Uses

As of August 2026, here is my current setup. The biggest change since I last updated this page isn't on the desk, it's in how the work actually happens. I mostly architect, review and steer now rather than write the code myself.

Hardware

• 14" M2 MacBook Pro
• Apple Pro Display XDR
• IKEA Symfonisk speakers on the desk
• B&W P7 wireless headphones (to enjoy music)
• Apple AirPods Pro for calls
• Apple wireless keyboard
• Logitech MX Master 3S for Mac
• CalDigit TS4 Thunderbolt dock to tie it all together
• iPhone 12 Pro Max on a tripod as my webcam

Furniture

• Custom table top from Mitre 10, still on a sit/stand frame
• Herman Miller Aeron chair

How I work

The IDE has left the building. PHPStorm is gone entirely and VS Code only gets opened when I genuinely need to look at code with my own eyes.

• Solo is where I access agents. It's the app my working day now runs through.
• Claude Code does almost everything, on a Claude Pro Max plan. Codex gets pulled in occasionally for a second opinion when a decision is worth double checking.
• Generally one agent per project.
• A config layer of the SuperClaude framework, custom skills and a set of MCP servers (Laravel Boost, Fastmail, Cloudflare, Ray and Solo itself). All of it earns its keep.
• Pull requests opened with the gh CLI and reviewed in the browser. That's where most of my code reading happens now.
• Fluid Voice for dictation, which is a much better way to brief an agent than typing.

Software

• iTerm, always there
• Chrome as my development browser
• Safari for general browsing
• Sequel Ace for local MySQL databases
• TablePlus for everything else
• Raycast for a bunch of productivity wins
• Droplr for screenshots and things
• Sourcetree
• Homebrew for installing dev packages and any other apps from the command line
• Laravel Herd for managing local projects
• 1Password for managing passwords
• A self hosted AFFiNE instance for notes and life planning

Tools of my trade

In no particular order, here are some of the tools in my toolbox:

• Laravel: the world's most popular PHP framework with a vibrant community and ecosystem of associated tools. I've yet to have a project it can't handle.
• Inertia: predominantly how I build Laravel applications now.
• React and TypeScript: these days my default for the front end. React's ecosystem has pulled far enough ahead that it's hard to argue with.
• Vue.js: still a lot of love here, and it remains the better fit when mixing traditional server rendered views with a JavaScript layer.
• React Native and Expo: mobile is part of the work now that I build my own apps.
• Statamic CMS: the world's best flat-file CMS that comes as a package for Laravel; great for building the marketing site of a project when needed.
• Tailwind CSS v4: still the best way for a team to define styles for a web (and React Native) project. Has excellent documentation.
• Alpine.js: for when I need only a spattering of JavaScript.

Hosting

• Laravel Cloud, which has taken over for new work
• Laravel Forge for server provisioning and deployment, with Digital Ocean, Hetzner and Laravel VPS behind it for everything that still lives on a server
• A Mac mini at home for self hosting, fronted by Cloudflare Tunnels
• Cloudflare to help with site performance across the 🌍 and also domain name registration
• Postmark for 📧 deliverability
• Typesense or Meilisearch when a project needs search, which is usually plenty. Algolia far less often now

Business

• Wise for international transfers
• Xero for invoicing