Ask HN: What work/office purchase transformed your life?

[blotato]

For me, it was purchasing a stressless recliner as my primary "office chair". I had tried a standing desk, kneeling chair, herman miller aeron, and many others. But I always ended up with various parts of my body hurting or tightening up, for example, my hips felt tight on the aeron due to my shorter stature. Switching to a stressless recliner, my body is way more relaxed now and easily productive for hours.

[solardev]

OK, cheating a bit here, but: My Jetbrains IDEs. It's a huge productivity boost for me over VSCode, with batteries included out of the box (great diff engine, gitlens like visual git, built in postman like client, SQL query editor and table browser, amazing indexed searched, awesome refactoring). I've paid for an individual sub for a decade and will probably keep doing it for life. Really great product that's useful every hour of the workday, no matter how I sit or stand.

[jjice]

I only use DataGrip, but oh boy is that the best $8 a month that my employer pays for. I'd pay an absurd amount out of pocket per month for DG alone. Easily $100 probably.

I've used so many SQL GUIs and DataGrip is better than all of them in every way. From the top notch intellisense to the great GUI with safe and commitable changes, there's just so much that blows everyone else out of the water. I spent two years at one job settling for SequelPro, an old freeware MacOS SQL client. What the hell was wrong with me? For $8 a month, I could have felt much more comfortable and been more effective in my development.

[kholdstayr]

I wish I could use DataGrip. I work in health IT but the database is over 1 TB and literally has over 1 thousand tables. DataGrip basically crashes.

I refunded my purchase.

[solardev]

Why is it loading all the tables at once? Just trying to list them all crashed it, you mean?

[tmaly]

I finally switched to using Jetbrains IDEs after using vim for so many decades.

I am curious how you went about learning all the features. There just seems to be so many and it can be a bit overwhelming.

[solardev]

I'm sure I still don't know them all! I just learn them as I need to. Like "how to revert a commit Jetbrains" or "Jetbrains query postgres" or "copilot for Jetbrains", etc.

Really 95% of the time I'm just using the code editor, intellisense, and search everywhere (shift shift shift). I'm glad the other features are there but it's totally fine to slowly discover them.

I think by default it also launches with a tip of the day feature, which you can manually browse through to see many of the tricks.

[coldtrait]

I feel like using IntelliJ for Java really made me like the process of writing code more, as opposed to having used Eclipse in the past. This was way before VS Code was a thing, to be fair. Now I have VS Code and I tried Cursor, but I keep coming back JetBrains IDEs for development.

[absoluteunit1]

I’ve become very dependent on it too and slowly transitioning to nvim for everything. Want to avoid having to pay the subscription

[solardev]

I understand trying to save money, but the individual licenses are really fairly priced. For a single IDE (like Webstorm) it's $69/year for the first year, then $41/year from year 3 and on. That's <$4/mo. And you can write it all off as a business expense.

For the price of a coffee (and maybe a bagel) once a month, you get access to something that can save you hours a week. And if you ever stop subscribing, you can keep using the last licensed version you have, just without further upgrades. I don't think there is a better value anywhere in the software world. It costs even less (and gives way more) than MS Office.

If you need more than one IDE, it's more expensive, but still not bad at all. They also give free licenses to FOSS maintainers, along with significant discounts for startups, education, nonprofits, etc.

[absoluteunit1]

You make a good point and I agree 100%; itinerant very reasonably priced. I realize that my comment only highlighted the price being the only factor in my decision to move to other editor. It’s really more like 10% of the reason. My main reason is not having my development experience tied to a single non-open source product. Jetsbrains + ideavim lead to a very highly customizable experience (things like quick lists, triggering ide menu options from ideavim bindings, etc) however it’s still not as configurable as the open source alternatives. Plus I get the benefit of not leaving the shell. This, the price and several other reasons led me to commit to it (another big reason is that it’s just plain fun; the things you can build\come up with to speed your development experience is honestly more of a hobby at this point. So it’s not even about the speed to get things done but something that’s just very enjoyable)

[leros]

I currently have 5 different JetBrains products open. I am very happy to pay my annual license for their products :)

[charlie0]

100% agreed, Jetbrain IDEs are great buys, but some people refuse to make the leap. I'm currently running into formatting issues/PR conflicts because of other devs refusing to switch over and the default formatting rules between Code and Jetbrains is wide.

[solardev]

Oh, yeah, we had that issue too and solved it pretty successfully with `.editorconfig` (shareable between VScode and IntelliJ, https://editorconfig.org/) combined with `prettier`.

Each IDE is configured to:

- Not reformat code on its own

- Ignore whitespace

- Run `prettier` as a pre-commit hook

Those settings are saved to `.editorconfig` where possible, or to each IDE's repo-specific folder (e.g. `.idea`).

Then in theory each developer can use whatever IDE they want, whatever whitespace settings they want (tabs vs spaces), and the end code committed to the repo is still the same. It took a commit or three to set up and work out all the kinks, but afterward it ran flawlessly.

[charlie0]

I've suggested that twice now, but it's a couple of the more senior members on the team being resistant, so the feet dragging continues.

[solardev]

Don't worry, one day soon you'll become the senior and pass along the torment with your favorite code styles :) And thus the cycle continues...

[charlie0]

I can't wait to mandate tabs over spaces, haha :D.

[skydhash]

I think the best solution is to settle for a third party formatter.

[swah]

What environmnts are you using it for ? I guess it shines more on languages other than webdev/react...

I enjoy it, but don't feel that many advantages over VSCode for my flow. (unfortuntely)

[harryquach]

For me it's been adding plants to my desk/office. It makes the room feel more alive and vibrant. I currently have a fiddle leaf fig and a succulent pot, love both of them.

[Obscurity4340]

Do you have two ferns from which to work between/conduct interviews?

[harryquach]

Sounds like a good zoom background, haha

[Obscurity4340]

Seriously, people will adore it if they're in the know. Make sure you get it exactly right, tho ;)

https://deadline.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/ph_unit_0279...

[Obscurity4340]

Might even be good entrance music for you if you're into that kind of pageantry/high up in the hierarchy

[seydor]

be careful, you may have a hundred in a year or so

[menshiki]

AirPods Pro without a doubt. It's the only item in my life that if it broke, I would immediately buy a replacement. I used them in the office to isolate myself from other people and when I'm walking outside to isolate myself from cars.

[nailer]

The mic quality is so poor though. I have to turn off Bluetooth to record voice notes to people.

Also if you drop them the earbuds always go flying.

[unsupp0rted]

With AirPods Pro I can’t walk next to a street and have the other person hear me on mic. For $300 you’d think I could.

