Recommendations you can check.
Cloudflare board member and former CTO; writes at blog.jgc.org.
11 things
SwissMicros DM42Hardware SwissMicros
Luckily, a company called SwissMicros has stepped in to make beautiful modern equivalents of many classic HP calculators. And by using modern CPUs and software they are fast and a joy to use.
On SwissMicros' modern recreations of classic HP RPN calculators
2023-09-05·blog.jgc.org ↗
Plus42Software
On my phone I have an emulator of the HP-42S called the Plus42 which is wonderful but there's nothing like the feel of the real keys on the calculator so I also have SwissMicros' equivalent calculator: the DM42 .
On SwissMicros' modern recreations of classic HP RPN calculators
2023-09-05·blog.jgc.org ↗
Raspberry Pi 5Hardware Raspberry Pi
Some people seem to have decided that a Mac mini is how you run AI tools (such as OpenClaw ). But for what I'm doing a Raspberry Pi 5 works fine.
Setting up a Raspberry Pi as an isolated server for AI coding agents
2026-04-14·blog.jgc.org ↗
Via VerdeService
Portugal has an incredibly well executed and efficient system for collecting road tolls called Via Verde .
A gadget he built for Portugal's Via Verde toll and parking system
2025-04-10·blog.jgc.org ↗
The Puzzle PalaceBook James Bamford
These are James Bamford's books on the history of the NSA and should be read in that order. They give a fascinating insight into the work of the NSA from its beginnings to the present day.
A reading list of books on signals intelligence, NSA and GCHQ
2013-08-02·blog.jgc.org ↗
Body of SecretsBook James Bamford
These are James Bamford's books on the history of the NSA and should be read in that order. They give a fascinating insight into the work of the NSA from its beginnings to the present day.
A reading list of books on signals intelligence, NSA and GCHQ
2013-08-02·blog.jgc.org ↗
The Shadow FactoryBook James Bamford
Much of what has been recently revealed is talked about in The Shadow Factory or could be inferred from it.
A reading list of books on signals intelligence, NSA and GCHQ
2013-08-02·blog.jgc.org ↗
GCHQBook Richard Aldrich
Similar in intent to James Bamford's books this covers the British equivalent of NSA, GCHQ, from its beginnings up until very recently.
A reading list of books on signals intelligence, NSA and GCHQ
2013-08-02·blog.jgc.org ↗
Claude CodeSoftware Anthropic
I've been working quite a bit with Claude Code and OpenCode on a project and really wanted a way to run both without having to constantly approve use of tools.
Setting up a Raspberry Pi as an isolated server for AI coding agents
2026-04-14·blog.jgc.org ↗
Panasonic Toughbook FZ-40Hardware Panasonic
I own two computers that I use regularly. The first is my main machine, a rather old Apple MacBook Pro , the other is a Panasonic Toughbook FZ-40.
An ode to his rugged Panasonic Toughbook as the opposite of his MacBook
2025-07-21·blog.jgc.org ↗
Final Cut ProSoftware Apple
Secondly, the most powerful program I tend to use on it is Final Cut Pro but my videos tend to me short and not particularly complicated to output.
Why he has not replaced his old MacBook Pro
2024-01-17·blog.jgc.org ↗
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.