- Then follow the
+ for your platform. Then follow the
referral link
to get some free credit on your account to use if
- you decide to use any of the paid tiers. If you are
- using
- chocolatey, you can install
- Notion
- with choco install notion.
+ you decide to use any of the paid tiers.
Have you ever wondered if there was an app to
combine all of your messaging apps into 1? Well,
- Clatter is the answer. I used to keep multiple tabs
+ Ferdi is the answer. I used to keep multiple tabs
and programs open so I could see all of my messaging
- services at once, but with Clatter, they are all
+ services at once, but with Ferdi, they are all
neatly packaged in one application. Any messaging
service with a web app can be accessed through
- Clatter. Give it a try, I'm sure you will enjoy it
- as much as I do.
-
- If you have ever felt that the default windows
- terminal could use a refresh, you are in luck!
- Microsoft has been working on an updated version of
- Windows Terminal that provides tabs for Command
- Prompt, PowerShell, and WSL. It also offers a
- faster, better looking, windows terminal experience.
- At the time of writing, Windows Terminal is still in
- preview, but hopefully the full version will be
- released to everyone soon. If you are using
- chocolatey, you can install
- Windows Terminal
- with
- choco install microsoft-windows-terminal.
-
- Chocolatey is Windows's answer to
- Homebrew. It is essentially a package manager that allows
- you to easily track and upgrade/install/uninstall
- programs on Windows. You can easily install any
- programs you need via command prompt and avoid the
- tedious installation wizard. Just search
- chocolatey's list of packages, run terminal
- as Administrator, and run
- choco install package_name.
-
- Wallpaper Engine is amongst my favorite programs on
- this list. If you have ever seen live wallpapers on
- phones and thought can I get that on my PC?,
- this is the program for you. At a regular price of
- $3.99, I cannot recommend this enough. Fair warning,
- this will drain your battery and RAM if you plan on
- running it at its highest settings with animations
- and other compute heavy settings. On my laptop, I
- changed the settings so the wallpaper is static when
- unplugged, but animated and reactive when plugged
- in. There are some memory saving options that can
- pause the program when another program is in
- full-screen and in-focus to improve battery life and
- performance.
-
- Fences is a desktop management software that allows
- you to group your desktop icons into fences.
- These fences can be rolled up so they are tucked
- away neatly into a corner, allowing you to view your
- desktop wallpaper while still being able to access
- your shortcuts when you need to. I really like
- Fences because it keeps my desktop clutter-free and
- I get to look at my amazing wallpaper (see
- Wallpaper Engine). I
- purchased Fences on
- Steam, but you can also get it directly from
- Stardock's website. Would definitely recommend getting it if you have
- a cluttered desktop.
-
- I wasn't actually interested in Start10 when I first
- got it. I got it in a bundle with
- Fences. The gist of Start10 is
- that it allows you to customize the way your taskbar
- looks and the style of start menu you would like.
- The options are Windows 7, Windows 10, or Modern.
- Windows 7 has the classic search bar and list of
- applications. Windows 10 has the list of programs
- and start menu tiles introduced in Windows
- 10. Modern style is a bit of a hybrid. It has the
- application list from Windows 7, but the theme looks
- more like Windows 10. I personally prefer Windows 10
- style because of the tiles that easily let
- you launch your favorite apps. I wouldn't
- necessarily recommend getting Start10 on its own as
- I don't see much value in it, but it is a nice
- addition if you have ever wanted to change the look
- of your taskbar or start menu.
+ Ferdi. Give it a try, I'm sure you will enjoy it as
+ much as I do. The best part, it's free and open
+ source!
- This is the best PDF editor/reader I have found that
- doesn't require a paid subscription (unlike Adobe)
- for all of its features. You can easily write/edit,
- fill out forms, and add digital signatures. All for
- free.
-
- Similar to
- YouTube Vanced, this
- app removes ads from YouTube. The main difference
- here is that myTube! is a Windows app rather than an
- Android app. You should also check out
+ >Google Chrome,
UWP Companion
- so you can redirect YouTube links from your web
- browser to myTube.
-
- I have been using the development build of the new
- Microsoft Edge since around June 2019 and have
- generally enjoyed it. It will be very familiar for
- those coming from Chrome since it is also based on
+ >, and
+ Vivaldi, I finally decided to go with Brave. It will be
+ very familiar for those coming from Chrome since it
+ is also based on
Chromium. The main reason I like it is for its speed and
- reduced RAM usage. I haven't done any official tests
- comparing performance, but it subjectively seems
- more responsive. Additionally, most if not all
- Chrome extensions can be used on the new Edge, so
- that should help ease the transition for those who
- can't live without them. One of Microsoft's main
- selling points for the new Edge is privacy features.
- Overall, there are still a few issues I have
- encountered like links in google searches not
- opening properly, but I can put up with that for the
- performance improvement. Finally, you will want to
- change the default search engine to google unless
- you plan on using Bing for those
- Microsoft Rewards
- points. If you are using
- chocolatey, you can install
- Microsoft Edge
- with choco install microsoft-edge.