[aaomidi]

I fucking hate that I can’t tell my phone to use my phone mic and not the AirPods mic. At least I can on laptops.

[ja27]

I got a case with a snap closure after having to crawl under the car multiple times to retrieve an earbud. I hate the bulk of it but beats the alternative. I used to keep an odd-sized wide rubber band around the case instead but lost it somewhere.

[e40]

I can't wear them because they really hurt after about 20 minutes.

Indoors, I use AirPod Max. They have the same benefits. They are really overpriced, but I can use them all day without any negative effects. The quality is superb.

One caveat: don't workout in them. They have issues with moisture.

[moooo99]

I can recommend the Bose QC45 or the Bose Headphones 700 as a less overpriced and more compatible alternative to the Max. Very good audio quality, comfortable fit (although the Headphones 700 tend to be rather tight depending on your head shape), and great noise canelling.

[gnicholas]

How did you choose them over Bose and Sony? My understanding is that they are more expensive and heavier than both of those. Is the noise cancellation so much better that it outweighs the cost and weight considerations?

[e40]

I have a pair of QC35's (v2, I think). They're OK. I'm in the Apple ecosystem and decided to try them with the idea of returning them if I didn't like them.

The NC isn't hugely better, but the transparent mode is kickass. I use it all the time.

I think they are overpriced, but after more than a year with them I'm happy I have them.

Note that they were really tight when I got them and I saw a post on reddit about bending the top bar to make them looser. Before doing it I couldn't wear them more than an hour at a time. Now I can wear them all day.

I have a bias against Sony, for many reasons (over the years), though I have no doubt their headphones are really good, too.

[unsupp0rted]

Try Comply memory foam ear tips with AirPods Pro’s. I can do 5 hours no prob. Near 7 I start to really feel them.

[e40]

I had to "adjust" them to make them comfortable. From another reply:

> Note that they were really tight when I got them and I saw a post on reddit about bending the top bar to make them looser. Before doing it I couldn't wear them more than an hour at a time. Now I can wear them all day.

I found the comment:

https://www.reddit.com/r/airpods/comments/mpjwp8/finally_sol...

Regarding the AirPod Pro's... I can't wear them for even 30 minutes without pain, but I will look into the suggested tips. With the original tips, how long can you wear them?

[cocoa19]

I really wanted to like them. They kept falling out of my ear with all tips, and at almost $300, I didn’t want to have to buy aftermarket foam tips or ear hooks.

The sound is great and the Bluetooth pairing is excellent though.

[DamnInteresting]

I had the same issue, so now I use them without any of the tips. The noise cancellation isn't quite as effective, but they're still better than average earbuds.

[ja27]

My gen 1's had so many issues with the earbuds having crackling and squealing when set to anything but no processing mode. Swapped them through support I think five times before the program expired.

Bought the gen 2 USB-C ones as soon as they got discounted and love them. The noise cancellation is noticeably improved. I'm mostly fine with the stock tips but do have some of the Comply foam tips which give a little tighter seal.

[roland35]

I think the microphones used for noise cancelling were prone to getting damaged, same thing happened to my gen 1s too

[zamadatix]

On the flipside, unless you're specifically referring to the newer Max model, getting away from earpods and using around-ear headphones led to a MASSIVE boost in my comfort level after a day of work.

[eternityforest]

I don't drive, so getting to and from work is often more work than the actual work, plus, a lot of what I do isn't desk work.

I spend a lot more on on-the-go gear than office stuff.

* Tile Trackers

* Vacuum insulated water bottles, food jars, and a coffee mug

* A decent phone

* A MOLLE backpack(SOG Ninja) and accessories.

* A headlamp (Sofirn HS10, it's tiny and USB-C rechargeable)

* Zero drop barefoot shoes

* An ultra slim neck wallet

* An A5 6-ring planner for the rare occasions I'm using real paper

* Duplicate home and backpack copies of things like USB chargers

My latest purchase is some 1.8mm reflective cord.

Tied around a carabiner at both ends, so I can quickly clip my keys to my belt with one of those tactical belt hangar things, and ensure they don't fall out of my pocket.

[mnky9800n]

Are you Anatomy Wasserman?

https://c8.alamy.com/comp/ebfcff/moscow-russia-29th-nov-2014...

[rvbissell]

I don't know who Anatomy Wasserman is, but I'm pretty certain that will be my "final form"

[mnky9800n]

He's a guy from Odessa whose famous in Russian speaking spaces (and sometimes on Reddit) for having lots of pockets filled with things.

[rvbissell]

On the assumption that 'Anatomy' was a spellchecker distortion of Anatoly: everything in your reply was already obvious except 'Odessa'.

[mnky9800n]

You're welcome.

[gautamsomani]

Sorry but his dressing is a bit funny.

[dieselgate]

What is a neck wallet? Have never heard of something like that

[wddkcs]

Just a wallet on a lanyard to hang around your neck, assuming it's like ones I've seen. I've seen used in less safe countries to avoid pickpockets, not sure if there's other reasons. The benefits of a fanny pack without the style.

[eternityforest]

They're also much harder to just randomly leave behind, especially if you mostly never actually need them because you just pay with your watch or phone

[Obscurity4340]

Actually genius

[ja27]

I bought a waterproof USB-C rechargeable headlamp after having to deal with a clogged gutter in a very heavy rainstorm. My non-sealed headlamps were useless and holding a sealed flashlight while up on a ladder sucked.

It's handy even when not on your head since you can angle it almost anywhere.

[FFP999]

How do you normally do your work commute? Bike, walk, public transit? Just curious.

[ted_bunny]

Shoe recs? My Feiyues are crucial to me but they look kinda junky.

[eternityforest]

I've been wearing Unshoes sandals and Xero Hana shoes when it's winter or I'm going to work.

I've been really thinking about getting a pair of Keen Sparta 2 work shoes though because I keep randomly doing stuff where safety toes would probably be a good thing.

I also spend probably under $50 a year, total, on all clothes and shoes together, so I'm not exactly an expert.

[ted_bunny]

I probably spend $50 a year on replacing my worn out feiyues, so you're a step ahead of me!

[washadjeffmad]

HM Embody. It's not "comfy", but after six months, a lower back condition that hasn't been corrected, only managed by years of PT improved enough for me to go off pain management. Bonus: It also solved a prostate issue I didn't know I had.

RealForce R3S TKL, 30g. I returned a Kinesis 360 and got this instead. None of the reviews helped, and tbf, it's not easy to explain the difference or value of optical programmable switches until you use them. Note: I broke my hand a lifetime ago, and it just wasn't mechanically able to fit the 360's ergonomics. You have to be well to stay well, I guess.

