Cool Tools

Adam Hill (He/Him) is a dad who loves science, cooking, math, engineering, skepticism, espresso, and politics! He has been a teacher, an engineer, and now a software business analyst. Curiosity now and forever! TOOLS: 0:00 – Intro 0:46 – Burley Bee Bike Trailer 5:20 – Nanofoamer Pro 12:07 – Magsafe wallet 16:22 – Eat Your Books   Watch on YouTube: https://youtu.be/xFTW8E6aSVI     For show notes and transcript visit: https://kk.org/cooltools/adam-hill-software-business-analyst/   To sign up to be a guest on the show, please fill out this form.

Mia Coots is a Senior at Nokomis Regional High in central Maine and an amazing presenter for the Student Leadership Ambassadors of Maine for the Department of Education. LINKS: http://SLAMShow.org TOOLS: 0:00 – Intro 0:53 – ATEM Mini Switcher 7:50 – Rode Wireless II Mics 15:22 – MuteSync 18:50 – Canva Watch on YouTube   For show notes and transcript visit: https://kk.org/cooltools/mia-coots-student/   To sign up to be a guest on the show, please fill out this form: https://forms.gle/qc496XB6bGbrAEKK7  

Josué Moreno, a Spanish composer and sound artist, has made Finland his home, where he inspires the next generation of musicians as a teacher at the prestigious Sibelius Academy’s Music Technology Department. Known for pioneering Urban Sonic Acupuncture, Josué seamlessly blends the vibrancy of live electronic compositions with the innovative realms of Computer-Assisted Composition and Generative Arts. Since 2017, he has been creating interactive soundwalking experiences through cutting-edge phone applications and guided sonic acupuncture exercises broadcasted through engaging radio shows. Josué Moreno’s work is an invitation to reshape how we engage with the sounds that surround us.   LINKS: Website YouTube TOOLS: 0:00 – Intro 1:02 – Roland Mobile Cube 10:39 – Max Music Software 25:08 – Overleaf 33:01 – Ulysses Watch on YouTube   For show notes and transcript visit: https://kk.org/cooltools/josue-moreno-composer-and-sound-artist/   To sign up to be a guest on the show, please fill out this form.

Kern Kelley is a Technology Integrator at Maine School Unit #19. Starting his teaching career in New Zealand, he has provided support to educators for over two decades and conducted professional development across the globe. He advises a student produced technology show for the Maine Department of Education at MLTI.me and brings his student presenters, the Student Leadership Ambassadors of Maine to numerous conferences around the world and authored the Google Apps Guidebook. TOOLS: 0:00 – Intro 0:45 – Air Rocket Launcher Educational Kit 9:44 – Creality CR-30 3D Mill Infinite Z Belt Printer 16:33 – GoPro Hero 10 (used with High Altitude Balloon Launches) 21:57 – DJI Mavic Pro 3 Watch on YouTube: https://youtu.be/rx09sOuX9Uk   For show notes and transcript visit: https://kk.org/cooltools/kern-kelley-technology-integrator/   To sign up to be a guest on the show, please fill out this form: https://forms.gle/qc496XB6bGbrAEKK7

Rich Edwards is the CEO of Mindspan Systems, which helps community financial institutions transform themselves with data-driven strategies and technologies. Rich has worked extensively with banking, insurance, and financial services clients worldwide during his career. He has led product strategy in data center automation and artificial intelligence, including the launch of IBM Watson Developer Cloud. Rich has a Bachelor of Science in Engineering from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, a Masters of Business Administration from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and served as an engineering officer in the US Army. You can follow Rich on Twitter @richedwards. TOOLS: 0:00 – Intro 0:35 – Uni Core mechanical pencil 7:05 – Scotch tape runner (extra strength) 14:43 – Making a 1993 factory car phone fully functional today (a triumph in defeating obsolescence) 17:01 – Matter, turn any webpage into an audio book (great Evernote companion) Watch on YouTube   For show notes and transcript visit: https://kk.org/cooltools/rich-edwards-ceo-of-mindspan-systems/ To sign up to be a guest on the show, please fill out this form.  

Brent Deverman founded and sold a China-based internet startup providing services to tourists and English speakers based in Shenzhen, China. With over 20 years of experience in software development, analytics, digital transformation, and e-commerce development, Brent has also executed technical projects for HSBC, CNN, DFS, and AIA. He graduated from Michigan State University with a dual degree in Computer Science and East Asian Studies. Personal Website LinkedIn TOOLS: 0:00 – Intro 1:22 – Rust 7:20 – Readwise 12:47 – Minaal Carry on Bag 3.0 19:47 – Slate AX Travel Router Watch on YouTube   For show notes and transcript visit: https://kk.org/cooltools/brent-deverman-consultant/   To sign up to be a guest on the show, please fill out this form.

