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Myke Hurley’s sweet iPhone setup

January 27, 2014
by Jeffrey Abbott

Every week we try to post a new interview with someone about what software they use on their Mac, iPhone, or iPad. We do these interviews because not only are they fun, but a glimpse into what tools someone uses and how they use those tools can spark our imagination and give us an idea or insight into how we can do things better.

New setup interviews are posted every Monday; follow us on RSS or Twitter to stay up to date.

Who are you and what do you do?

I’m Myke Hurley, I’m a podcaster and British gentleman. I produce and host a selection of shows on 5by5, including The Prompt, CMD+Space, and many more.

What iPhone do you have?

Myke Hurley's iPhone setup

I currently have a 32GB iPhone 5s in white and silver. I had previously always preferred the white iPhone to the black, but this was before I saw space grey in person. I must admit that I was a little envious of the chamfer and the gold looks a lot better than I had expected. Maybe I’ll go with a different colour next time around.

What apps do you use the most, and why?

Aside from the standard apps like Messages (I send lots of texts throughout the day) and the camera, I would say that of the apps on my homescreen, Tweetbot, Fantastical, OmniFocus, Pocket Casts, Rdio, Google Drive, Chrome, and GroupMe get the most use.

With the way I live my life, my iPhone is my most important computer. Whilst I’m attending my stooge job during the day, my iPhone becomes my window to the other side of my life.

Fantastical is used to plan out all of my events, Omnifocus for my tasks, Pocket Casts and Rdio to maintain my sanity, Google Drive and GroupMe allow me to plan out my shows and keep in contact with my hosts and friends, and Chrome for my web browsing.

My iPhone is in constant use all day because it’s the best computer I always have with me. It’s these apps that make it this good.

You will notice that I have multiple apps for some categories, like texting and to-do management. Each of these apps serve their individual process that make up my overall workflows or just how I like to compartmentalise things. Some people would say it’s overkill or that I am a crazy Brit, but it works for me and it’s taken refinement to get to this point.

Text Message Apps

  • Messages: The obvious one. I send lots of iMessages (especially) throughout the day to various people
  • WhatsApp: Some of my friends live in this application and if I want to contact them, it’s the only real way to do it.
  • GroupMe: This is where I talk with Matt, Stephen, and Federico. We have multiple group chats set up (some show-related and one with all of us). It’s basically like our private chat room. GroupMe is the best solution we’ve found (we have tried them all). It’s great on iPad and iPhone, with a great web interface too. It has some nice features, including a meme generator and inline previews of links.

To-Do Apps

  • Due: I use this app for alarms and reminders that need action immediately. For example, if I have an urgent task of some kind that crops up in the day, I can jump in and add it quickly. The reminder will then continue going off once the due date is met until I actively complete it.
  • OmniFocus: This is where my main to-do’s go — both work and podcasting stuff. It all goes in here. Without Omnifocus on my iPhone now, I’m not sure how I would keep track of what I need to get done in a day. I still have a lot to learn, but it’s helping.
  • Silo: This is a great app for quick to-do lists (like groceries), but the main reason I use it is for its excellent joint list support. I can share a list with someone very easily and will get notified when they make changes.

Which app could you not live without?

Tweetbot, without a shadow of a doubt. It’s easily my most used app and without a doubt my favourite app of all time. Aside from it being very powerful and beautiful, it’s what the app allows me to do that is so important.

I am able to keep in contact with my friends and be entertained by people I respect, it’s my pulse on the world I am interested in and a constant source of interesting content.

There are more Sweet Setup interviews right here.