These are my personal preferences from experience.

If you want to do some or all of the things I do — or you need me or my good friends to help you — this is what we use and know…

Kit List

I've recently discovered, like and highly recommend kit.co for creating and sharing your kit-lists, and here's mine so-far: kit.co/marcusquinn

Operating Systems

In order of experience:

  1. Mac
  2. WebApps
  3. Windows
  4. Linux,* Ubuntu* & Pop!_OS*
  5. ChromeOS
  6. iOS
  7. Android
  8. Rudder* Client Management

*Free (as-in freedom) Open Source Software (FOSS)[1]

Software & Services

In approximate order of usage and recommendation:

Communications

Productivity

Security

  • Enpass (password manager & two-factor authentication)
  • Bitwarden* (password manager & two-factor authentication)
  • PrivateBin* (secure messaging across insecure platforms)
  • Authy (two-factor authentication)
  • Cryptomator* (secure files on insecure storage)
  • Strongbox* (secure files on insecure storage)

Accounts

  • Quickfile (accounts - recommended for UK & GBP freelancers)
  • Xero (accounts - recommended for UK & international companies)
  • Quickbooks (accounts - recommended for US companies & freelancers)
  • Odoo* (accounts and other webapps - recommended for integrated operations)
  • Microsoft Dynamics NAV (accounts & logistics)
  • Google Sheets (accounts & analysis)
  • Brandlight ERP* (ecommerce & client service organisations)
  • Stannp (print mailing)

Design

Development

Hosting

Marketing

Analysis & Reporting

Domains & Network Management

  • Namesilo (lowest priced service I know, collaborative admin sharing, solid API, doesn't support .co.uk domains yet for some reason)
  • Namecheap (good if you need collaborative assistance too)
  • Ionos 1&1 (covers some other domain extensions)
  • 101 Domain (every international domain extension imaginable
  • Dot TK (free domains, in-part to promote awareness of the island of Tokelau)
  • Freenom (free & cost-price domains)
  • Marcaria (international domains and other international trademark registration and trust services others don’t cover)
  • Sedo (domain resale marketplace)
  • Cloudflare (hosting direction & security, good if you need collaborative assistance too)
  • DNS Made Easy (fastest DNS service)
  • DNSimple (fastest managed DNS service)
  • BuddyNS (backup DNS)
  • Amazon AWS Route53 (alternative DNS)
  • DNSPerf (DNS performance & service comparison)
  • DNSFilter (DNS-level user protection)
  • BunnyCDN (fast and affordable Content Delivery Network for speeding up website access to audiences around the world)
  • X4B (firewall as a service for hosts that don’t have that)
  • Sercurius (test your website & web app for security best-practice)

Payment Processing

Banking

  • Transferwise (multi-currency-banking for lower exchange-rate costs)
  • Monzo (multi-currency payments to save on exchange costs)
  • Blockchain Exchange (the cheapest & safest way I know to buy Bitcoin and other crypto-currencies)

Music & Audio

Video

Podcasts

Utilities

News

Federated Publishing

Free (as-in freedom) Open-Source Software (FOSS) – is an ethical way to provide software services for; transparency, security, freedom, privacy, data-ownership, collaboration, developer credit & promotion – and simply good online citizen karma in return for the countless community projects you already benefit from that form the foundations a free and inclusive internet. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Free_and_open-source_software ↩︎

To follow my online adventures, with advice on creative technology, building a brand, ethical business, ecommerce and online security, find me on Twitter...