1---
  2title: "Uses"
  3description: "Just a big page describing what I use that I think is notable"
  4date: 2021-08-18T22:57:48-04:00
  5draft: false
  6cover: ./cover.png
  7type: generic
  8---
  9
 10This is just a simple page detailing some of the important tools I use for those
 11that may be interested! See [uses.tech](https://uses.tech/) for similar pages on
 12other individuals' websites.
 13
 14## Hardware
 15
 16### Desktop
 17
 18I built my PC over the summer of 2019, _before_ all of the component prices shot
 19up during the pandemic. If I was attempting to build this now, I would have
 20ended up with a significantly less powerful machine.
 21
 22- **Webcam:** Logitech Brio
 23- **Microphone:** Røde Podcaster
 24- **CPU:** AMD Ryzen 7 2700
 25- **GPU:** MSI Radeon RX 5700XT OC
 26- **RAM:** G.Skill Ripjaws V Series 32 GB DDR4-3200
 27- **Keyboard:** Ergodox-EZ
 28- **Mouse:** Logitech MX Master 3
 29- **Monitor:** Gigabyte AORUS FI27Q-SA 27"
 30- **Operating System:** Arch Linux
 31- **Window Manager:** i3
 32
 33I also have Windows installed for the odd game or two that won't run in
 34Proton; it's really nothing more than a gaming console for me.
 35
 36### Laptop
 37
 38My university scholarship paid for most of my old laptop but a stipulation was
 39that the device had to be new. I really wanted an old Thinkpad that would have
 40cost maybe $200-$300 after repairs and upgrades, but it would definitely not
 41have been new. Instead, I found a [refurbished Thinkpad X200][x200] from
 42[Vikings.][vikings] Because they rebrand the device on receipts, I was able to
 43make the purchase and get a fully free laptop with no binary blobs whatsoever.
 44Because it's running [Libreboot,][libreboot] I was even able to encrypt the boot
 45partition so "full-disk encryption" really does apply to _the full disk_. That
 46said, I _do not_ recommend Libreboot. It's been two headaches and a half trying
 47to get anything other than the [FSF-blessed distros][blesseddistros] installed
 48with it.
 49
 50[x200]: https://store.vikings.net/x200-ryf-certfied
 51[vikings]: https://store.vikings.net/
 52[libreboot]: https://libreboot.org/
 53[blesseddistros]: https://www.gnu.org/distros/free-distros.html
 54
 55My _current_ laptop is the [Framework.][framework] It's hands-down the best
 56laptop I've ever owned (not a very high bar though) and one of my favourite
 57laptops to work on (much higher bar). Mine has the 11th gen Intel i5 processor
 58with 16 GB of RAM and a 500 GB SSD. I actually have _two_ SSDs that I swap
 59between when I want to try a new and shiny distro, but I always end up going
 60back to my comfy Arch setup.
 61
 62[framework]: https://frame.work/
 63
 64### Other devices
 65
 66I seem to have a thing for e-ink devices. Until my [Kobo Clara HD][clarahd]
 67died, I used it very frequently for all of my regular reading. Now, I use a
 68[Kobo Clara 2E][clara2e] instead. I exclusively use [KOReader][koreader] on
 69both.
 70
 71[auraone]: https://us.kobobooks.com/collections/auraone-related/products/kobo-aura-one-limited-edition
 72[clarahd]: https://kobobooks.com/collections/certified-refurbished-ereaders/products/certified-refurbished-kobo-clara-hd
 73[clara2e]: https://us.kobobooks.com/products/kobo-clara-2e
 74[koreader]: https://koreader.rocks/
 75
 76I also have a [Supernote A5X][supernote] and have to say that this is a
 77_wonderful_ device. I'm in the process of writing a blog post about it, and once
 78it's finished, I'll link it here. For now, I'll just say that it sits on the
 79corner of my desk any time I'm home and can usually be found in my left hand
 80whenever I'm not.
 81
 82[supernote]: https://supernote.com/#/product?type=SN-A5-X
 83
 84## General software
 85
 86As for more general software, I'll only mention things I feel are particularly
 87notable.
 88
 89My personal operating system of choice is [Arch Linux][arch] because it's very
 90easy to work with, simple, and incredibly up-to-date. I've used it since
 91somewhere around 2017 or 2018. On servers, I like sticking with [Debian][debian]
 92wherever possible. It's a fantastic and very widely supported distribution for
 93pretty much anything. I would eventually like to get involved with the project
 94but my free time is pretty limited at the moment.
 95
 96[arch]: https://archlinux.org/
 97[debian]: https://www.debian.org/
 98
 99My email setup is a little cursed but I use [mbsync][mbsync] for synchronising
100[my IMAP server][imap] with my local Maildir, [mu4e][mu4e] in [GNU Emacs][emacs] for
101interacting with and composing emails, and [msmtp][msmtp] for relaying those
102compositions to my [Postfix][postfix] [SMTP server][smtp] before sending
103them on their way to the recipient. Blog post about all this coming soon™.
104
105[mbsync]: https://isync.sourceforge.io/mbsync.html
106[imap]: https://nixnet.email/
107[mu4e]: https://www.djcbsoftware.nl/code/mu/mu4e/
108[emacs]: https://www.gnu.org/software/emacs/
109[msmtp]: https://marlam.de/msmtp/
110[postfix]: http://www.postfix.org/
111[smtp]: https://nixnet.email/
112
113My browser of choice is [Mozilla Firefox.][Firefox] I don't like the company and
114the browser is slowly becoming worse and worse for the average user but at least
115it's not Google and it's not contributing to their total domination over web
116rendering :^)
117
118[Firefox]: https://www.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/new/
119
120[Nextcloud][nextcloud] also finds itself a home on my homeserver. As much as
121it's a bloated pile of PHP that does a sub-par job at everything it attempts, it
122does a good enough job to make life convenient. I mainly use its file syncing,
123calendar, contacts, and sometimes music features.
124
125[nextcloud]: https://nextcloud.com/
126
127I also use a lot of the stuff a friend and I run over at [NixNet.][NixNet] In
128particular, I probably use email, XMPP, BigBlueButton, HedgeDoc, Mumble, and
129wallabag every day.
130
131[NixNet]: https://nixnet.services/
132
133_I use every open source messaging service known to man. Please send
134help._