Air purifiers. Breathe well.

High CRI lighting. Your lights can be for more than helping you not bump into things. I feel like I'm seeing our home for the first time, and I need less light to prevent strain or fatigue while reading, etc.

[jsamson12]

> HM Embody. It's not "comfy", but after six months, a lower back condition that hasn't been corrected, only managed by years of PT improved enough for me to go off pain management. Bonus: It also solved a prostate issue I didn't know I had.

Was the prostate issue weak flow or something else if you don't mind me asking? I tried a HM Embody and returned it because it felt like it was pushing my shoulders too far forward / causing rounding. My 'pelvic issue' did seem slightly improved when I was using the HM Embody but I never seen anyone else mention the two together. Maybe I should try it again!

[sameAsYou]

Back pain is no joke. Great to hear you’re better.

Which air purifiers do you recommend?

[nucleardog]

If you’re looking for a weekend project and are even slightly handy… a fan and a decent furnace filter is a good cheap solution.

I’ve got two 3M filtrete filters, some activated charcoal sitting in front of them, and a small duct fan to pull air through it all. (Build information is in this comment and the one reply: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=37223106). For what a filter rated for 600sqft would have cost me, I instead got one that can do 3,000sqft. Or more usefully less space with more air changes per hour (like ten per hour instead of two).

I’ve got a $600-ish German air quality monitor that says it does what it should, which makes sense because as long as you’re pulling air through the filters… they’re gonna filter.

If you’re looking smaller scale, you can buy sheets of activated charcoal and sheets of MERV13 filter material. A little 120mm fan and a tiny filter box could run pretty quietly in an office and do the trick.

However I think the most important advice I’d give (and also the cheapest!) is to, unless you’re in a _heavily_ polluted area, open your windows. No air filter you’re going to get will remove CO2 and once you start measuring it you’d be amazed/horrified how quickly it builds up indoors to “brain fog” levels.

[charlie0]

I've gotten the Winix ones from Costco and they work great. I really notice a difference now that it's getting cold and my windows are shut most of the time.

[lazyeye]

The problem with shutting windows is CO2 quickly gets up to unhealthy levels. Takes about 2 hours in my office.

A good quality CO2 monitor (e.g Aranet) is a worthwhile investment.

[charlie0]

That probably explains the weird sensations in my chest, especially when turning on the stove to cook something.

[philwelch]

What levels are you seeing?

[lazyeye]

1100-1200. I believe in the mining industry anything over 800 inside a truck cab is considered unsafe. Fresh air is 470ish. I try to keep my room around 600 but not always possible.

[moooo99]

If you're into smart home stuff, I can recommend the IKEA STARKVIND. It integrates nicely into the room, filters are decently easy to swap and Zigbee works well with Home Assistant

[aaomidi]

Not op but honestly literally any non UV one is fine.

If you have to have UV, make sure the ozone produced has somewhere to go.

[altairprime]

Seconding three of four of these: Embody, high CRI lighting, air purifiers.

Thirteen years on my Embody so far, it’s doing fine.

Edit: Also, any 200+ ppi display. My old eyes need the extra pixels to read comfortably.

[cbovis]

I don't know if "transformed my life" would be the right term but I always harp on to colleagues about my Polycom. I was skeptical when originally buying it but the purchase has ended up being one of my favourite things on my desk.

My laptop is docked and closed so using the built in mic and speaker isn't a great experience on remote calls. I don't like the experience of using headphones for a call because of the effect they have on how I perceive my own voice.

With the Polycom on my desk I just join a call, have everything set up automatically and get a great speaking/listening experience. Connectivity issues have been extremely rare and I can't remember the last time I needed to mess with settings unlike my Airpods which feel 50/50.

I personally have the Plantronics P7200 but there's many good options out there. Plus points for being able to expense it to my employers work from home allowance.

[natdempk]

If you ever want to go back to headphones, open-back headphones can avoid basically any issues with voice perception.

[jbverschoor]

Which polycom device ?

[cbovis]

https://www.poly.com/us/en/products/phones/calisto/calisto-7...

[jbverschoor]

Ahh. So it’s really good? Does it play mine with voice isolation on Mac/iPhone?

I’m kind of addicted to that.

[car]

The Jabra Speak series are also great.

[andrei_says_]

A pull-up bar for my home office. I do a couple of pull ups every time I walk through that door. Amounts to 5-15 / day.

[e40]

Be really, really careful about installation. I recommend something like this:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B087FRRDN9/?ie=UTF8&th=1

I have one and it's rock solid.

[tonightstoast]

What is your fear? I have one that "grips" the front and back of the frame and it works really well and has for 1000s of reps.

[e40]

Falling. I've seen videos of that. The injuries can be severe.

[andrei_says_]

Mine is the grippy kind - no screws. And you’re right, a pull up bar malfunction would not be fun. No issues so far.

[roland35]

I think if you keep your feet underneath your body you should be ok. Just don't do any swinging crazy pullups?

[PrivateButts]

I'll second what others said about chairs and nice keyboards. If you're going to spend a lot of time using it, it might as well be a good one. Some other things that helped me with a mainly work from home life:

- A very large desk with a ton of space to tinker with things. I got an corner desk, with one wing holding an electronics workbench, and the other kept clean for working on my 3d printer or camera or taxes, etc. PC is in the center

- Monitor arms, they are just night and day better than stands

- More monitors, I went up to 3, but I've been thinking of adding more or swapping one with a lg dual up

- Stream Deck, really nice to add macros to your workflow. It's also got nice integrations with Teams and Discord for helping with calls

- Wireless headset, I use a steel series one. Very nice to be able to get up and get water or a snack during a meeting and not miss anything

- EInk notebook, I hate typing notes, and this replaced my pile of scratch pads

- Nvidia Broadcast, noise cancellation you can apply to both yourself and the shit audio your boss's laptop mic makes

Not a purchase, but I've taken the time to make some simple scripts to improve my workflow lately and it's been great. I have one that I use multiple times a day that just turns on my webcam and light, then opens OBS in virtual cam mode. When I close OBS it turns off the cam and light. It may just change 4 clicks to 1 click but it's quite nice in practice.

[greyhound291]

Which EInk notebook do you use?

[zeagle]

I use a boox ultra c. I really like it and take notes, draw, read but the color is not great for this generation.

[PrivateButts]

BOOX Note Air2. It's pretty good for what I need. The fact that it's Android underneath is really nice.

[iamwpj]

Yes to the large desk! I have a dining table with the leaves taken out. I can't believe how tiny home desks are. No one would tolerate a 28" depth at work -- why do we just accept this in the home?