-
- Your Phone from Microsoft is the answer to my
- long-term need for a way to interact with my phone
- from my PC (not you
- Samsung DeX). At the time of writing, this isn't supported on
- all android devices, but it works with my Samsung
- Galaxy S10+. The main feature I use is viewing my
- phone's notifications on my PC, but they have also
- implemented Phone Screen which let's you interact
- with you phone via mouse and keyboard (or touch
- screen if you have it). If you have a supported PC
- and phone, you will need to download the
- Android App
- and the
- Windows App. If you have ever wanted a better way to integrate
- your desktop/laptop and phone experience, this is
- it.
-
- I discovered Remote Fingerprint Unlock recently, but
- in my short time with it, I absolutely love it. When
- Google announced the
- Pixelbook
- back in 2017, needless to say I was very
- disappointed to hear that the great hardware would
- be paired with Chrome OS. One feature I wished I had
- on Windows + Android was the ability to unlock the
- Pixelbook with an Android Phone. With this app, you
- can do just that. You'll need the
- Android App
- and the
- Windows Program. If you get the Pro version, you can even use the
- Wake-on-LAN
- feature.
-
- I first learned of Ditto from
- Nick Janetakis's post on
- Boosting Software Developer Productivity with a
- Clipboard Manager. I used to struggle with the limitation of only
- having one item copied in my clipboard at a time,
- but Ditto provides a light and simple solution. You
- can copy as many things as you want with
- ctrl+c as usual. When you want to
- paste, simply open Ditto and select the item you
- want to paste! If you are using
- chocolatey, you can install
- Ditto
- with choco install ditto.
+ >. The main reason I like it is for its speed. I
+ haven't done any official tests comparing
+ performance, but it subjectively seems more
+ responsive. Additionally, most if not all Chrome
+ extensions can be used with Brave, so that should
+ help ease the transition for those who can't live
+ without them. Brave's main selling points are its
+ privacy features, ad blocking, and Brave Rewards.
+ The latter allows you to earn Brave Attention Tokens
+ (BAT), which are essentially a cryptocurrency, when
+ viewing privacy-respecting ads.
@@ -1151,13 +691,14 @@
love that they also have audio passthrough so you
can hear your environment when necessary, or keep
noise cancelling on. They fit nice in my ears and
- don't fall out. My only grip is that the mic isn't
- that great for taking phone calls. Integrates well
- with my Galaxy Watch and Galaxy S10+. My one grip is
- the battery life. Samsung reports 6 hours of charge
- in the earbuds and 7 hours in the case. In my
- experience, this is pretty accurate. Don't expect
- long, continuous music sessions.
+ don't fall out. Additionally, they integrate well
+ with my Galaxy Watch and Galaxy S10+. My only gripes
+ are that the mic isn't that great for taking phone
+ calls and the battery life is not great. Samsung
+ reports 6 hours of charge in the earbuds and 7 hours
+ in the case. In my experience, this is pretty
+ accurate. Don't expect long, continuous music
+ sessions.
@@ -1165,29 +706,23 @@
-
Wireless Headphones: Sony WH-1000XM3
+
Wireless Headphones: Sony WH-1000XM4
I actually purchased the WH-1000XM2's myself before
- the XM3's came out, but the XM3's are an improvement
+ the XM4's came out, but the XM4's are an improvement
in every way and well worth the price. Sound quality
is amazing, noise cancelling is excellent, and it
has audio passthrough in case you need to hear your
environment. If you need wireless bluetooth
- headphones, this is it. You can get these headphones
- for around $290 on
- Drop. My favorite feature is definitely the battery
- life. Sony reports 30 hours of charge. If you will
- be away from an outlet for an extended period of
- time and plan on using your headphones a lot, these
- are great.
+ headphones, this is it. My favorite feature is
+ definitely the battery life. Sony reports 30 hours
+ of charge. If you will be away from an outlet for an
+ extended period of time and plan on using your
+ headphones a lot, these are great.
As an aspiring roboticist, I'm very interested in
the state of the art in artificial intelligence,
- machine learning, and robotics. The AI podcast,
- hosted by Lex Fridman, is a series of conversations
- with prominent members in the field of AI, science,
- and technology at MIT and in industry.
+ machine learning, and robotics. The Lex Fridman
+ podcast is a series of conversations with prominent
+ members in the field of AI, science, and technology
+ at MIT and in industry.
@@ -1333,8 +872,8 @@
>
- As a New England Patriot's fan (most because of Tom
- Brady), I really enjoy this (perhaps too
+ As a New England Patriot's fan (mostly because of
+ Tom Brady), I really enjoy this (perhaps too
Boston-centric) sports podcast. Bill Simmons grew up
in the New England area and supports all of the
Boston teams, although he currently lives in Los
@@ -1346,6 +885,39 @@
+ This is by far my favorite american football
+ podcast. Brett Kollmann (YouTube's The Film Room) and E.J. Snyder (Senior Draft Analyst
+ Windy City Gridiron) team up to discuss drinks and football each week.
+ I love their enthusiasm for the game and analysis of
+ the week's results.
+
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- 
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- 
- 
- 
+