Stephen Biggerstaff’s Mac and iOS setup

Every week we 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.

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Who are you and what do you do?

I’m Stephen Biggerstaff, a freelance iOS Developer from sunny Scotland.

What is your current setup?

I have a 27-inch 5k iMac at work, a 27-inch 2013 iMac at home, a 13-inch 2013 MacBook Pro, an iPhone 7 Plus with 128 GB, and an iPad Pro 9.7” WiFi with 128 GB. I also have numerous test devices, a Google Pixel phone for messing around with Android Development, and a monster of a gaming PC. No games on macOS for me, folks!

Where can we find your macOS wallpaper?

I don’t change my wallpapers often at all to be honest. I usually find something on Wallhaven or Google Images every few months.

What software do you use and for what do you use it?

• I use Xcode/Simulator every day. Even on the weekends when I’m not working on client stuff, I’m usually coding my own things.

• I use Spotify for music, Wunderlist for lists and shared shopping lists/house chores, and Tumblr for procrastinating!

• I use 1Password to enable me to never re-use passwords. For notes, I use the stock Notes app, but I’m definitely considering switching.

• I have quite a cool lighting set up with Hue, and I have Hive to control my heating system — Alexa ties them together in one place (HomeKit isn’t supported on Hive).

How would your ideal setup look and function?

I don’t really use my iMac at home any more. I’d prefer a really nice 4K screen and a new 15-inch MacBook Pro along with a Mac mini for Continuous Integration builds and a home server. That’s probably on the cards this year (if Apple release new MacBooks and Minis).

I like to keep things minimal. My desktops are always clear of icons. I use my desktops as a sort of short term memory where I dump things I’ll need in the next hour or so. I clear it very frequently. I also have a mantra on “less taps is better,” so I attempt to have as few folders as possible on the first screen of my iOS devices. Everything on those home screens is audited frequently too.

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What iPhone do you have (color, size, etc.)?

I currently use a Silver iPhone 7 Plus with 128 GB of space.

Where can we find your wallpaper online?

These wallpapers are both from Google Images. “City rain night” and “minimal iPhone background” are the things I usually search for.

What apps do you use the most, and why?

I use Wunderlist every day. I probably work/commute for around 12 hours per day on client stuff and do a couple of hours on my own stuff. Wunderlist lets me keep on top of things I may have missed while rushing around. It doesn’t work with my Echo Dot/Alexa at home, nor IFTTT, so I’m considering switching. For free shared lists, nothing beats it.

I also use Feedly a lot on the go for following my favorite RSS feeds, and I have Tumblr for the same reason. These two apps are my go-to when I have some downtime.

Which app could you not live without?

Wunderlist/Calendar for sure. The amount of times I would’ve forgotten events or things I need to do is crazy.

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Which iPad do you have (color, size, etc.)?

I have a 9.7-inch Silver iPad Pro with WiFi and 128 GB of space.

Where can we find your wallpaper online?

I’m sorry; I can’t remember where I got this from. Most likely it was Wallhaven.

How are you using your iPad on a daily basis?

I use it to write notes, draw diagrams to explain things to colleagues, etc. I also do all my company spreadsheets on there for accounts/mileage tracking. In the evenings, I prefer to chill out browsing Feedly/Tumblr/Facebook/the web on the iPad rather than the laptop. macOS always has me in “work mode.”

What apps do you use the most, and why?

• Every day: Calendar and Wunderlist
• Work: Google Sheets, Trello for project management, and Notes
• Downtime: Feedly and Tumblr

Which app could you not live without?

Wunderlist and Calendar – same two as my iPhone.

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