Tools and equipment 2024

This page is inspired by UsesThis.com - A collection of interviews asking people from all walks of life, what they use to get the job done.

A series of snapshots of the tools and equipment that I use over the years. Previous snapshots of my tools and equipment lists can be found here: 2022, 2021, 2018, 2016

Who are you, and what do you do?

My name is Steven Smethurst and I live two lives. During the day I am a CTO at Chipkin Automation Systems and at night I am a maker, hacker and artist. You can find more about me and my projects on my instagram or twitter.

What has changed since 2022

Since ditching Netflix, and other streaming services in 2022. I have moved to using Plex to stream media from my Synology DiskStation DS923+ to the devices in my house.

I have taken the effort to switch most of my note taking, todo lists, and journaling to Obsidian. I built a custom ChatGPT chatbot to help with daily journaling prompts (Idea #30 chatbot-journaling)

I been doing more hardware devlopment over the past few years. To help with diagnose and debug the hardware I got a Saleae Logic 8. One of the best logic analyzers that I have ever used.

I picked up a Anbernic RG35xx plus to play reto games on the bus or airplanes. Its good, but the size cramps my hands after a few hours.

One of my goals in 2022 was to become more mobile. Following the paths of the digital nomad to escape Vancouver’s winters. To help with this goal I got a Lenovo Yoga 9i (14” Intel). I been attempting to spend 2 days a week working from a coffee shop.

What software do you use?

• Visual Studio Code - A Extensible and customizable text editor. I tend to use this text editor more than I use Visual studio’s these days. It’s Free and extensible.
• Visual Studio - A fully-featured, extensible IDE and compiler for CSharp, C/C++, etc…
• WSL - Linux subsystem for windows (AKA Ubuntu bash on Windows). I user this every single day.
• GitLab - A alternative to Github. git repo, issue tracker, CI, etc…
• GitKraken - A Git client. Paid app.
• Beyond Compare 4 - A file/folder comparison tool.
• Wireshark - A widely-used network protocol analyzer. I use this every single day.
• Signal Private Messenger - Private secure, end to end communications. My preferred form of communication.
• Github pages + Jekyll - Main blogging platform.
• Spotify for music.
• BitWarden for passwords, and Authy for 2FA
• Obsidian - Markdown note taking app and knowledgebase
• KiCAD - Making PCB and electronics.

What hardware do you use?

• Logitech MX Master 3S - Best mouse I have ever had. Wireless, adaptive scroll wheel auto-shift from click-to-click to hyper-fast scroll.
• Pixel 6 Pro - I am becoming disillusioned by Android these days and I may switch to an Apple product next hardware update.
• Dell 27 USB-C Ultrathin Monitor: S2719DC and Dell UltraSharp 27 4K - Do not recommend. See Do not buy from Dell.
• Logitech G610 Orion - A great mechanical keyboard with media keys and volume dial. I got into the keyboard crazy a few years ago and got a bunch of strange-looking keyboards but I always came back to this one. It great and just works.
• Blue yeti - Desktop USB microphone.
• Logitech C920 webcam - 6+ hours of video conferences a day. This web camera has been great.

Photography

• Sony a6400 - It can shoot in 4k and has built-in optical image stabilization.. APS-C, 24.2-megapixel
• Sigma 150-600mm f/5-6.3 DG OS HSM Contemporary Lens - Long lens uses for birding, connected to my Sony a6400 using Sigma MC-11
• Sony FE 50 mm F2.8 Macro - Macro lens used for taking pictures of spiders
• Sony E 18-135mm F3.5-5.6 OSS Kit lens - Came with the Sony a6400, I don’t use it often
• GoPro Hero10 Black - Mostly used for underwater Scuba, and time-lapse photography

What would be your dream setup?

A phone with magsafe case and the associated mounts. The only thing that is stopping me is the price of ~$200.