I am a knowledge worker in a knowledge economy, I am a perfectionist of sorts, I am annoyed when things are not done properly, I love well coded products, I love good user experience, I love ease of use and simplicity, and I am an old man with a few decades of experience.
Once in a while, I have the urge to spread the word about fantastic products. So I create this page just for that cause. The page will probably grow over time, but I’ll try to prune it once in a while and also remove things as they fall out of favor with my standards…
Many of the articles in my blog are results of work with these tools, or cause me to discover them. Feel free to look around.
Here’s the list – no particular order!
- Adminer: A truly awesome PHP based Database Client. Far, far better than PHPMyAdmin for MySQL/MariaDB, for instance. Adminer is packaged in one single file: upload it to your server, access it, and enjoy the true magic!
- SequoiaView: This tiny piece of software feels like it dates from medieval times. But I have never found anything comparable on Windows PCs. It simply scans your hard drive (or any directory) and displays all contained files as a treemap. This is hands down the easiest way to find out where your storage went. You will suddenly discover that your hard drive is full just because 2 years ago, you forgot to hit «stop recording» when you tested a new recording software…
- Toggl time tracker: I have used this online service for many years. It is by very far the richest and most flexible and user friendly time tracking app I have ever seen – and that’s a lot. The best part is their freemium model is carved out in a way that it has been free for me for all these years.
- Kanboard: An open source PHP/MySQL Kanban board solution. Wonderfully implemented, incredibly easy to install, and well maintained.
- Vensim: my favorite modeling software for system dynamics. The user interface is a friendly reminder of what it was like to use a computer in the last century – but the features are perfect for system dynamics modeling – both causal loop diagrams (CLD) and stock and flow simulation models. The great part is there is a completely free «personal learning edition» version with enough features for serious modeling and results.
- OSB Studio: my favorite screen recording software. A bit complicated for the average user, but very powerful and fully open source and long standing.
- OpenBoard: A really nice blackboard for online lectures and classes (or when a real blackboard is missing in the class/lecture hall and all you have is a projector). This is open source at its best: When using the software, you can literally feel it was developed by those in need of a blackboard tool (and not by someone trying to develop a sellable product for other people…).
- TwoMon: An app for smart phones, tablets, Mac, and Windows which allows you to use your smart phone or tablet as a second (or third…) screen for your PC. I love it for it to work without WiFi! I can connect my iPhone to my Windows laptop via cable and have a second screen. Has saved my day many times. Costs money, but has been worth it for a few months already at the time of this writing… (no affiliation)
Also, I objectively 😉 love the following web apps of my own. These are fully owned, developed, maintained, and supported by me:
- Online notepad: shrib.com or online-note.com lets you very easily store, share, and publish your notes online. No frills, no gimmicks, just pure speed and simplicity.
- Off-the-record chat: shick.me or other-chat.com lets you chat online. Nothing to be installed, easy to share, easy to both download and delete the complete chat history.
- Personal feedback: personal-feedback.com (discontinued) is a novel way for sharing respectful personal feedback.