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Khoi Vinh

Designer and writer; design director of NYTimes.com, later a principal designer at Adobe, and author of the Subtraction.com blog.

10 things

iMacHardware Apple

loved

It's a great piece of hardware and to me it's kind of crazy to think that it's just consumer-grade iron; I barely use a third of its true processing power, I'd bet.

His written "Uses This" interview, walking through his office setup item by item.

2009-10-12·usesthis.com ↗

Kensington Expert MouseHardware Kensington

loved

Next to my main keyboard is my main mousing device: a four-button Kensington Expert Mouse. It's hard to believe but I've been using Kensington trackballs for over sixteen years now. It's my favorite mousing device by far.

His written "Uses This" interview, walking through his office setup item by item.

2009-10-12·usesthis.com ↗

SynergySoftware

liked

Most of the time, I'm using Synergy to control the MacBook from the iMac's input devices that sit next to it. Synergy treats both computers almost as if they were one computer, which saves me tons of switching back and forth.

His written "Uses This" interview, walking through his office setup item by item.

2009-10-12·usesthis.com ↗

Dell 1905FPHardware Dell

liked

This Dell 1905FP isn't particularly large, but I'd rather have a second monitor of modest size than only one 30-in. display.

His written "Uses This" interview, walking through his office setup item by item.

2009-10-12·usesthis.com ↗

MacBook AirHardware Apple

uses

So late last year I bought this 1.86 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo MacBook Air (I custom ordered it with the faster processor that normally ships with the solid-state drive model, but I bought a normal spinning hard drive to save money); it's maxed out with 2 GB of memory.

His written "Uses This" interview, walking through his office setup item by item.

2009-10-12·usesthis.com ↗

Speck SeeThruHardware Speck

uses

For added safety, I somewhat dorkily keep the MacBook Air in a Speck SeeThru hard shell case, which I describe to people as the Internet-age equivalent of covering my couch in plastic.

His written "Uses This" interview, walking through his office setup item by item.

2009-10-12·usesthis.com ↗

IncaseHardware

uses

I use a neoprene laptop sleeve from Incase to shuttle it around; it's actually a case sized for a regular MacBook which means it's a little bigger, but I need the extra room to tote along a Mini DisplayPort-to-VGA adapter and a USB-to-Ethernet adapter too.

His written "Uses This" interview, walking through his office setup item by item.

2009-10-12·usesthis.com ↗

Rain Design mStandHardware Rain Design

mixed

When the MacBook is in the office it usually rests on a Rain Design mStand, which is a really beautiful piece of industrial design; it feels very substantial, and the laptop really looks great on it. My one complaint is that the mStand is fixed at one specific angle.

His written "Uses This" interview, walking through his office setup item by item.

2009-10-12·usesthis.com ↗

KB CoverHardware

mixed

Also, I tend to keep my keyboards covered with a KB Cover. It's rubbery and looks pretty attractive, but it does slow you down a little until you've become accustomed to it.

His written "Uses This" interview, walking through his office setup item by item.

2009-10-12·usesthis.com ↗

Apple Cinema DisplaysHardware Apple

disliked

I'm also completely unimpressed by Apple Cinema Displays. They're way too pricey, and actually what I want out of a second monitor is color inconsistency.

His written "Uses This" interview, walking through his office setup item by item.

2009-10-12·usesthis.com ↗

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.