It’s always curious to ask when crossing paths and having discussions with veteran travelers, investors, life hackers, skilled engineers etc. what “go-to” tools are in their toolbox. Tools could be web pages/blogs, companies, apps, books, podcasts, or anything else that might be used for positive purposes. This page is a compendium of some of the ones or principles from which I use frequently for various purposes. Engineers are always looking to upgrade or add tools by nature. Originally written on a Thanksgiving (since I’m thankful for these assets being made available), this page may see frequent revisions. None of these are sponsors; this is simply me sharing useful resources.

Always open to suggestions for things people use regularly, whether references on the work desktop, apps for travel, or other essentials.

Readings/Podcasts

BBC for news. Why, when I live in the U.S.? Well, I usually want to filter through the commonplace U.S.-based sensational news that no one needs to read – someone killed someone, something preposterous happened in politics, sports this blah blah blah that. If something significant happened in the U.S. or overseas that merits reading about, the BBC will mention it. Sort of an automatic filtering of the trivial or inflammatory. It is also a cleaner site than say, CNN, that pops up with videos I don’t necessarily want to watch. If you want to take that philosophy to another level, read the Economist.

For longer format podcasts (1+ hours, good for hikes or bikes when you can focus more), I listen to the Jocko Podcast (military perspectives and leadership), Ukraine: The Latest, The Rest is History and Choose FI among others.

The ultimate long format podcast for those that like the subject is Dan Carlin’s Hardcore History. Amazing depth.

Tech podcasts relevant to current work include CleanTech Talk and CORE Knowledge (geothermal focus).

Finances

These are presented in a specific and hopefully logical sequence.

Your Money or Your Life (Dominguez and Robin, 1992). This has been the root of so much financial independence literature it deserves mention; one could use the principles from this every day, if not refer to the book continually.

One of the first steps on that road is to lift yourself out of, and avoid going forward, debt. For that purpose, no one provides better actionable advice than Dave Ramsey. The podcasts are voluminous (great for road trips or long flights), the principles are simple (and principled), the stories of people trying to improve their lives are uplifting and have infinite variety, and there are some very subtle behavioral finance principles at work in the background that transcend math, if you listen carefully. Dave can get a little preachy, so Choose FI is a good track to pivot to if one gets tired of the Ramsey group.

Vanguard is the place to go for investments once you are further along the road to financial independence. If you want more background on the principles of passive index investing, I would suggest A Random Walk Down Wall Street (Malkiel 2012). If you want something less technical but still actionable, try A Simple Path to Wealth (Collins 2016).

Mr. Money Mustache, to keep enthused about the merits of liberating, simple and robust lifestyles. Some fun engineering content.

USAA is a great insurance company for those needs, if you are fortunate enough to qualify.

Canopy Climate is a great way to research home electrification upgrades and associated incentives.

Calculations

EES is my all-purpose software of choice for short problems or more detailed analysis, so long as you can write the underlying equations. See some commentary on it here. Takes a license though, so for a lot of things Excel is fine.

Convert is a simple and robust calculator for SI/English conversions.

XE is useful for currency conversions; not so much for travel but for reports when we need to put things on a level basis.

Similarly, a CPI calculator is useful for trying to adjust costs between time periods. This is for the U.S., and there are many others that may be more appropriate in specific cases, but useful for a first cut.

ChE AppSuite is a powerful little tool with conversions and some fluids property data for your phone.

Travel or International Conversions

The World Clock for figuring out appropriate times for international conference calls.

Country Calling Codes for international dialing instructions. I usually do not get a cell phone calling plan when I go overseas. Just wait until I have wireless (on phone or laptop), and then dial through Skype, very economical.

Weather Channel for planning how to pack. Have to confess, the site to me seems a bit cluttered; would prefer something more stripped-down.

Hotels.com for stays. Can make reservations in the middle of the night from the hotel parking lot via phone. Does not work for all locations. Rewards program has gone downhill from how it used to be though.

Google Translate does well for phrases and even walls of text, so long as you are content with getting the general gist of things.

Insight Timer for meditations.

Gaia GPS is a useful app for hiking and bikepacking. Worked and played well in conjunction with Google Maps.  A useful tip here for overseas is to download an offline map of your local area at the hotel via wireless, if you plan to move around somewhere unfamiliar. As you walk around with GPS on, your location dot will update, even if you don’t have wireless or a data plan.

Uber and/or Lyft. Taxis where the fare isn’t known a priori drive me nuts.

Treatments

By far my preferred prescription, which is proven to improve a wide range of conditions, is described here. It’s rather staggering how many people appear allergic/averse to this, which is a pity.

Anything Else?

These are my go-tos, but I’m always curious for what others find useful for travels or time savers. Presumably everyone keeps a similar stockpile.