The Setup Interview

[Darcy]

Inspired by Tom's interview for The Setup (a collection of nerdy interviews asking people from all walks of life what they use to get the job done). Post your responses to the four questions below:

Who are you, and what do you do?

What hardware do you use?

And what software?

What would be your dream setup?

[cucciasv]

Who are you, and what do you do?
My name is Sandro. Originally from Milano, Italy. Living in Garnet Valley, Pennsylvania.
I am a semi-retired corporate IT guy and currently have my own Apple Consulting and commercial photography business.
I am also a freelance technical writer for MacObserver.com
Finally, I teach traditional photography, iPhone photography, Photoshop, Macintosh computing, and horror cinema appreciation ... at the University of Delaware, Delaware Technical Community College, and Delaware College of Art and Design.

What hardware do you use?
Apple iMac, Apple MacBook Pro 15", iPad mini, iPhone 5
All-things Tom Bihn (though, I would call this "Soft-wear"

And what software?
My most used on Mac: Apple Pages, Apple Keynote, Apple Safari, Apple Mail, Evernote, Reeder, ByWord, Notational Velocity, 1Password, Clarity, DropBox and Photoshop.
iPad: GoodReader, Evernote, SimpleNote, Reeder, DropBox, ByWord, Field Runners2, Stupid Zombies

What would be your dream setup?
I am living the dream in my home and office, but in the car I would love an in-dash iPad and Siri control on everything!

---

Someone please help me!
I have BAS (Bihn Acquisition Syndrome)!!

---

[Badger]

Who are you, and what do you do?
I am Badger and I am an academic. About 60% of my work is conducted in online environments. I'm also a writer.

What hardware do you use?
I use a 15" non-retina MBP with anti-glare screen, which I love—more than the 27" iMac I have on my desk at work. My phone is an iPhone 5. I also use Pilot G2 and Zebra Sharbo-X pens and Moleskine and Field Notes paper, though I am considering jumping ship for Doane Paper. My preferred coffee-delivery system is the Klean Kanteen insulated travel flask. I have an iPad but I basically only use it for conference travel.

And what software?
For work, I use MS Word, aka the university standard; I also use Prezi, Adobe InDesign/Contribute/Photoshop, Google Drive, Evernote, Dropbox, and proprietary software for the various online aspects of my job. I use Apple's mail app for work-related email but web-based gmail for personal.
For my own work, I use Scrivener, FinalDraft, Evernote, and Dropbox. I use Apple's Messages when it decides to cooperate.

What would be your dream setup?
I always used to want more tech, but now I want less. If I could, I'd ditch the phone altogether and use an iPod Touch. I'd also do all my drafting by hand and save the computer for research and revision. I do listen to a lot of music while I work and it would be pretty nice to have a better speaker system; that way, I could listen to the ten-hour loop of "Gangnam Style" the way Psy (and God) intended. So, I think what I'm saying is that my dream setup does not include my day job.

[jeffmac]

Who are you, and what do you do?

I am Jeff Mac, and I am a pro audio sales guy (independent manufacturer's rep). We work for QSC, Sennheiser, Universal Audio, Avid and some other high end companies. I also run a blog covering consumer technology, travel and stuff to carry stuff around in while you travel. Hence the TB addiction.



What hardware do you use?

I use an iPhone, iPad Mini, MBA11 and a MBP13. The name (though officially a nom de plume) dictates the choice of hardware! I use an array of microphones and recording hardware as well as generally carry a Leatherman and a Swiss Army Knife.

And what software?

Open Office (we have abandoned MS Office for virus reasons), EASE (speaker prediction software), Presonus Studio One DAW software, Appple Main Stage for live music, Word Press for Bloggification, Opera for email I don't want mixed with business email, Safari and Chrome (our CRM system is web based), iChat, Skype, Orbitz and OpenTable.


What would be your dream setup?

A single piece of hardware that was tiny with a projector in it to make a big screen. One box to do all the ca-ca I seem to think I need to do would be the grail.

[jeffmac]

So, I think what I'm saying is that my dream setup does not include my day job.

Amen Brother. You are singing from my hymn book!

[rabergnc]

Who are you, and what do you do?
I am Richard Berg. I am a nueropsychologist and aviation psychologist in Wilmington NC. I have a private practice and also work with active duty and veteran military folks in Jacksonville NC.

What hardware do you use?
In my office, I use a variety of Windows 7 PCs (much of the software I use is proprietary and not available in Mac versions). At home, I use an IMac, iPad Mini, iPhone5, and ipod. Oh yeah, a Kindle too. On the road I use a MacBook Air, iphone and ipad. (Do you get the sense I like tech?)

And what software?
Office - proprietary testing software as well as billing software, MS Word and a variety of browsers.
Home - mostly Mac software (Pages, Keynote, Numbers, Evernote and on and on and.....

What would be your dream setup?
One piece of hardware which is portable and can do everything I need it to do wherever I happen to be - office, home, traveling. The iPad is the closest I have come but there is still a fair ways to go...

