The Tools I Use - 2024

In this post, I'll share some of the tools I've used this year, both for programming and for daily life. Expect some apps to be macOS specific, but most will have Linux/Windows equivalents.

I won't list every detail of my setup; I'll be showing the most important parts. But if you want a super in-depth look into my programming setup, check out my dotfiles, which are public on GitHub.

Daily Life

First, I'll go over software that isn't necessarily related to programming (but note that most of these work well with my programming workflow).

Things

Things is by far the most irreplaceable app in my life. I've been logging to-dos in it since 2021, and I use it for pretty much everything:

• Life tasks
• Reminders
• Calendar
• Programming projects
• Quick notes

What makes Things so great is its simplicity. It has a remarkably small interface for a to-do app, and it gets everything just right. It strikes the perfect balance between functionality and staying minimal.

Although it does have an up-front cost, I highly recommend it for anyone looking to just get stuff done. Things's system is simple, opinionated, and fast. Once you learn how to use it, I guarantee you won't be able to leave.

Alfred

Alfred is like a configurable macOS spotlight search; you can use it to open apps, find things in your file system, go through clipboard history, do math, open frequently visited websites, and more.

Alfred is the central hub of my computer, allowing me to open my most frequently visited things (like Things or GitHub) in a few keystrokes.

You can use the free version of Alfred for most things, but a paid version is available for people who want it.¹

Thunderbird

Right now, I'm using Thunderbird to read emails. I haven't been able to find a good email client that I don't have to sell my left kidney for, so until I make my own, Thunderbird will do.

I don't use any add-ons, but I do keep my main calendar on it.

Hammerspoon

Hammerspoon provides a Lua-based API for controlling macOS. Primarily, I use it to programmatically control windows and switch between applications with one keystroke.

I also have app-specific keystrokes, like ctrl-j to move down, but only in Things.

I've also written code to automatically expand each new application window I open to max width and max height. Since I generally don't like fullscreen mode, this is a nice alternative.

If you want to check out my full Hammerspoon config, it's in a section of my dotfiles.

ungoogled-chromium

To browse the web, I use a fork of Chromium called ungoogled-chromium. I've actually written a dedicated blog post that covers why I chose it.

Here are the extensions I use:

• uBlock Origin
• Dark Reader
• Refined GitHub

Programming

Here are the tools I use for programming. My dotfiles have the actual (up to date) configs for all of these tools.

Neovim

I use Neovim to write code. I've been tuning my Neovim config for a long time, and I have a configuration that I'm pretty happy with at this point. If you're interested in the plugins I use and/or my keymaps, definitely check out the nvim directory of my dotfiles.

Although I strongly recommend that everyone gives Neovim or Vim a try, I'm not a huge proponent of the “Neovim makes you faster” argument. Regardless of if that's true, the main reason I like it is simple: it's fun!².

zsh

I use the built-in macOS z-shell program as my main shell. I've tried using modern shells, like nushell and fish, but I keep coming back to the simplicity and functionality of POSIX shells.³

My zshrc has the setup of my shell. I used to be a frequent shell-scripter, but I've since scaled back on the number of aliases/functions I actually use on a daily basis.

tmux

I don't know where I'd be without tmux. My main use for it is editing multiple files side-by-side, but I also use it to save my terminal sessions for later. Like with my shell, I've tried modern alternatives like zellij, but I think tmux's simplicity and reliability is unmatched.

One handy thing that's saved me numerous headaches is that accidentally closing my terminal app doesn't destroy my tmux sessions, so closing my terminal by mistake (which I've done more than a few times) is usually not a big deal.

Wrap Up

Those are all the tools I use on a daily basis! I hope you enjoyed this post, and are maybe even encouraged to try some of these yourself. I honestly can't recommend them enough.

As always, if you have any suggestions or comments about this post, make sure to open an issue on this website's GitHub repository. I'm hoping to make my “tools report” an annual thing, too!