Technology & Tools

IT Equipment

After my laptop decided to take far too long to boot up at home I decided it was time to make a big change from Microsoft which I have been using since our first family PC in 1990 to Apple in 2022. The learning curve for my Macbook Air M1 wasn't as bad as I thought it would be and whilst I am still getting to grips with MacOS I am glad I made the jump. I switch between the Macbook and a Mac Mini M4 with an additional WD Blue 1TB drive. It is paired with two Samsung 27" curved screens on a height-adjustable stand. In my home office, I use a Keychron Q1 keyboard with Gateron Phantom Blue keys paired with a Logitech Master 3 mouse or with a Logitech Pebble mouse on the road. In order to connect other items with the Macbook I have a portable Anker USB hub and an HP USB-Dock in the office, along with an Awavo laptop stand and an extra Sandisk 1TB extreme portable SSD. For audio, I have a set of Creative Pebble V3 speakers, a pair of Anker Q30 wireless headphones and Anker A1 earbuds. My printer/copier is a wireless Canon Pixma.

Camera Kit

My camera is a Sony ZV-E10 mirrorless camera with the standard 16-50mm F3.5 kit lens. I also have a Rode VideoMicro mic and lighting is taken care of with a pair of Neewer softbox key lights, Logitech LitraGlow fill light and Neewer & Ulanzi RGB backlights.

Desk/Seat

My desk is the Habitat Beckett in oak with a brown leather top, two front drawers and three storage compartments. The chair of choice is the magnificent Steelcase Leap V2 which I bought in excellent used condition.

Blogging

I looked at various platforms before deciding that Ghost would be the best choice. If you want to start your own blog quickly and easily, I would highly recommend them as the platform is professional, easy to use and has plenty of themes to choose from. You can also use your domain and namecheap ended up as my preferred domain name registrar. It was quick and easy to set up and they offer free lifetime domain privacy protection. Web analytics were taken care of through Plausible. Although I no longer use web analytics, I would highly recommend Plausible and would not hesitate to use them again in the future.

Programmes and Software

Microsoft Office 365 provides the usual suite of Word and Excel etc. To help me design material such as YouTube thumbnails I have been using Canva, for note-taking and simply managing projects I use Microsoft Onenote. I initially started to use Apple's own iMovie video editing software for YouTube videos, and I am currently learning to use DaVinci Resolve.