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Defaults / 2023 (EN)

defaults app

I’m going to join the party (Italian) and list all my default personal apps. For me, the list is not solely a compilation of applications or services; it serves as a reminder for the upcoming years to examine the evolution of software approaches over time and the reasons behind them. Let’s go!

  • Mail Client: Apple Mail.app. It’s not perfect. In fact, it’s one of the worst email clients that I’ve ever used. It has more limits. But after the decision to refuse Gmail and other free Google services, I feel a castaway. Apple web services are not good, but they are well set up and synced on Apple devices. I used Spark; I tested Canary and Airmail; but despite them being better, I don’t find it logical to change as long as I use the Apple mail server.

  • Mail Server: after years with a custom domain pointed to a cPanel web host with an alias to my Gmail account, this year I tried to switch to iCloud+ with a custom domain. I’m not extremely happy with it, but it’s an economical and sure solution. I would change to Fastmail, but for now it’s okay.

  • Notes: Obsidian. For me, it’s the better note-taking, diary, info-tracking app and organization system. I already wrote about (Italian).

  • To-Do: Todoist Things 3. I use it as my primary work and personal list. Furthermore, I’m used to using Apple Reminder for personal and family tasks, if requested by Siri.

  • iPhone Photo Shooting: iOS Camera, because of the swipe to left shortcut.

  • Photo Management: Photos.app from 2023, Google Photos before 2023.

  • Calendar: Apple Calendar.app with iCloud.

  • Cloud File Storage: iCloud Drive.

  • RSS: Reeder 5 with iCloud sync. More details are here (Italian), in Italian for now.

  • Contacts: Contacts.app. Yes, I’m very default with default stuff.

  • Browser: Safari on mobile, Firefox and Safari on macOS.

  • Chat: WhatsApp, but I hate it. I prefer Telegram, but I have fewer contacts there. I dislike the groups, the channels, and the instant messaging feature. They are just tools, not our real life. I prefer the email.

  • Bookmarks: notes in Obsidian for the URL that I really want to archive. The read-it-later app of the moment for ephemeral things.

  • Read It Later: Omnivore by a few weeks. Reeder 5 synced with iCloud in the past. I’m still not satisfied.

  • Word Processing: Obsidian.

  • Spreadsheets: I use it just for work.

  • Presentations: I use it just for work.

  • Shopping List: Bring!, shared with my partner.

  • Meal Planning: nothing, but if I learn to cook, I’ll use Mela.

  • Budgeting and Personal Finance: nothing.

  • News: see RSS.

  • Music: Spotify for family and my daughter, Apple Music just for me.

  • Podcast: I’m an early adopter of Pocket Casts. I’ve used it since 2016. The best for me. Now, at least.

  • Password Management: Bitwarden with a personal premium account. Something in Apple iCloud KeyChain. I think I’ll use both: the second one for passwords and keypass, the first one for all the other stuff (serial numbers, documents, credit cards, backup codes, and so on).

All the default app lists are here.

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