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