[lazyeye]

I think a problem with multiple monitors is eventually you start getting neck problems due to constant head pivot movements. Its like you are watching a tennis game, all day, every day, for years.

[aggieNick02]

CompareIt! [1] - It's an ancient diff program last updated over a decade ago, but I've never found a diff program nearly as useful.

It is windows only, but it is fast, allows quickly setting manual anchor points (I miss this horribly when doing git diffs via vimdiff), and has converters for common file formats like doc and pdf (extracts the text and then does the diff).

I use it for both work and home. In addition to code diff, it's great for comparing things like PDFs of insurance renewals, to see what has changed.

It's the best $30 I've ever spent on software.

[1] https://www.grigsoft.com/wincmp3.htm

[speps]

I always request a Beyond Compare [1] license every job I have now, for similar reasons.

[1] https://www.scootersoftware.com/

[aggieNick02]

I remember trying Beyond Compare several years ago (after it was clear CompareIt! was abandon-ware) - it came close, but back then (for me at least) CompareIt! was a better experience. (It was also what I was already used to, to be fair.)

But I should probably take a look again and see how it compares now, because I can only imagine what vulnerabilities might lurk in CompareIt!'s stale PDF/Word/etc. viewers.

Almost any code movement/indentation changes seem to yield messy diffs in vimdiff, while CompareIt! (and others like Beyond Compare) could deal with huge movement and let you see what actually changed.

[Panqueca_do_mar]

You've maybe tried it, but if not check out https://meldmerge.org

[janpio]

Oh wow, I use WinMerge and they almost look identical on the screenshots. Honestly googled if they are not the same, or open source version of it - but does not seem so.

[red-iron-pine]

probably just front ends to diff or fc commands, drawn the same way.

[KomoD]

I really miss software like this... simple, fast, small, just works, they're rare nowadays

[keshet]

Changing desk height to standing height and buying a saddle stool.

I used to bike to work but as soon as I sat down at my desk I felt like I was cutting my body at the waist. My lower body/legs were some kind of passive appendage stuck to my chair.

The first week of working while standing I kept looking for a chair to sit on, it was really distracting and I felt tired.

I bought a saddle stool with enough height so that I can transfer back and forth between standing and sitting. The stool has no back support and my legs are still fairly straight (like sitting on a bar stool) so my body is still much more active than just sitting in a chair.

Definitely life-changing. I have suffered from lower back pain all my life. If I have to go back to sitting in a chair for more than a few days I feel my back starting to lock up. In the standing/saddle configuration this doesn't happen.

Here is a random example: https://shop.lfhair.com.au/product/saddle-stool-ch-841/

[FFP999]

An ergonomic split keyboard. Suddenly I can type without rotating my shoulders inward. Which in turn means more room in my chest for my lungs to expand. The difference was not subtle. Learning to touch-type on this thing took a while but was totally worth it.

[astroid]

For me it was the Glove80 -- it is kind of mid-range pricewise in this space (but still around $400), but it immediately solved my RSI pain and they offer a ton of accessories like quick release mounts you can use to set each side up on a chair arm for example.

I debated getting something like the Freestyle 2, but I had a suspicion the the curvature following the shape of your hand was going to be a key feature, and I think I was right. No regrets.

[SOLAR_FIELDS]

A popular and reasonably affordable option that I used for years is the Kinesis brand (I used a Freestyle 2).

I don't really have ergo problems like other people though, and a regular 10 key Filco Majestouch 2 is my daily driver now. But I did like the Freestyle when I used it. It's worthwhile to get the angular stand kit that is an addon when you buy it (I believe it cost an extra $30 USD or so when I got it, but that was years ago)

[sethammons]

learning to touch type on the ergodox-ez was a barrier for me. I went from 70wpm to like 20. I'm sure it would have came back up after some time, but I just went with a Cloud9 Split Mechanical because it is _just_ like using the microsoft ergo 4000. I had no drop in typing speed adopting it; if anything, my speed immediately improved.

[FFP999]

The EZ is the keyboard I have. I found that almost harder than getting used to the layout, was the extra pressure that's required, going from using the squishy keyboard that came free with my last desktop machine to something with mechanical switches.

[blotato]

Yes! Kinesis ergonomic keyboard changed my life then i moved to Moonlander so i could rest the split keyboard on each arm of my recliner

[FFP999]

I've been meaning to get a longer TRRS cable so I can go s u p e r w i d e and release my shoulders even a little more. It's good suff.

[gmkabro]

- Moonlander keyboard. I was experiencing numbness in a couple of my fingers, and having the keyboard split into two pieces lets me relax my shoulders and just feels much, much more comfortable. Plus the programmable layout means I can make all the stuff I need for coding (curly braces, brackets, oft-used combos like =>) much more accessible.

-48” 4k OLED screen. A single large screen, combined with a tiling window manager, is just so much better than multiple smaller monitors. I typically have my IDE taking up 2/3 of the screen and my browser covering the other 1/3 - but I can easily adjust this depending on my needs. Plus it’s got HDR and a decent refresh rate (120hz) so it’s great for playing games too. It’s technically a tv, not a monitor, but it has a “PC mode” that fixes text rendering and enables vsync.

[SJetKaran]

are you on Linux since you mentioned a tiling window manager, or are you using something like yabai on mac?

[kopos]

My Remarkable 2 E-Ink notebook for sure. I'm a pen and paper notes taker - R2 has been extremely useful in freeing me up from the pen and paper books. And my notes are searchable and tagged!

[sylens]

my hesitation with these E-Ink notebooks is getting the notes off the device and into my other computers in some automated way. Have you found a good workflow for that?

[52-hertz_whale]

Boox eink tablets can automatically copy notebooks directly to Dropbox or Google Drive in PDF format. It's a very useful feature.

https://help.boox.com/hc/en-us/articles/10701398359572-Integ...

[blackhaj7]

How close does it feel to pen and paper?

I loathe the idea of paying a subscription for a device I am already paying money for but I find pen and paper way more liberating than a computer. I am very tempted by e-ink notebooks as they feel somewhere in between the two

[disgruntledphd2]

I find the Remarkable is pretty much exactly like pen and paper, but it syncs to the desktop which makes it way handier.

[ja27]

Top is maybe my old Dell 27" 4K Ultrasharp. Still nice and bright but lacks USB-C/Thunderbolt. Plenty of pixels for me and a good height range.

I tried lots of USB-C docks/dongles and finally gave in and got a decent lower-end Thunderbolt dock from Anker. No more juggling multiple cables to get 4K60. Single cable solution to dock my MacBook Pro and run pretty much anything.

