App Defaults 2024

22 May 2024

As I get more into RSS and following developer blogs, I’ve noticed a trend to share app defaults. We often don’t stop and think about the apps we use everyday, so this is a good chance to stop and learn from other developers. As an Android and Linux user, I’ve avoided the Apple default apps over the past few years, despite using a Macbook everyday. I also don’t want to get trapped in the Apple ecosystem, so most of the services I use are open-source (except Google services) or easy to migrate from (e.g. Todoist). I’m also interested in seeing how the apps I use change over time. Here are mine in summer 2024:

  • 📮 Mail Server: Protonmail, Riseup and Gmail
  • 📨 Mail Client: Webclients of the above
  • 📝 Notes: Obsidian (Android), VSCode (Mac)
  • To-Do: Todoist
  • 📷 Camera: Pixel 6a Camera app
  • 🟦 Photo Management: Photoprism (Docker)
  • 📆 Calendar: Google Calendar
  • 📁 Cloud Storage: Google Drive
  • 📖 RSS: FreshRSS (Docker) and Fluent Reader (Android)
  • 🙍🏻‍♂️ Contacts: Google
  • 🌐 Browser: Firefox (Nightly on Android, Developer Edition on Mac), Orion (Mac)
  • 💬 Chat: WhatsApp and Signal
  • 🔖 Bookmarks: N/A
  • 📑 Read It Later: Pocket
  • 📜 Word Processing: LibreOffice or VSCode
  • 📈 Spreadsheets: Google Sheets
  • 📊 Presentations: N/A
  • 🛒 Shopping Lists: Todoist
  • 🍴 Meal Planning: Mealie (Docker)
  • 💰 Budgeting and Personal Finance: Starling
  • 📰 News: RSS (above)
  • 🎵 Music: Symfonium (Android) and Plex (Docker)
  • 🎤 Podcasts: PocketCasts
  • 🔐 Password Management: Bitwarden

Extras

  • 💻 Code Editor: VSCode
  • 🖥 Terminal: iTerm2
  • 🪟 Window Manager: Amethyst and Magnet
  • 🚀 Launcher: Raycast
  • 🔎 Search: Startpage
  • ⌨️ Keyboard sounds: Klack
  • 🥡 Font manager: Fontbase
  • 📦 Package Manager: Homebrew
  • 📹 Video editor: Final Cut Pro
  • 🖌️ Design tools: Adobe Creative Suite (Photoshop, Illustrator, Indesign, Bridge), Affinity Designer, Pixelmator
  • 🎨 Colour Picker: Sip
  • 📸 Screenshot manager: Shottr
  • ◻️ Default Colour Theme: Dracula
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