Who are you, and what do you do?

My name is Clayton Henderson and I’m a software engineer, web developer, devops enthusiast, and indie game developer. I currently work from home full-time on my first game, Exil’s Eternal Struggle!

What hardware do you use?

My desktop setup is a liquid cooled Intel i7 running at 3.0GHz, 16GB RAM, 750GB internal SSD, 1.5 TB internal HDD, 500 GB external SSD, and an Nvidia GeForce GTX 1080Ti. I use 3 Asus 24” 144hz monitors which are usually all set in landscape mode but I can easily turn them to portrait if needed. My mouse is a Corsair Scimitar and my headset is the Turtle Beach Stealth 450 Wireless headset.

I custom-build my own server, which is running a slightly older Intel Xeon processor, 4 GB RAM, and 4TB Western Digital Reds set up in a RAID 1 configuration.

My laptop is a late 2011 MacBook Air. It’s nothing special in any sense but it gets the job done for what I need.

My phone is an iPhone 7 which is where all my current focus is, since that is the platform for my game. I had to limit myself to iOS only since that’s the only phone type I have for now.

I use the ErgoDox EZ for all setups and tend to move it around a LOT going back and forth from my laptop to desktop.

My desk is an Uplift motorized sit/stand desk which I absolutely love. With the ErgoDox and triple-monitor setup, it really feels like a command center when standing at the desk. Finally, it wouldn’t be complete without the dry erase board beside it, as those are crucial.

And what software?

My desktop setup is split into two parts. I use Arch Linux as my primary OS and it is where I spend 99% of my time. I use i3-gaps as my window manager, which I have heavily customized. I use vim for any text editing or development, git, xfce4-terminal, and Unity3D for game development. I switch between Firefox and Chromium for my primary browsers, and use Jira for project organization. I have a Windows 10 installation which I use exclusively for gaming or if I need to test some software that is Windows only.

I just recently switched my server over to Arch Linux and am using Docker to host all my services. I primarily use the server for my own private Git repos, media storage and server using Plex, and to host my own websites with Nginx, which are all internal facing at the moment. I use ssh as the primary means of accessing the server and administrating it.

My laptop setup is running the latest macOS and is used primarily for development when I am on the go or if the power is out. I use iTerm2 for my terminal and homebrew for terminal application installation and management.

I use Vim on all operating systems for any text editing or development that needs to be done. I primarily use email, Slack, and Google Hangouts for most of my communication while sometimes relying on IRC and Discord.

What’s your keyboard setup like? Do you use a custom layout or custom keycaps?

My keyboard is a custom setup with the ErgoDox EZ and it is on its 22nd official iteration with numerous tests in-between. Most keys are still in the qwerty layout, but a few have changed and there are a few specialized layers. I customized the setup so that I’m able to hit any key with just one hand (thanks to layers). I am still working on getting the layers fully set up but aside from the function keys, mouse functionality, and audio functionality, I can hit any key with either hand from either half. I currently do not use any custom keycaps but I definitely have been looking into them and will be getting some in the future.

I tend to use the keyboard for everything, so I prefer tiling window managers, specifically i3. When it comes to Mac and Windows, I tend to just memorize the keyboard shortcuts they each provide to be able to keep my hands on the keyboard and off the mouse. It works well but, in my opinion, nothing is as good as a custom desktop environment that you spent your own time creating, like I did with i3.

What would be your dream setup?

My dream setup would be my current setup with larger monitors, preferably 27”+ at a much higher resolution. I would probably add an extra monitor or two for displaying stats and to use for connecting to other systems easily. I would absolutely love to have a “few” servers to be able to play around more with cloud-based systems as well as for the processing power. My on-the-go setup would preferably be a long-lasting laptop with a bright, high resolution display that could run Arch Linux without having to worry about terrible driver support. It would be nice to have a laptop that would last longer than an hour or two before really being concerned about the battery life.

I would love to have an Android device to be able to test out my game on that platform as well as any other platforms that I currently don’t own that Unity3D supports.