It isn't currently in my office, but a cheap recumbent stationary bike has been a good help to knock out some cardio when I have a break.

Well top is really the M1 Pro MacBook Pro. Fast, silent and 95% of the time I don't even think about battery life. A big improvement over my 2019 i9 MBP.

Related, also maybe my 12.9" iPad Pro with the Magic Keyboard cover. It's a 2018 with a dying battery but it makes a great book reader, video viewer, spare monitor, etc. With the keyboard case it's decent for writing or remote terminal work. It's become my "couch laptop" and what I throw in the car in case I get stuck waiting for something or someone.

I've got a cheap standing desk but meh - mostly sit at it but being able to change height even for sitting is nice. Cheap-ish Tempur-Pedic office chair works pretty well for me. Creative Pebble Pro speakers were a big improvement over my previous ones with analog input and a subwoofer I kept kicking. Anker C200 webcam and Audio-Technica ATR2100x-USB microphone were cheap upgrades for calls. A clamp-on cupholder that keeps my drink stable and away from possible spills onto my MacBook is a win. A few external SSDs for Time Machine etc.

[iamwpj]

Second on a NICE sizable monitor -- and high pixel density too. I have a Dell and one USB-C cable does the trick. No dock needed, it has enough USB-A (webcam, keyboard).

[S_Bear]

- A logitech MX vertical mouse. I rarely have carpal tunnel issues using it all day. I wish it was a bit more responsive and I'd use it for gaming because it's so comfortable

- A decent backpack with space for a) a whole set of USB cords b) a small hand tools kit and c) a small cutlery set. Having dedicated cords and tools for just my backpack is nice, and a nice cutlery set is good for meetings and out in the field when I don't want to waste single-use plastic.

[anotherevan]

I damaged my elbow (lateral epicondylitis) and found the MX vertical was much more comfortable and less pain inducing.

Pressing the scroll wheel button is a little stiffer than my previous mouses, but you adapt quick enough. I find the middle finger lifts off and behind the index finger to give a little extra help.

[kresa]

Is the scroll wheel on your MX vertical working as expected for you? I find it really hard to press.

[S_Bear]

I've never had a problem. Mine's 4 years old, though, so maybe they changed in the past few years.

[ElevenLathe]

Arctis Nova Pro Wireless Headset. I can stay connected to both my workstation (with enough range to cover my house and some of the yard) and my phone at the same time. This allows me to wander/pace away from my desk during meetings, and also answer calls without taking it off. It's super comfy, and comes with two batteries so the base can charge one while the other is in use, meaning you never have to plug it in to charge (if you're away from the base station and just using them as Bluetooth headphones, you can also charge with a USB-C cable). The quality is pretty good (not as good as my Sennheisers but good), and the battery compartment has a thoughtful magnetic catch instead of a bit of plastic that will break off. The styling is muted and not super "gamery". There's even an 1/8" jack if you need to listen to something that only has analog out.

It's a wonderfully designed piece of kit and I highly recommend it to anyone who works on a computer or is a PC gamer (edit: now that I think about it, it should also work on most modern consoles, but I can't vouch for that).

[rainclouds]

That dual audio feature is why I own one.

[kasperlitheater]

Second that. It's just amazing.

[mortallywounded]

How's support on Linux?

[ElevenLathe]

I haven't tried it on a bare metal Linux workstation but afaik it doesn't require any drivers on Windows -- it just looks like a standard USB sound card, so probably it would be fine?

[mnky9800n]

I hate the price tag but the apple studio display just works. The speakers are nice, the camera works without input, it plugs into my MacBook and I didn't need to change the settings to keep it closed and running. Maybe I'm living in 2005 where all this sounds impossible but I find it really makes it ten times easier to show up to work and just get working instead of fiddling with settings each morning.

[e40]

I feel the same about my AirPod Max. Overpriced but it works so damn well, especially with other Apple products.

[hardware2win]

Physical sticky notes

Really!

I never used them and after receiving them as a "gift" I started loving using em.

They really help me manage both: job and private stuff!

[pbnjeh]

They have an extra-sticky variety. Now my notes don't "grow legs" or fall off the wall.

[gnicholas]

Peel them off from left to right (not bottom to top, as feels natural) and they won’t be as inclined to grow legs.

[29athrowaway]

Post-its from 3M, an awesome source of PFAS.

Perfect to pollute your home in a permanent and irreversible way.

[sheepshear]

Hurry up and stock up on PFAS before they're gone!

https://pfas.3m.com/pfas_uses

[red-iron-pine]

for context, 3M is got sued extra hard, along with a few other orgs, for PFAS chems

https://www.cbc.ca/news/world/3m-pfa-forever-chemicals-lawsu...

> 3M to pay at least $10.3B to settle 'forever chemical' drinking water lawsuits in U.S.

[sheepshear]

I'm just saying if you're dying to use their post it notes but you don't want PFAS, check back in a couple years to see if they've been removed.

[hardware2win]

Im using office depot

Are they safe?

[29athrowaway]

It depends. What do you consider safe?

[ezekg]

I would get pretty bad wrist pain due to what I'm assuming is carpal tunnel, so I got a DeltaHub Carpio 2.0. It changed everything -- no more pain. It took a few weeks to get used to, but now I don't even notice it (unless it's gone). I work with it, I play competitive FPS games with it.

Another would be a standing desk with an Ergodriven Topo Mat. I stand 99% of the time. I don't even own an office chair anymore. My back feels much better (I really feel better overall). My feet hurt pretty bad in the morning, right after I wake up, though. But a worthy tradeoff.

Another would a Audient EVO 4 audio interface. It lets me mix ambient sound from my mic with my music (sometimes I like to hear my wife and kids or my mechanical keyboard, other times I do not).

Lastly would be an AirDoctor.

[zeagle]

Standing desk with same USB C dock + jabra headset + ergonomic microsoft sculpt keyboard + similar dual monitors in my home and work office. It's been very convenient as I can grab and go to plug in my personal laptop, work laptop, or usb c the peripherals to to the gaming desktop pretty easily.

Dragon medical dictation and now dragon one dictation. I don't agree with their frankly predatory end of life discontinuation to not activate any more licenses for the former, but man is it convenient. Just gives my hands and mind a break.

If you have suggestions for another ergonomic keyboard I'm all ears! My work one stopped working with my corporate laptop this week and I can't figure it out. Most of what I've seen doesn't have F-keys which are essential for me.

[blotato]

I just replied this to another comment: Kinesis ergonomic keyboard or Moonlander split keyboard. I personally prefer Kinesis but needed a split keyboard for my recliner. Using the kinesis would've had my arms too high up.

