My favourite tools

Development tools

I really love well built, simple and fun to use tools whilst developing software. So, let’s break down and intricately inspect all of my favourite tools for software development.

Vercel

My favourite tool for deployments and web development is 100% Vercel. First of all, the website is designed so incredibly well- this results in an extremely fun, and memorable experience. Secondly, tight integration with Next.js allows for the smoothest deployment and development experience possible.

TypeScript

I love JavaScript, however, I was wishing for a version of it with expanded features, and that’s when I stumbled across TypeScript. For anyone who doesn’t know, TypeScript is a superset version of JavaScript which essentially means it does the same thing as JavaScript, but with extra features. And for this reason, it has recently become my favourite programming language.

Next.js

I’ve always liked to use a framework whilst developing my websites. I started off using react.js, and for this reason I’ve always preferred using react based frameworks. And in my case, I like next.js the most. A few of the reasons I love next.js are: the speed, server side rendering and API routes. Another huge factor for me is once again the tight integration with Vercel.

GitHub

I could not write code without GitHub. It’s so helpful for storing, writing and sharing code. GitHub is a life saver for any software developer, and I could not live without it. Being able to simply commit your code straight from the command line using git and having it update almost instantly on GitHub is so helpful, and makes the process of writing code endlessly easier.

Prisma

I’ve only recently discovered prisma, and for the short amount of time I’ve been using it, it’s improved my software development process massively. Prisma provides an amazing, contemporary and easy to use database toolkit.

Design tools

After talking about my favourite tools for software development, I’m going to move onto my favourite tools for UI & UX design. All of the tools listed below are essential to my design process and have been carefully selected.

Figma

I love Figma. It provides me with an intuitive and simple way to build mockups and designs for projects before I start programming them. I have tried to use alternatives like Adobe XD, however none of them have worked as well for me as Figma has.

SF icons

For all of my icons I always use SF icons. I find them to be the most clean, and simple icons, and I love using them in my projects. You’re able to tell how much effort has been put into them, and they really help improve the design and overall atmosphere of a UI.

Pages

This may seem like a bizarre choice for a design list, however, let me explain why I’ve chosen it. Before I design or program anything I love to take out my iPad and mock up and brainstorm all of my ideas on this app. It’s very simple and allows me with a great space to write down all of my ideas.

Physical tools.

After talking about all of my favourite virtual tools, I think it’s time to move onto my favourite physical tools. All of these tools provide me with a way to improve my productivity, and wellbeing.

Mac Mini

My main computer right now is an M1 Mac mini, and I’m in love with it. It provides my with incredible speeds to help me do anything, and I have never once run into any issues with it. And above all of it’s power and capabilities, It runs completely silently with the fan hardly ever even turning on.

iPad

As I mentioned earlier, my iPad 7th generation plays an important role in my process of planning design, and projects. Along with my Apple Pencil, my iPad provides me with a creative outlet to draw, design or write whatever I want. In fact, this whole blog post was written on my iPad!

MX master

For the past year or so, I’ve been using a Logitech MX master as my mouse. And it has 100% been my favourite mouse out of all the other ones I’ve owned before. All of it’s buttons provide me with endless shortcut mapping, and with the Logi options application, I’m able to customise every single aspect about this mouse.

Nothing ear (1)

I used to own a pair of AirPods Pro’s, however after about a year of owning them, I sadly lost them. I loved those headphones so much, and I needed a new pair. I did not want to give up active noise cancelling, however, I also did not want to spend much money. The Nothing ear 1s had recently just been released. So, I decided to try them. And as soon as I did, I instantly fell in love with them. They provide amazing sound quality, active noise cancellation and great design for an unbelievably cheap price.

Final round-up

I love every single tool I’ve listed here. However, I’m going to try and create a final list of my top 3 favourite tools.

Tool 1: Vercel

Vercel is by far one of my favourite development tools. Not only does it give you free website hosting, domain and analytics, it does all of these things at an incredible speed! I’ve tried countless alternatives (including paid ones) that have been no where as good or as fast as vercel.

Tool 2: Figma

Figma is an amazing all-rounder for anything design. Whenever I need to design a UI, make a poster or essentially do anything design related, the first application I open is Figma. It provides you with an incredibly simple to use and intuitive platform to design anything you want.

Tool 3: Mac Mini

I used to use a computer running ubuntu as my daily driver. However, about a year ago I decided to buy my first mac. However, this machine broke a few months ago. By this time I was obsessed with macOS and there was no way I could bring myself to switch back to Ubuntu. So, for this reason, I decided to buy an M1 Mac mini. With it’s blazing fast 8 core CPU and GPU, it crushes essentially any task I throw at it, no matter how intensive. It’s sped up my software development process so much, and I couldn’t go back to anything I used before.

Conclusion

This blog post was simply about my favourite tools, and how and why I use them. There was no endorsement from anyone whatsoever whilst putting this list together- it’s soul purpose is to show my favourite tools. I do apologise for this blog not being particularly focused on software development, however I do hope you enjoyed it! Thank you so much for reading, and I hope you have a nice day!