Sulluzzu
This page is a list of the tools, apps and services I use to manage my life and was created in late May 2018, revised a couple of times and now in August 2025. I have written similar things in the past such as the list of data services I rely on and a history of my life in 50 objects.
As I revise this I am very conscious of the fallacy or bias that the things I choose to use are “the best” so I am cutting-down the justification to only those things that are genuinely distinctive.
Computer Hardware
Mac Mini and Studio Display.
iPhone 16 Pro - It’s a great camera with a computer that does most of what I need.
11-inch M4 iPad Pro
The best keyboard I have ever found is the Happy Hacking Professional 2 Type ‘S’.
RPN calculators - There is no better method of operating a calculator then Reverse Polish Notation (RPN) and my Hewlett Packard HP15C will have to be pried from my cold dead hand. The calculators that are in my desk drawer at work are below.
Software
BBEdit waw the first text editor I bought for my first Mac and has been on every one since then.
Total Commander - Total Commander is my only recommendation for Windows. It is a dual-pane file manager with great support for keyboard shortcuts.
Beyond Compare - In my work life I rely on Beyond Compare to compare anything — folders, text files, pdfs, Word documents.
Drafts simply captures text and sends it to other places and I use it several times during every day.
Photography
Leica Q2 Monochrom because everything looks more real in black and white!
A Ricoh GR IIIx HDF.
Film cameras - Over the last few years I have bought a number of film cameras that once could only have been aspirational and I am currently enjoying a Pentax LX.
Tri-X film because there’s a pleasing darkness to good photographs taken with this black black and white film.
Stationery
Too many fountain pens. They are old-fashioned and less convenient, but they are beautiful objects in their own right and I find it mesmerising the way that liquid ink shimmers to dry.
Prometheus Alpha Titanium pen - I need a pocket pen, my favourite pen refill is the Montblanc Fineliner cartridge and this pen combines the two beautifully.
Mark + Fold Diary - Great paper, fountain pen friendly, minimal design and made in the UK.
Home
- Kyocera Kyotop ceramic kitchen knife - I’ve used this knife for at least two decades and only had to sharpen it twice! It’s light and perfectly balanced, fiendishly sharp and a joy to use. I love it and even used to take it with us when we went on self-catering holidays.
Whisky - 18-year-old Springbank is now almost impossible to buy. Luckily there are lots of others too.
I was always very sceptical about Serious Readers lights but I have to say I love the one I use.
Music
I really enjoy listening to music on my hi-fi system with the preferred path being from my Rega Planar P5 Turntable to Shahinian Compass Speakers via a Moon 110LP Phono amplifier.
Astell and Kern digital audio player for high-quality music on the move.
Travel
Red Oxx bags - I have two bags I use for business and leisure travel — the Red Oxx Air Boss and a Mini Boss for shorter trips. I wouldn’t be without them.
Filson 24-hour briefcase.