[astroid]

I prefer the Glove80 over both (not affiliated, just my experience). Regardless of exact model, split ergonomic is a game changer.

[zeagle]

I ordered one of these to try it out. Thanks again!

[zeagle]

Thanks! Can you press a button to do Fn+1/2/3 on these?

[VoodooJuJu]

Employees. They're pretty passive aggressive, but for the most part they just shut up and do their work. Makes my job easy. These days I mostly just take people to lunch, golf, smile & shake hands, occasionally do an inspirational TED-like talk, and just collect the cash.

[sethammons]

I need a height adjustable desk that can go down to my lap and up to standing. Being able to go as low as my lap allows my feet to stay flat on the floor, my legs to have even pressure on my fancy herman miller aaron chair seat, and then have my arms comfortably at my side with my forearms level to the tabletoptype on my split mechanical keyboard. I also recently went to a vertical mouse. The computer stand needs to be tall enough that my eyes are generally looking straight, not up or down.

I also like a good mic and good webcam (currently using a dslr).

Also having a large thermos of water at arms length.

[nazarewk]

hands down best purchase for me was a split keyboard. Had a hard time justifying it, but 2 years in it does wonders in terms of chest/back comfort compared to traditional keyboards.

second best purchase was a quality all-mesh office chair (locally purchased Ioo in my case, similar to aeron). My primary motivation was coping with heatwaves in the southern/top floor apartment (it worked great). Generally high quality and comfort warranted a second purchase for my wife after ~6 years. I was sceptical about ageing of the mesh material over the years, but after ~8 years of use you can hardly tell it apart from a freshly unboxed chair.

[RecycledEle]

1. Large internal hard disks and USB back-ups to archive a ton of information.

2. I registered for a free Canvas account on Instructute.com and now build courses to teach everything I learn.

3. Deciding that upgrading my PC's system unit would wait as I bought new peripherals, like 43" 4k TV as monitors, a better keyboard, a DSLR, etc.

4. Used Xeon-powered workstations, then learning to upgrade them.

5. Learning that the best things in life are free, like large-format color copiers on CraigsList that have a small and fixable issue, but are too heavy yo move without renting a commercial truck with a lift gate.

6. A VPN so I could pirate books and audio books.

[teknico]

> a free Canvas account on

apparently https://www.instructure.com/

[RecycledEle]

Correct. Thank You for posting the link I neglected to post.

[charlie0]

Phillips Hue and having multiple presets. Now that the DST is over, it's darker in the morning for me, so I have a Hue scene to turn on most of the lights in my office bright, but not at max. In the afternoon, once the sun starts to set, I have another preset that plays well with dark mode, but still somewhat bright. Then I have a more dimmer preset for later in the evening. I've noticed it has improved my circadian rhythm.

Another great buy was the Cal-Digit TS4. It's hooked up to two monitors, a WD SSD for Time Machine backups, and Ethernet.

[hshsbs84848]

It’s possible the recliner is just mitigating the problem by allowing you to not sit as straight

I had the same issue of tight hips/pain when sitting up straight and I found doing hamstring stretches and some core work a couple times per week fixed the issue for me

Something I learned was that a lot of time tight hips or lower back pain is actually due to tight hamstrings

[absoluteunit1]

Hardware / furniture

- Kinesis Advantage 2 keyboard (with QMK Stapleberg mod via Teensy microcontroller). This way I get the advantage of the extremely ergonomic keyboard + plus the benefit of it being highly configurable/programmable via C (QMK)

- adjustable desk

- ergonomic chair (got it second hand from a furniture store that buys from businesses that are closing down offices; essentially an 1.5k chair for $200 in good condition)

Software-wise

- learning vim/nvim (long term commitment but after a few years it starts bearing fruit and I’m more productive on it than any other tools I’ve used

- raycast (powerful, highly configurable Mac OS launcher)

- using a clipboard (I use the Raycast built in one; have a dedicated key for it)

- vimium (vim motions in browser)

- benefits of vim and vimium is that I don’t use mouse much and so my shoulder doesn’t hurt (from moving back and from from keyboard and mouse) and I don’t use the mouse scroller (biggest killer for hand pain for me)

[blotato]

yeah QMK is the best, i have a whole separate layer just to emulate a subset of vim movement using hjkl keys

[absoluteunit1]

Oh that’s interesting to hear. I do that too :D

Which emulator do you use or did you write your own ?

[ss48]

Evoluent Vertical Mouse. Mouse lasted for about 4 years (the middle scroll wheel stopped working), and replacement mouse purchased is still going strong.

https://evoluent.com/products/vm4rw/

My wrist would ached so much when working at a computer until I started using it. Then got a PERIBOARD-409 keyboard (https://www.amazon.com/Perixx-PERIBOARD-409U-Mini-Keyboard-1...) that would allow me to keep the mouse closer to the keyboard.

[bozhark]

Herman Miller Embody.

I am physically disabled from severing my spine. This changed my experience of being at the desk.

[tomcam]

Teeny teeny computers like the old MacBook Air. Mind you, I’m a workaholic and enjoy work. Buying computers that are usable but are so small you don’t mind carrying them around all day is a giant productivity hack. You can work on the bus, when your doctor runs late, etc.

[mnky9800n]

Assuming your work is something you can do in two minute increments

[tomcam]

I have a chaotic home life, so I have always optimized for it. You can do things like write some CSS, debug a problem with a webpage, optimize a query or at least think about it, send a useful text, etc.

[tra3]

how do you not lose context? sometimes when I come back to my desk I have no clue what I was working on or what the problem is.

[tomcam]

I take lots of notes and comment code extensively!

[vegasje]

Is the old Air still the best option in this space, or have other manufacturers stepped up in recent years?

Last time I looked (a few years ago) the Air was far and away the best performer.

[itbeho]

The late 2020 M1 Air is my favorite of the many laptops I've owned over the years.

[tomcam]

New Airs are just fine. I have one. I still prefer my old one, but the screen resolution is low enough that I have trouble with some websites.

[patatino]

I have a random chair, a random desk, a random monitor, a random keyboard and mouse, and I never had any problems with anything at all. I feel lucky I have not had problems with my eyes, hands, or back doing this for 20+ years.

[mrtedbear]

The biggest transformation was getting an RH Mereo chair. For me it's solved the back and leg issues caused by poor posture.

It's the first chair to make me sit comfortably & correctly [1].

Also transformational were:

* Corne split keyboard

* Benq e-reading lamp

* Galaxy Tab S8+

* Sit/stand desk

* Cheap foldable laptop stand from AliExpress (laptops by default seem terrible for posture).