[jeffmac]

Who are you, and what do you do?
I am Richard Berg. I am a nueropsychologist and aviation psychologist in Wilmington NC. I have a private practice and also work with active duty and veteran military folks in Jacksonville NC.

Richard, I am fascinated...what is an aviation psychologist?

[dnarud13]

Who are you, and what do you do? I'm Dana Durand and industrial hygiene technician (evaluate workplaces for chemical, ergonomic, radiation, indoor air quality, etc. health and safety).

What hardware do you use? All kinds of monitoring/sampling equipment to evaluate hazardous exposures, but my personal tools on the job are my Surface RT and Lumia 920 (w/ Logitech BT Boombox for music in the office). I record my evaluations in Word and Excel on the tablet and take pics with the same or with the phone while on site surveys. I then email them to my office for upload into our database. The new Co-Pilot is vital for protecting my stuff while in industrial settings.

And what software? What most of the business world uses - MS Office.

What would be your dream setup? Pretty much have it now. The PC can stay in the office and I can run amok all day with what fits in the CP.

[Miking]

My name is Mike, I am based out of Calgary, Alberta and I am an entertainment rigger. My job varies, in the past little while I have: set up for rock concerts in arenas and music halls hanging all the lighting trusses, speaker arrays, video screens and projectors, set up for Cirque Du Soliel hanging their lights, sound and acrobatics equipment, suspended a T-Rex skeleton in a museum, rigged a broadway theater show with chain motors and traditional counterweight rigging and have hung lights and scenic elements for an auto show and a fashion show at a convention hall. In the summer I work setting up for the Calgary Stampede which involves a lot of rigging in large event tents and also do many of the large stages for outdoor festivals.

My personal gear includes on the average gig:
Petzl Navaho Croll fast harness
Petzl vertex vent helmet
New England ropes KMIII 12.5mm
Various fall protection and restraint lanyards
Petzl ProTraction progress capture pulley
Petzl Grillon work positioning lanyard with MGO hook
Various SMC pulleys for setting up hauling systems
various slings and daisy chains of different length and material including dyneema
Harken midrange hexaratchet pulley
Various carabiners
Petzl Myo RP headlamp
"Dirty rigger" brand gloves rubber or leather palms for ins, Kevlar palms for outs

Ground rigging kit:
Hilti self leveling line laser
100 foot engineers tape measure
100 foot reel tape measure X 3
25 foot tape measure
Sidewalk chalk for marking floor
Zig Illumigraph markers for smooth floors
Leica laser distance meter
Leatherman charge tool
Crescent wrench
Mini "pickle" chain motor controller
Small chain motor tool kit

Consumables:
Black gaffers tape
White gaffers tape
Green or other bright gaffers tape
Black sharpies
Silver sharpies
Electrical tape in various colors

All of this fits in a Mountain Equipment Co-op Fast Track 2 rolling duffel bag 70 or 100 Liters and weighs just short of a metric ton!

In a pelican computer case I have:
Notebook grid paper
iPad mini
MacBook Pro 15" unibody
WD passport 1TB time machine drive
Pens, pencils, markers, styluses
Scientific calculator
Mini scale rulers
Scale ruler
Lighting fixture template

For custom installs:
Nicopress crimping tools
Felco cable cutters
ZFX flying FX stainless go gauge

For a mid-day nap at away from home arena gigs:
Hammock
Ear plugs
Sleep mask

For out of town gigs I use TB packing cubes or packing cube backpack with change of clothes and toiletries for overnights and use the Aeronaut for extended trips.

For mobile entertainment
iPad 3
iPod
Headphones
Homemade IPad seat back holder (tutorial to follow?)

Software
MacBook Pro: iWork suite and microsoft office, autocad, wysiwyg, Abbyy finereader
iPads and iPhone: Bridle App pro, Event rigger helper, D2 rig calc, LD calc, iBooks with scanned PDFs of rigging textbooks, white paper articles, and other reference materials, FaceTime and facebook to stay in touch, "my beautiful clock radio" app, autocad WS, force effect, my measures.

My "dream setup" would include the iPad mini field journal notebook, right now I have the pad of paper separate from the iPad mini and it would be amazing to have them and the pens and mini scale rulers all in one place that can be strapped over my shoulder and consulted as needed as I am marking out the show and doing the math to figure out any bridles and the loading on the building and a Tri-star for gigs where the aeronaut is too big for my clothes but I still need to carry a laptop. A big external monitor for my laptop and having an all black navaho croll harness and lighter hard hat like the petzl alveo vent is also on my list.

[nukediver]

First, apologies to Darcy – I promised to do this right away, then ended up with the office stomach bug for a day, which obviously sidelined me. But I am back, with an appetite, and all is well :-)

Who are you, and what do you do?

My name is Nancy, and I am a Health Physicist working for the State of NJ. My primary job function is as a radioactive materials inspector. This can include visits to everything from doctor’s offices to contaminated sites to hospitals to wastewater treatment facilities to large industrial facilities. Secondary (but by no means less important) responsibilities include serving as a lead member of the state’s nuclear emergency response team, which is on call 24/7 to respond to any radiation-related emergency in NJ (can be nuclear plant related or anything else involving rad). We work closely with Customs & Border Protection/Homeland Security, the US EPA, and NYC. When not doing all this serious stuff, I’m usually fantasizing about my next scuba diving trip.

