Here's some quick facts about me:
Here's some things I do:
Personal Computers:
OS: Fedora Linux 42 (Workstation Edition) x86_64
Host: Laptop 13 (AMD Ryzen 7040Series) A7
Shell: fish 4.0.2
DE: GNOME 48.4 (wayland)
WM: Mutter
WM Theme: Adwaita
Theme: Adwaita [GTK2/3]
Icons: Adwaita [GTK2/3]
CPU: AMD Ryzen 7 7840U (16) @ 5.134GHz
GPU: AMD Radeon 780M Graphics
Memory: 16.0 GiB
I'd say for the most part this is the computer that I use the most these days. I still visit my family a lot, and laptops are obviously very portable, so I just end up doing a lot of things on here anyways. I've been trying to use my server more to try and make the things I work on computer agnostic to help alleviate things somewhat, but I do still like using my laptop even when I'm at home. Laptops are just cool.
OS: macOS Tahoe 26.3.1
Host: Mac Mini (2024)
Shell: zsh 5.9
WM: Quartz Compositor
Theme: Liquid Glass
CPU: Apple M4 (10) @ 4.46 Ghz
GPU: Apple M4 (10) @ 1.58 Ghz
Memory: 24.00 GiB
I originall bought a used base model M1 mac mini from eBay in 2024. I kind of wished I had shopped around a bit longer for a model with more RAM, but I made do. It might be embarassing to say, but a LARGE reason I bought this was so that I could play Sonic Dream Team on Apple Arcade. I do own an iPhone or iPad that I could have also used, but I like gaming on like an actual computer more, you know? I do also like the ecosystem integrations, which is mainly the other reason why I now use this as my main desktop computer.
Eventually, I decided it was about time that I should upgrade. Especially with RAM prices due to the shortage happening. FUCK AI!!!!! Anyways, I saw that it was on sale one day. I had originally planned on just getting the base model, 16 gigs of RAM and 256 gigs of storage. However, I also saw that the maxed out model (24 and 512 respectively) was also on sale, and I had just gotten my Christmas bonus from work, so I decided to go with that instead. I just received the computer a day ago at the time of writing, so we'll see how I eventually end up feeling about making that decision. One thing I'm really excited for is the ability to take this with me basically anywhere, due to the size of it. I still visit my parents somewhat often, so the prospect of being able to just take my entire dekstop with me every time is really cool to me.
OS: macOS Tahoe 26.3
Host: MacBook Neo
Shell: fish 4.5.0
WM: Quartz Compositor
Theme: Liquid Glass
CPU: Apple A18 Pro (6) @ 4.04 GHz
GPU: Apple A18 Pro (5) @ 1.47 GHz
Memory: 8.00 GiB
Why did I buy this? Wouldn't I like to know. I think it would make a nice travel laptop for times when I know I don't really plan on doing any work, because then I'd use my Framework, but might end up wanting it to use for some web tasks or something of a similar nature.
I don't really think the specs will bother me that much. Isn't 8 GB of RAM the reason I decided to upgrade from my M1 Mac Mini to my M4? Yes, but that's my primary desktop computer. This is a secondary laptop that I'm going to use to look at my email, peruse social media, write in my journal, etc. So I ultimately don't really think it will effect me. Same with the storage, I have plenty on my NAS that I can offload any large files onto.
One thing I do want to try out is that prior to this I have been recording gameplay off of my original consoles using an Elgato Game Capture HD with the corresponding software on a 2012 MacBook Pro. If I can get that running just as well on this laptop, I might replace it with this and let that old girl rest. Or at least use it for something else instead of it just perpetually sitting on a charger in my bedroom.
OS: Windows 11 (Education) x86_64
DE: Fluent
WM: Desktop Window Manager
Icons: Recycle Bin
Terminal: Windows Terminal 1.22.12111.0
CPU: AMD Ryzen 5 3600 (12) @ 4.20 GHz
GPU: AMD Radeon RX 5700 XT
Memory: 32.0 GiB
This was my main computer for the longest time, since I first built it in 2019. Nowadays that I use my Mac mini instead, this has now been relegated to primarily being my gaming computer, or ripping movies / CDs since it has a Blu-Ray drive. The way I tend to utilize my PC is by streaming games from Steam on to other devices, such as my Mac or Steam Deck.
I find that, especially with everything being hooked up over ethernet, it works surprisingly well. I played the entirety of Act I of ULTRAKILL this way and I never felt any kind of noticeable input lag or anything like that. Though, I do need to work on it a bit more, adding more non-Steam games that I have downloaded so I can stream those games too. Sometimes I'll also just hook it straight up to my TV and play that way too. Did this a lot when I was ripping a lot of movies at the same time, since the movies are all in the living room with the TV anyways.
One issue though, I'm still running Windows 10. I assume I can upgrade to 11 if I just enable TPM in my BIOS, but I'm also considering installing Linux instead. Windows 11 is like fine to use I guess, and I have an Education license so it should be a similar experience to Windows 11 Pro. I'm pretty sure that's what my work laptop is running and it's fine. But, I also feel like Microsoft is going to keep pushing more AI garbage into the operating system and I ain't about that, which is why I've been considering Linux instead. My main concern is game compatability since this is primarily for gaming, but most compatability issues are with like live service games with anti-cheat, and if I am playing those games, I'm probably doing it on my PS5 anyways to be able to play with my friends. Either way, I haven't decided what I want to do yet, even though that October 2025 deadline is approaching fast, at the time of writing (September 2025).