[1] https://www.npr.org/sections/goatsandsoda/2018/08/13/6360250...

[stevenicr]

Would like to hear about the tab S* is transforming what exactly? I have a couple similar and there was a time when I used one a LOT in bed - but living conditions have changed and I don't get to use as much as I used to -

wondering how others are using them these days.

[bdcravens]

The Aeron actually works great for me, but I realize each person's body is different. In my case, it relieves pressure on my lower back, where I've had a lot of bone density loss due to a medical condition.

[tomwojcik]

Would you be able to share a picture of your setup? I can't imagine a desk and a stress recliner, and I have similar problems with my posture. Also tried many chairs, including kneeling rocking chair.

[blotato]

I have the stressless recliner, standing desk, single large monitor, monitor arm to tilt my monitor towards me since I'm reclined, ergo split keyboard which I rest on the arms of the recliner, and a small table right next to my recliner where I put my trackball mouse, phone, and water. The standing desk isn't necessary, it's just what I've had all these years, but it's nice to precisely adjust the height of the desk based on comfort. The monitor arm is key so that my monitor remains parallel to me. Imagine sitting in a normal office chair, the monitor would be vertical - since I'm reclined, I need to tilt it accordingly.

[joegahona]

Are you willing to share a link to the specific chair you have? "Stressless" appears to be both a brand name and a type of recliner, which makes it difficult to search for.

[blotato]

I got the Stressless Reno https://shop.stressless.com/en/c/recliners/reno I visited a local furniture store that's a certified retailer of Stressless and got to try a bunch of models out. I brought my keyboard with me to simulate how it'd feel. The thing to look for - your body should be so relaxed you almost start napping in 10-15 mins. There should be zero tension in your shoulders or your neck (i.e. chair should not push your neck forward or else you'll get headaches).

[dyingkneepad]

I painted my walls white (from shitty brown) and now I'm not depressive anymore.

I also bought a split ergonomic keyboard (Dygma Raise), and now I hate typing on every other keyboard.

[car]

Current setup:

- Humanscale Freedom chair with headrest, gel seat and gel arm rests

- Accell Thunderbolt 4 Docking station, 96W USB-C w/ 2x Dell 2715q

- Logitech MX Master mouse & MX Keys keyboard

- Fry's mousepad

- Xiaomi Mi Monitor Light Bar w/ remote

- STM Myth 18L Laptop Backpack

- Jabra Speak 510

[nxobject]

A used, very fast enterprise-grade LaserJet with a duplexer and stapler. I think mine’s at least 15 years old, and somehow there’s still third party parts and consumables available.

[PebblesHD]

Investing in actual office space that isn’t directly in my bedroom space, with a large solid desk on a standing frame, and a 50” ultrawide with a KVM in it. Everything just works, I can focus, I have good music and speakers, and when it’s time to finish for the day I can turn it all off with one button and walk out.

In my case this was done by moving to a larger house with a seperate office, but this could easily be a shed, a wework, or a rented commercial suite, but the separation really helped.

[deng]

First time I heard of Stressless recliners. Which one specifically are you using? They look awesome, but oh my are they expensive. Are there affordable alternatives?

[bennyelv]

I'll second spending money on a chair. Spend as much as is required to find one that works for you.

After years of compromising and not wanting to spend what looks on the surface like silly money on a chair, I splashed out on a Herman Miller Mirra 2.

It's so comfortable that I'm pretty sure I could sit on it for the rest of my life and I'd never be in any pain, and it's in its 10th year of service without anything breaking, degrading or wobbling.

Best investment I've ever made!

[unvs]

We have the Mirra 2s at the office and I'll second this. Great chairs!

[jvanderbot]

Ergodox keyboard and vertical trackball mouse saved my arms. Another commented suggested two trackball mice, one for left and right to alternate. Might do that too.

[neilyio]

Hifiman Ananda wired headphones. They are the lightest and clearest headphones I've ever used. I was fed up with the unreliable connection and dying battery in my Airpods Max. Listening to music is now effortless, and I'm listening more closely than ever to all genres.

I keep them on a wooden stand on my desk, plugged into an Apogee Duet 3 interface.

[benrapscallion]

Logitech MX Vertical mouse

[bluefirebrand]

Yeah, I went from lots of wrist pain to none by switching to a vertical mouse. I don't think I'm ever moving to a trackball though.

I think a split keyboard will be my next investment, based on the comments in this thread.

[KyleJune]

Yea, I've tried a lot of different types of mice. The Logitech MX Vertical mouse has been the best for me so far. For split keyboard, I was using Microsoft Sculpt but after having my second one break, I decided to go up market to the ergodox ez. I think it's worth it but it is harder to get adjusted to.

[anotherevan]

I damaged my elbow (lateral epicondylitis) and found the MX vertical was much more comfortable and less pain inducing.

[patwoz]

My first split keyboard, where I could also easily change the angle. That was an ergonomic game changer for me. I can really recommend a split keyboard to anyone. In my case, it's a Dygma keyboard. I use vim as my primary editor and I've never been able to type so fast and for so long without interruption

[shaileshm]

Been using a splitkb for a year now. The only regret, I didn't buy it sooner.

Seriously nothing compares to the typing experience of split keyboard. Open shoulders are great, relaxed arms and wrists is a blessing, then there are layers. Those are sooooo awesome when used in correct way!

It has really been amazing experience. I can't imagine going to normal keyboards.

[fear91]

A large SAD light therapy light (beurer). Fixes my insomnia. Bonus points for acting as a webcam light.

[francisofascii]

I use two mice. I have a trackball mouse for my left hand and also use a conventional mouse for my right hand. I switch back and forth throughout the day. I suffered CTS early in my career when getting a full time job. I could not work full time without this setup.

[DamnInteresting]

My setup is similar, but with an Elecom Huge trackball on the right, and a magic touchpad on the left for quick gestures such as swapping desktops. It's excellent.

[tiddles]

I have been trying out a trackball as a mouse replacement only. I will try this setup, nice idea

[Symbiote]

A silent (fanless) desktop computer.

[heliodor]

A big desk. A bunch deeper and longer than the bare minimum. And L-shaped so that I can rest my hand on it.

Having an external monitor behind my laptop screen allows me to change the focal distance of my eyes back and forth, so that's probably good for the eyes.

[boringalterego]

Portable USB monitor for business trips. That second monitor when on the road does wonders.

[spdif899]

For me this is where Apple's walled garden shines - my work laptop is a MacBook and I own an iPad for personal use. The iPad can connect to the laptop and function as a (high quality albeit small) secondary display. And then I have an entertainment device the rest of the time instead of just a monitor taking up bag space.