What hardware do you use?


As far as computers go, I am stuck using a Dell desktop something-or-other, along with a Dell laptop something-or-other for work. I also have the “pleasure” of carrying a Samsung flip phone.

I get to play with some cool stuff at work, including the following equipment:

· A variety of Ludlum brand hand-held radiation survey instruments

· An IdentiFinder hand-held digital gamma spectrometer

· A Thermo Scientific FH 40 G digital survey meter (with probes for neutrons, alpha particles, and high range gamma rays)

· A Radeye Personal Radiation Detector

· All manner of personal protective equipment (hard hats, boots, Tyvek, etc.)

All of the above is standard issue for my job, and fits into 3 large Pelican cases and two generic duffel bags. When I’m on the road doing inspections, or responding to an incident, all of this goes into one of our lovely, tricked out, gas guzzling, hard to park on NJ streets, Ford Excursions (all 7500 lbs of it!).

At home, I’m chugging away on a 5 ½ year-old 13” MacBook. I also always carry my iPad 3 (Retina Display) and iPhone 4S. The MacBook is due to be replaced this year, as soon as I can decide which new shiny Apple computer best suits my needs.


And what software?

At work, the standard issue set of Microsoft Office applications, plus a bunch of proprietary software specific to my job (I could tell you more, but I’d have to kill you ). I also use my Dropbox account to collect non-security related documents for later reading on the go.

At home, Pages, Numbers, Dropbox, Evernote, OmniFocus, and PhotoShop on the MacBook.

On my iDevices I consistently use Evernote, OmniFocus, Dropbox, GoodReader, Photogene, Numbers, Pages, WolframAlpha, and Google Drive. I also carry a Kindle Paperwhite, because no matter how much I try, I just don’t like reading books for pleasure on a backlit screen (my eyes are really light-sensitive).

Neither Software or Hardware

Of course, I’m not completely electronic – you will be hard pressed to find me without my Moleskine
Reporter pocket ruled notebook and my Levenger True Writer rollerball pen. I also often carry my letter-sized Levenger Circa notebook.

Other daily stuff would include my TB cork clear Organizer Wallet; many TB OPs containing things like toiletries, headphones, snacks; glasses case; Lifefactory water bottle; and a folder with some papers.

All of my daily carry listed above goes into either one of my Synapses (yes, I have more than one….) or my Co-Pilot, depending on how professional I need to look on any given day.


What would be your dream setup?

I would love to be able to integrate my work and home computing lives, carrying nothing more than an iPhone and a MacBook Air, but due to the nature of my work, and the untrusting technological dinosaur that is state government, that will never happen

[JLE]

Great thread!

I am a lawyer and company director in Melbourne Australia. Until a few years ago I was a partner in one of Australia's large law firms, practising in mergers and acquisitions law. Now I am a non-executive director with a focus on the charitable/NFP space. Currently I serve on boards in the areas of anti-human trafficking/slavery and autism spectrum disorders.

My hardware: MBA11 (supplemented, but less and less often these days, by my Apple desktop), iPad mini, iPhone 4S and Jambox Jawbone Bluetooth speaker (small)

My software - Office suite for Mac, Mail. On the iPad I most often find myself using TuneIn Radio, iAnnotate, Dropbox, Instapaper, Infininote and most importantly my Kindle reader app.

Dream setup - my needs are relatively simple and I am trying to keep them that way. If I had written this 6 months ago I would have said "a smaller, lighter iPad", but the Apple gods have already delivered that! I tend to alternate iPhone and iPad upgrades, so I guess it will be the successor to the iPhone 5. Oh, and better sync-ing that doesn't dump important contacts and corrupt the occasional playlist (but maybe this is a PEBCAC?)

[jaon]

the untrusting technological dinosaur that is state government, that will never happen

This line just made my day. One of my co-workers told me last week that the software used to print our reports is older than she is. (She's 28.) Also employed by the State of NJ.

[rabergnc]

Richard, I am fascinated...what is an aviation psychologist?

When in that role, most of what I do is evaluate the "fitness for duty" of pilots (commercial or civil) when required by the FAA in certain circumstances to gain medical certificates - looking at emotional and cognitive status. Taking certain types of medication also requires that this service be conducted on a regular basis. On occasion, work with airline personnel or passengers following different incidents - this is fairly rare but has cropped on now and again. Overall it's a fairly small part of my practice at the moment.

[nukediver]

This line just made my day. One of my co-workers told me last week that the software used to print our reports is older than she is. (She's 28.) Also employed by the State of NJ.

This surprises me not in the least!

[Miking]

Who are you, and what do you do?

I am Jeff Mac, and I am a pro audio sales guy (independent manufacturer's rep). We work for QSC, Sennheiser, Universal Audio, Avid and some other high end companies.

Jeff I am almost 100% certain I have watched demo videos you have made a while back over at sweetwater.com for the joeco blackbox recorders. Could this be true?