uses page covering every part of his setup; the page discloses that a few of the links are affiliate links. Page carries no date; 2019-08-20 is its first Internet Archive snapshot.
2019-08-20·adamwathan.me ↗
HelpScoutService
I set up a HelpScout account for us when we released the book because I anticipated a lot of support and it is so much nicer than handling everything via email. Awesome tool.
His /uses page covering every part of his setup; the page discloses that a few of the links are affiliate links. Page carries no date; 2019-08-20 is its first Internet Archive snapshot.
2019-08-20·adamwathan.me ↗
Shure SM7B microphoneHardware Shure
The holy grail of broadcast mics, I've been using the SM7B since my audio engineering days when I was recording bands for a living. Sometimes I'm tempted to try something else out of pure curiousity, but so far the SM7B is still the winner.
His /uses page covering every part of his setup; the page discloses that a few of the links are affiliate links. Page carries no date; 2019-08-20 is its first Internet Archive snapshot.
2019-08-20·adamwathan.me ↗
Beyerdynamic DT 770 Pro headphonesHardware Beyerdynamic
I've owned them for like 12 years and they show zero signs of wear. German engineering man, gotta love it.
His /uses page covering every part of his setup; the page discloses that a few of the links are affiliate links. Page carries no date; 2019-08-20 is its first Internet Archive snapshot.
2019-08-20·adamwathan.me ↗
Sony a6000 cameraHardware Sony
I use this to record any on-camera stuff for screencasts. Totally love it, looks super pro.
His /uses page covering every part of his setup; the page discloses that a few of the links are affiliate links. Page carries no date; 2019-08-20 is its first Internet Archive snapshot.
2019-08-20·adamwathan.me ↗
VimeoService Vimeo
I host all of my course videos on Vimeo. It's essentially the only option — everything else is crazy expensive in comparison. Awesome service though, absolutely love it.
His /uses page covering every part of his setup; the page discloses that a few of the links are affiliate links. Page carries no date; 2019-08-20 is its first Internet Archive snapshot.
2019-08-20·adamwathan.me ↗
IKEA BEKANT sit/stand deskHardware IKEA
This desk has poor reviews for some reason but I think it's great. It's quite big, really deep, and super stable.
His /uses page covering every part of his setup; the page discloses that a few of the links are affiliate links. Page carries no date; 2019-08-20 is its first Internet Archive snapshot.
2019-08-20·adamwathan.me ↗
SizzySoftware
Sizzy is a cool browser specifically for responsive design. It lets you view all of the breakpoints for a site at the same time and also does a good job auto-scaling fixed size viewports to fit whatever window size you're using.
His /uses page covering every part of his setup; the page discloses that a few of the links are affiliate links. Page carries no date; 2019-08-20 is its first Internet Archive snapshot.
2019-08-20·adamwathan.me ↗
TupleSoftware
Really great tool for remote pair programming. Like Screenhero used to be, but better.
His /uses page covering every part of his setup; the page discloses that a few of the links are affiliate links. Page carries no date; 2019-08-20 is its first Internet Archive snapshot.
2019-08-20·adamwathan.me ↗
PixelmatorSoftware
I don't do a ton of raster image editing but when I do Pixelmator is great. Has all of the features someone like me needs from Photoshop without getting sucked into Adobe's whole subscription system.
His /uses page covering every part of his setup; the page discloses that a few of the links are affiliate links. Page carries no date; 2019-08-20 is its first Internet Archive snapshot.
2019-08-20·adamwathan.me ↗
SVGOMGSoftware
So good for quickly optimizing SVGs. I use SVG all over the place in my projects and end up using this tool many times each week.
His /uses page covering every part of his setup; the page discloses that a few of the links are affiliate links. Page carries no date; 2019-08-20 is its first Internet Archive snapshot.
2019-08-20·adamwathan.me ↗
ImageOptimSoftware
Really great for optimizing raster images like PNGs and JPEGs. Reduces the file size dramatically with no discernible difference in quality.
His /uses page covering every part of his setup; the page discloses that a few of the links are affiliate links. Page carries no date; 2019-08-20 is its first Internet Archive snapshot.
2019-08-20·adamwathan.me ↗
HoverService
I register all of my domain names through Hover. I think it's a little more expensive than some of the other options, but the UI is simple and reliable and not loaded with dark patterns like some of the cheaper competitors.
His /uses page covering every part of his setup; the page discloses that a few of the links are affiliate links. Page carries no date; 2019-08-20 is its first Internet Archive snapshot.
2019-08-20·adamwathan.me ↗
TodoistSoftware Doist
I use Todoist to keep track of my todos. I really like the scheduled and recurring tasks features, lets me use Todoist for a lot of stuff that you might normally put in a calendar.