[jondwillis]

Plus, you don’t even need a USB cable if you’re on the same network.

[ja27]

Great when it works, but I had so many disconnects from my iPad that I gave in and bought a portable 14" 2K monitor instead :(

[jjice]

They're very affordable now too. I got one for something like $80 and it's been great. Working remote and getting to visit friends and family during the week and still have more screen real estate is huge.

[sailorganymede]

headphones which were really good. blocks out all the noise in our “vibrant open” office

[pbnjeh]

Message from my former self. For years, I balked at the prices of the Bose. In retrospect, I wish I'd paid it much earlier.

I'd tried some inexpensive ones, and I'd read about how nothing can cancel all noise. Nonetheless, the Bose are far better than the earlier inexpensive ones that had soured me on the idea. I've never tried the Sony's, but I've read (ha!) that they're fairly comparable.

And the Bose I can wear all day without discomfort. Also not true of other pairs I'd tried.

I'm out of that environment, now, but the amount of stress I might have saved myself...?

My QC 35 II's may have been defective; despite very attentive care with them, the ear pads started failing within a year. :-( Nonetheless, if they were my only option and I were again in such an environment, I'd begrudgingly (because they should last longer) pay that every year.

P.S. I can't listen to music while working. I just need peace and quiet. Maybe a gentle sound of waves in the background, or the like, but nothing my brain/attention will "lock onto" and try -- whether I want it to or not -- to interpret.

P.P.S. Skip the Bose 700's. Known for being notably less comfortable. A clear mistake in redesign that had since been reversed in newer models (but the 700's are still for sale).

[throwawaysleep]

What kind of desk/table did you find that worked with that? I have a 5K grand leather livi by room chair my grandfather bought for me that I adore, but using it with a desk has been a significant challenge.

[blotato]

I have a standing desk but it isn't necessary, it's one item I had tried years ago. It was a cheap one from amazon. I guess it's nice to precisely adjust the height, but I'm shorter so I just set the height to the lowest setting. Having a monitor arm is key so that I can tilt my monitor towards me.

[sethammons]

Converted my garage to a gym. I have squat racks, bars, dumbbells, rower, and more. My now 13yo has discovered he likes lifting which was a nice benefit too.

[robga]

An ergonomic chair (Hag Capisco). Fixed back/leg pain.

[alper]

Yes, Capisco gang!

[cantSpellSober]

Ergonomic everything. From hardware to wrist wrests. Transformed my life from bad carpal tunnel syndrome to none at all.

[bitcurious]

Apple Studio Display was a bit of a splurge, but makes the hours of meetings I’m in every day much more pleasant.

[scyzoryk_xyz]

Trackball mouse - took several days to learn, and no more carpal tunnel syndrome or fore-arm tension in general.

[tmaly]

Bose PC speakers, Shure MV7 mic on shock mounted arm.

These have made Teams calls so much easier to deal with.

[ensocode]

Walking pad (TR5000-DT3). Keeps me fit for the last 2 years and all back pains are gone since used daily.

[ryandetzel]

Do you ever sit, I like the idea of this but I try to do half/half so moving this out of the way every time I switch feels like a pain

[mnky9800n]

Do you find problems typing with it?

[raskelll]

The latest Happy Hacking Keyboard Hybrid with its amazing Topre keys.

[zubairq]

A Valvomo Netsurfer chair - made work comfortable again

[dharmab]

Split keyboard

[busterarm]

Hiring an EA.

[runjake]

I don't know if they transformed my life, but the following things substantially improved it.

- OK, except the MacBook Pro. That transformed my life. Portable, powerful, long battery life, super-usable.

- OK, and Raycast (https://www.raycast.com/), too. Raycast has transformed my life. I resisted Raycast for a long time, because I already owned Alfred and I thought that Raycast was hipster junk for people unaware of Alfred. I was so wrong.

All my common statements and actions are now down to quick launch and hotkeys with a lot of GPT integration thrown in (eg. "Check spelling and grammar", "Improve writing", "Summarize text", etc).

I've been trying to stick with cross-platform apps as much as possible so that I can eventually move back to Linux, but Raycast is that exception. I pay for the Pro license. And yes, I've played with Albert and (I think) KRunner on Linux.

I could do most of this with Alfred, Albert, or KRunner, but Raycast is so much more polished and has so much less friction when extending it.

- Standing desk: https://www.amazon.com/Flexispot-Standing-Adjustable-Electri...

- Electric Kettle: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00DEQDEZA/

- Light therapy lamp: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B075H39NDL/

- AA battery flashlight: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01G75P1SC/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b... I use this thing all the time.

I was nervous going from a USB-charging, albeit larger flashlight to something that takes AA batteries, but this is way easier. When the thing is dead, it's not useless for 2 hours until it's charged up enough. I go to the office battery drawer, retrieve another AA, pop it in and I'm good immediately. In actuality, I keep a spare AA battery in my daily backpack and rotate it out.

- TNF Surge 2023 backpack: https://www.amazon.com/NORTH-FACE-Commuter-Laptop-Backpack/ I moved to this from a Goruck GR1 (which I still use outside of work). The Surge backpacks change all the time. I have a couple from past years -- they aren't that great.

It has a lot of pockets to stash things, the bottle holders aren't stupid. It's ergonomic. The chest strap has a whistle which I use all the time to get people's attention. It holds a 16" MBP and an iPad easily. It's light. The fabric on this particular color is quite rain resistant. Don't watch the YouTube reviews for the 2023, most of them are reviewing a substantially inferior 2023 prototype model before they improved a bunch of things.

- Foam rollers. Doesn't matter which, just buy one with decent ratings.

- Balance board. Nice little core workout and kinda fun when you're noodling on a problem. I bought the crappy plastic one that was on Shark Tank. Don't buy that one. Instead, buy one of these from Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/s?k=balance+board

[blotato]

havent heard of raycast, looks neat! What are the main workflows or automations you use it for?

[runjake]

I am on mobile but I will do my best. I use the Snippets, Script Commands, and AI Commands the most. And Dynamic Placeholders.

https://manual.raycast.com/

I use them for everything from code, config, and script generation to completing trouble tickets (open ticket, get problem and have AI summarize it and make it readable because people can’t English anymore, make a determination/guess on the fix (eg. firewall or other system update), generate the fix commands snippet and ask me if I want to apply them or cancel. Most of these steps is a Python/Ruby/Shell script that takes input from the script in the previous step. I try to keep the scripts small and atomic.

I have a semi-secret obsession with automating nearly all the routine parts of my job and eliminating cognitive load so I can focus on more productive and creative tasks.