IDE

PhpStorm has being my IDE of choice since 2014, for a long time I just used it with the default dark theme and configuration, however in the past couple of years I have customized it a little more.

I use the Material Theme UI plugin and the Atom One Dark theme, I have a lot of the built in toolbars disabled, but I still have a couple open, and I prefer working with the tabs visible, I have tried it a few times with them disabled, but I usually end up missing them and turning them back on! I usually work with the side bar open too with the file browser, unless I have the workspace split with two files open at once.

Terminal

I am a fan of iTerm used with Z Shell and Oh My Zsh, I have a few plugins installed (Which I really need to document more!) and several aliases

Database

I use SequelAce for managing and connecting to MySQL Databases.

Local Development

I use Laravel Valet for all local development work, it's just so easy been able to create a project in my code folder and then go to folder-name.test in the browser and it's just there!

For local email testing I use HELO by Beyond Code, a great thing that just works with a couple of env changes.

If I need to test any calls to an API, then Postman is my go to.

Graphics/Photo Editing

For photo editing when I've been out with my camera, Adobe Lightroom is my go to, and occasionally Photoshop too.

I've also used Adobe InDesign and Illustrator in the past when required, but it's rare I use them much these days.

Operating System

I don't customise MacOS too much, but I do tend to have most apps open in full screen all the time and swipe between them, I have the dock hidden unless I move my cursor to the bottom of the screen and then it only shows apps that are open with the smallest possible icons.

To open apps and use my Mac I typically use Alfred, I have it bound to Option + Space, so it's just muscle memory for opening an App, I very rarely, if ever use the built in Mac app browser.

Additional Apps I use daily

• For email I use Mimestream, until late 2022 I was using Spark, but made the switch to Mimestream.
• I use both Firefox and Chrome regularly, Firefox I tend to use more for day to day non work related browsing, and Chrome for any development work.
• I prefer using a GUI for Git and my favourite is GitKraken, I can get by with most commands on the terminal, but for some stuff, you can't beat a GUI!

Hosting

All of my personal projects are hosted on Digital Ocean droplets.

Deployment / Setup

I am not a fan of configuring servers or infrastructure, so I rely on Laravel Forge to work that magic for me! On simpler websites Forge also handles deployments, but for larger ones, such as Coeliac Sanctuary, they're deployed through Laravel Envoyer for zero down-time deployments.

Email

I use Google Workspaces to manage email addresses needed for any of my personal websites.

For any automatic sending of email, such as transactional or from a campaign is done through Amazon SES.

Email Campaign Management and logging of transactional emails is done through the fantastic Mailcoach by Spatie.

Storage

Most of my projects just store files in the main filesystem, however on Coeliac Sanctuary all images are stored on Amazon S3.

Macbook

When working on personal projects and anything outside of work I tend to keep it simple, I'm just sat on the sofa with my Macbook working away.

I have a 2020 16" Macbook pro, 2.3ghz 8-Core i9, 16gb RAM and 1tb SSD.

I have a desk space for when I'm working in my employment, but I try to keep my personal work and employment work separate and do not sit at my desk outside of work hours.

Phone

I have been an Android fan since I got my first one in 2012, my current phone is the Google Pixel 7 Pro.

Smart Watch

I have owned a Fitbit device since 2017, most recently was the Versa 2, but when I pre-ordered the new Pixel 7 Pro prior to release, the free gift was the new Google Pixel watch, which also integrates perfectly with Fitbit, the only downside is having to charge it daily (I tend to put it on at night before bed while I'm reading) - but I've got used to it now!