His /uses page covering every part of his setup; the page discloses that a few of the links are affiliate links. Page carries no date; 2019-08-20 is its first Internet Archive snapshot.
2019-08-20·adamwathan.me ↗
CalendlyService
I use Calendly to schedule podcast interviews and other meetings. So much nicer than trying to work out a time to chat by going back and forth in an email thread.
His /uses page covering every part of his setup; the page discloses that a few of the links are affiliate links. Page carries no date; 2019-08-20 is its first Internet Archive snapshot.
2019-08-20·adamwathan.me ↗
BenchService
Bench handles all of the bookkeeping for my business.
His /uses page covering every part of his setup; the page discloses that a few of the links are affiliate links. Page carries no date; 2019-08-20 is its first Internet Archive snapshot.
2019-08-20·adamwathan.me ↗
Triton Audio FetHead preampHardware Triton Audio
The SM7B needs a lot more gain than most mics, so this little inline preamp is great for getting the levels up without investing in a really expensive mic preamp.
His /uses page covering every part of his setup; the page discloses that a few of the links are affiliate links. Page carries no date; 2019-08-20 is its first Internet Archive snapshot.
2019-08-20·adamwathan.me ↗
Elgato Key LightHardware Elgato
I use this to light my face better when recording video. Happy I spent the extra money on this
His /uses page covering every part of his setup; the page discloses that a few of the links are affiliate links. Page carries no date; 2019-08-20 is its first Internet Archive snapshot.
2019-08-20·adamwathan.me ↗
ConvertKitService ConvertKit
Highly recommend it if you want to build an email list!
His /uses page covering every part of his setup; the page discloses that a few of the links are affiliate links. Page carries no date; 2019-08-20 is its first Internet Archive snapshot.
2019-08-20·adamwathan.me ↗
Audio Hijack ProSoftware Rogue Amoeba
I use this to record all of my podcast interviews. Fantastic software, highly recommended.
His /uses page covering every part of his setup; the page discloses that a few of the links are affiliate links. Page carries no date; 2019-08-20 is its first Internet Archive snapshot.
2019-08-20·adamwathan.me ↗
DigitalOceanService DigitalOcean
For anything that needs to run PHP, I use DigitalOcean.
His /uses page covering every part of his setup; the page discloses that a few of the links are affiliate links. Page carries no date; 2019-08-20 is its first Internet Archive snapshot.
2019-08-20·adamwathan.me ↗
AlfredSoftware Running with Crayons
I use it to launch apps, for clipboard management, for customer support snippets, and probably tons more I'm still forgetting.
His /uses page covering every part of his setup; the page discloses that a few of the links are affiliate links. Page carries no date; 2019-08-20 is its first Internet Archive snapshot.
2019-08-20·adamwathan.me ↗
Apple Pro Display XDRHardware Apple
The display is absolutely gorgeous and has all the space I need so I love it, but this thing is designed for professional film production so a lot of the features I'm paying for with this thing are totally unnecessary for me.
His /uses page covering every part of his setup; the page discloses that a few of the links are affiliate links. Page carries no date; 2019-08-20 is its first Internet Archive snapshot.
2019-08-20·adamwathan.me ↗
ZoomSoftware Zoom
I hate the app so much (so many damn modals and toolbars everywhere!) but the call quality is better and more reliable than any other tool so I tolerate it.
His /uses page covering every part of his setup; the page discloses that a few of the links are affiliate links. Page carries no date; 2019-08-20 is its first Internet Archive snapshot.
2019-08-20·adamwathan.me ↗
REAPERSoftware
It's basically the Vim of audio editing software, so I wouldn't recommend it if you don't have the time and energy to heavily invest in customizing it for your workflow, but I can move like lightning in this thing.
His /uses page covering every part of his setup; the page discloses that a few of the links are affiliate links. Page carries no date; 2019-08-20 is its first Internet Archive snapshot.
2019-08-20·adamwathan.me ↗
Every entry is a verbatim quote and a link to the public post it came from. Nothing is paraphrased. If it is not on record somewhere public, it is not here.
The verdict is what they actually said: loved and liked are explicit; recommended means they told others to get it; uses means they only say they use it; read is a book on their public shelf with no verdict; mixed and disliked are kept too.
A dashed affiliate link, sponsored or their own label means the post disclosed a relationship. It is shown, never hidden.
The shading behind a date shows how dated a recommendation is for its kind of thing.
The shading behind a date shows how dated a recommendation is, for its kind of thing. Fully green is recent. It drains a quarter at a time as the post gets older, and is empty once it reads as dated.
What counts as old depends on the thing. A laptop praised four years ago has been replaced twice; a book loved twenty years ago is probably still loved. The shading is gone after about:
Stripes mean the post carries no date and the date shown is an estimate. No date at all, no shading.