Stack

What I run.

I would rather build the system than rent it, and I am picky about the tools I do rent. Below: the stack behind this site, then the software I actually use and recommend.

What runs this site

Site & hosting

Astro Static-first, ships almost no JavaScript. Fast because there is nothing to slow it down.

Cloudflare Pages Global edge hosting. Deploys are a git push, live in under a minute.

Publishing

Cloudflare Workers (cron) A scheduled worker publishes date-gated posts on their own. Write it once, future-date it, forget it.

GitHub Actions Backup triggers behind the worker so a scheduled post never silently fails to go out.

Kit The list and the sends. A first-party subscribe endpoint keeps the signup on my own domain.

Auto-broadcast When a post publishes, the newsletter drafts and schedules itself. No copy-paste, no double-sends.

Analytics

First-party read counter A counter I built on Cloudflare KV. No third-party trackers, no cookie banner, and it does not follow anyone around.

Private dashboard Reads, referrers, and a trend line behind a login. Enough to see what is working, nothing creepy.

Tools I use & recommend

AI

Claude Code The AI layer I build with. Most of the small fixes on this site are an afternoon, not a budget line.

Codex The other coding agent I run. Different models catch different things, so I keep both in reach.

Wispr Flow Voice to text that actually keeps up. I talk, it types, faster than my hands ever were.

ChatGPT The generalist. First stop for a quick answer or draft before I go deeper.

Perplexity Search that cites its sources. Where I go when I need to be right, not just fast.

Claude The desktop app for longer thinking and writing, away from the terminal.

Granola AI notes for calls. It listens so I can actually be in the conversation.

Build & dev

Cursor AI-native editor for when I want to sit in the code, not hand it off.

Antigravity Google's agentic IDE. I keep one foot in whatever is coming next.

GitHub Where everything lives and ships from.

Hive The multi-agent cockpit we are building at Chadeth. Run a whole grid of AI agents at once instead of one at a time.

Mac apps & productivity

Alfred Launcher, clipboard, and workflows. The command line for the whole Mac.

Arc The browser I actually enjoy. Spaces keep work and life from bleeding together.

Obsidian Local-first notes in plain markdown. A second brain that is actually mine.

Dropbox Where the files live and sync. Boring, bulletproof, never think about it.

Paste Clipboard history that remembers everything I copied and forgot.

CleanShot X Screenshots and screen recording done right. Replaced the built-in the day I installed it.

Bartender Pro Tames the menu bar so only what matters shows.

Dropover A shelf for drag and drop. Grab files now, drop them where they go later.

TextSniper OCR anything on screen. Pull text out of images and video in a keystroke.

One Switch Every macOS toggle in one click. Dark mode, hidden desktop, all of it.

NotchNook Turns the notch into something useful instead of a gap.

ScreenFloat Pins screenshots on top so I can reference while I work.

HazeOver Dims everything but the window I am in. Focus by subtraction.

In Your Face Calendar alerts you cannot ignore. No more missed calls.

MenubarX A real browser in the menu bar for the one tab I keep checking.

Mosaic Window management with layouts. Snap everything into place.

QuitAll Close every open app at once when it is time to reset.

AirBuddy AirPods battery and switching that feels native.

Mission Control Plus Adds close and quit buttons to Mission Control.

PDF Search Full-text search across every PDF I have saved.

Nitro PDF Pro Editing and signing PDFs without the Adobe tax.

CleanMyMac Keeps the machine lean. Junk, updates, and space in one place.

Setapp One subscription for most of the apps above. How I try new Mac tools without one-off purchases.

Design

Figma Where design happens and where I go to get things pixel-exact.

Canva Fast, good-enough design for everything that does not need Figma.

Security & privacy

iCloud Keychain Passwords and passkeys built into the OS. Simple, synced, always there.

YubiKey Hardware security key. The strongest 2FA there is, a physical thing an attacker cannot phish.

Authenticator app Time-based codes for everything else. Never SMS.

ExpressVPN The VPN I actually leave on. Fast enough that I forget it is running.

Tailscale Private mesh network. How I reach my always-on Mac Mini server from anywhere, with nothing exposed to the open internet.

Crypto wallets

Ledger Cold storage hardware wallet. Keys offline, off the internet.

Trezor The second hardware wallet. Two vendors, so I am not trusting one.

MetaMask The hot wallet for actually using onchain apps. Small balances only.

Crypto exchanges

Coinbase The on-ramp. Easiest way in and out of fiat.

Kraken Where I trade when I want a serious, no-nonsense exchange.

Binance Deepest liquidity and the widest selection.

Gemini The compliance-first option when that matters.

Bybit Derivatives and pairs the US venues do not list.

OKX Deep books and a solid onchain wallet built in.

Uniswap The DEX. Swap onchain without handing over custody.

Curve Low-slippage stablecoin swaps onchain.

Crypto tracking

CoinGecko Prices and market data without the noise. My default quick check.

CoinMarketCap The other price reference. Cross-check when a number looks off.

CoinStats Portfolio in one place, across wallets and exchanges.

Work & comms

Slack Where the team conversation lives.

monday.com Projects and ops tracking across the work.

Everyday

reMarkable Paper tablet for thinking without a screen full of notifications. Handwriting that syncs.

CARROT Weather Weather with a personality. The one utility I keep purely for the fun of it.