(Later) I did end up upgrading to Windows 11. The only real reason is because of Bedrock Minecraft, as that's what I use to play with all of my friends. If they'd just port it over to Linux or at least even Mac, I would swap in a heartbeat. God, even if I could just run the iOS app in macOS like you can with some apps. Supposedly on Linux there is a way to play the Android version using a special launcher that does make it behave like the normal desktop version, but I've heard that it can have some issues when a new update drops, not getting updated itself right away. And I'd have to buy the game again, on a platform I don't use. I guess I could just buy a console version and play that way. Maybe if they added mouse support in a Switch 2 update or something.
Home Server:
2x Toshiba N300 8TB hard drives running in SHR.
Why did I get a Synology, and especially one of the weaker ones? Well, at the time I already had my Proxmox server up and running with a separate PC running as my NAS. After I moved out and the boot drive on the NAS PC started to show a SMART warning (it was already from an old used PC anyways), and all of my data was being stored on a 1TB USB hard drive, I decided I wanted to upgrade. I thought it over and decided that I wanted something with a smaller footprint that was easy to just set up network shares with, because that's all I really needed.
I already knew about Synology NASes and after seeing some of the DSM features, I decided I would go with one of those. Since I already had a server that could run Docker and anything else, I didn't need anything "powerful", and with my budget at the time I settled on the 223j. Maybe the real mistake I made was getting a 2 bay model instead of 4, but 9 months later (at the time of writing) I still haven't even filled it halfway, and trust me I've been putting plenty of stuff on there.
I think my most utilized feature is Synology Photos because it's a nice and easy way to back up photos off my phone since that's what typically takes up the most amount of space on there. I also like Synology Drive in the same way that I use Google Drive, primarily to write up documents about random things like routes for Dark Souls playthroughs or making lists of games that I want to... legally obtain... sometime later. I also have a lot of my media on there for Jellyfin (all ripped from my own legally obtained copies, of course), files that I just want to be able to access on multiple computers, and of course copies of my most important files.
Proxmox is pretty cool.
Here's what I run on it:
I built this server specifically to run Jellyfin with Intel Quick Sync hardware acceleration thanks to the i5-12400 processor. Tunarr just seemed fun, specifically putting together a channel with a bunch of anime and including advertisements that I've found on the DVDs that I've ripped, just for fun. Originally I was kind of scared of Tailscale, I was a bit worried about it being complicated or unsecure, but it was super simple to set up.
I'm using this to write this page right now.
TBH I barely use this because my friends play on console so if I want to do multiplayer I have to be on Bedrock anyways. Not that I care as much about the difference than the average Java player.
For some reason I can't get remote desktop working on this. I might end up changing what OS I use handbrake on once again.
I have Sonic Schoolhouse installed on here because I couldn't get it running on Windows 10.
Here's some other stuff I like in no particular order:
People say this is overrated, and I guess yeah if you just want to be able to emulate a ton of different consoles, there are absolutely more cost effective options. But wow, the screen. It's just gorgeous to look at, and the customizable video options are very nice as well.
I don't have a ton of cartridges, but obviously one of the big features of the device is being able to play those, which is nice because my DMG has a dying screen. I also got the adapter that allows Game Gear cartridges to be played, which is nice because I've bought a few Sonic Game Gear games without actually owning a Game Gear.
Outside of cartridges, I've purposely kept the FPGA cores that I have installed on it to just handheld consoles because I think that just suits it. I have other ways of emulating other consoles anyways.
I preordered one of these a few days after the initial announcement, and I'm really glad I did. I personally got the 256 GB model. Alongside my Framework laptop, this almost always comes with me whenever I'm travelling somewhere.
I use it to play a lot of less demanding games while I'm out, alongside emulating consoles that something like my Pocket or Vita can't handle. I also use it to stream games from my main gaming PC to my TV, using the JSAUX dock to hook it up with HDMI and Ethernet, and then using either using my wireless Xbox 1 controller or setting up a folding table if I want to use a keyboard and mouse with a USB extension cord. All in all, super happy with the device.
I use this for like all of my music listening purposes outside of when I'm just using my Airpods with my iPhone for convenience. I don't like the button layout as much as I do the button layout on the R3 Pro Saber, but that mine stopped turning on and I wanted something with streaming capabilities. Unfortunately, the R4 with it's better button layout and 4.4mm output came out like a month later. I'm only a little mad about it.
My favorite headphone set is my Sennheiser HD6XX, and my favorite IEM is my Moondrop Blessing 2: Dusk.
Grabbed this from eBay for a decent price. One way I've gotten cheaper lenses for it is by grabbing some older ones from antique stores and getting an adapter. My favorite is a Vivitar Series 1 70-210mm lens. It's big and heavy and cool. I've taken some nice photos with it. I do also have the original 18-55mm kit lens, and a 24mm lens that I got as a Christmas gift. They're nice because I can actually use autofocus with them.
I got this for pretty cheap at a garage sale. It's fine, more portable than my DSLR.
Honestly, my phone is probably better, but I just like having dedicated devices for things. It's more fun that way sometimes.
Uhhh it's cool and I like floppy discs.