Chris Butler is a chaotic good product manager, writer, and speaker. He has extensive experience in product management leadership at Microsoft, Waze, KAYAK, Facebook Reality Labs (aka Meta), and Cognizant. He is now Group Product Manager in Google’s Core Machine Learning team. He is also the co-founder of The Uncertainty Project a community focused on decision making and strategy. LINKS: LinkedIn The Uncertainty Project Chris Butler's product, strategy, randomness, adversarial, and AI/ML talks Twitter TOOLS: 0:00 - Intro 1:43 - Delegation Poker cards 12:10 - Work Kit of Design Fiction 29:46 - The Decider app 34:24 - Flipper Zero 44:32 - The Uncertainty Project Watch on YouTube For show notes and transcript visit To sign up to be a guest on the show, please fill out this form.

Bud Thorpe is a long time photographer, a life long educator, and former paramedic. He and his wife specialize in creating artwork of dogs (and their well behaved families). They run the Dog Art Gallery in historic Portsmouth New Hampshire. He teaches studio lighting for photographers online at The Master Lighting Course. His website is BudThorpe.com. TOOLS: 0:00 – Intro 1:03 – Knipex 12 62 180, Self Adjusting Wire Stripper 8:47 – Snap-On TMS4E 1/4″ drive Speeder 17:49 – Titanium AAA Flashlight by Maratac REV 5 25:21 – Volty Switch Keychain Multimeter   Watch on YouTube: https://youtu.be/BSZNulvab54   For show notes and transcript visit: https://kk.org/cooltools/bud-thorpe-photographer/ To sign up to be a guest on the show, please fill out this form.

Davey Rogulich is a Stagehand and Maker from Albuquerque, NM. He has toured internationally with Tricklock Theater Company and throughout the US with “Blue Man Group” and “Cathy Rigby is Peter Pan!”. He is currently the Technical Director of NDI New Mexico at The Hiland Theater in Albuquerque and the owner of Davey Craft & Tools. His hobbies include woodworking, leather working, aircraft restoration, collecting tools, and caring for orchids in his greenhouse. You can find Davey on Instagram @daveycraftandtools.   TOOLS: 0:00 - Intro 1:03 - Knipex 12 62 180, Self Adjusting Wire Stripper: https://www.kctool.com/knipex-automatic-wire-insulation-stripper-awg-24-10/ 8:47 - Snap-On TMS4E 1/4" drive Speeder: https://shop.snapon.com/product/Speeders%2C-Chrome-(1-4%22)/1-4%22-Drive-16%22-Speeder-Drive-Handle/TMS4E 17:49 - Titanium AAA Flashlight by Maratac REV 5: https://countycomm.com/collections/aaa-flashlights/products/polished-titanium-maratac-aaa-flashlight-rev-4 25:21 - Volty Switch Keychain Multimeter: https://pcpoodle.com/products/volty-switch-keychain-multimeter-leatherman-compatible   Watch on YouTube: https://youtu.be/r9C9Y0rKD1c   For show notes and transcript visit: https://kk.org/cooltools/davey-rogulich-stagehand-and-maker/   To sign up to be a guest on the show, please fill out this form: https://forms.gle/qc496XB6bGbrAEKK7

Mike Harris legal assistant, bookworm and amateur photographer who likes the surreal and the silly. Mike writes a newsletter called ThinkTrove, where he wrangles the week's wonders.   TOOLS: 0:00 - Intro 1:02 - Fidget cube: https://www.antsylabs.com/collections/fidget-cube 5:34 - MyNoise.Net: https://mynoise.net/NoiseMachines/japaneseGardenSoundscapeGenerator.php 11:46 - Inoreader: https://www.inoreader.com 16:44 - Periodically: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=app.periodically 22:11 - ThinkTrove: https://www.thinktrove.org   Watch on YouTube: https://youtu.be/5Lxj2u4CjPg   For show notes and transcript visit: https://kk.org/cooltools/mike-harris-legal-assistant/

Casper Kelly is a writer/director of weird TV and movies including the viral short Too Many Cooks and the 2023 horror movie Adult Swim Yule Log. His website is casperkelly.com and he's on Twitter and Instagram @heycasperkelly.   TOOLS: 0:00 - Intro 0:43 - Chromadepth glasses: https://geni.us/cbvJf 4:53 - Mage.space: https://www.mage.space 21:51 - Tiny Habits; https://bjfogg.typeform.com/to/QXc0WJ? 25:04 - Focusmate: https://www.focusmate.com/   Watch on YouTube: https://youtu.be/mQ-ynOLZNgg   For show notes and transcript visit: https://kk.org/cooltools/casper-kelly-writer-director/   To sign up to be a guest on the show, please fill out this form: https://forms.gle/qc496XB6bGbrAEKK7

Marc Payne is an IT specialist working for the Federal Government. My passion is flipping items via thrift stores, yard sales and retail arbitrage on Ebay and Amazon. You can find Marc on Twitter @houseofpayne.   TOOLS: 0:00 - Intro 2:24- Index cards: https://geni.us/Jc1f7 7:54 - Box resizer: https://geni.us/xGGHI 12:34 - Scotty peelers: https://geni.us/qUEr9Dy 17:12 - 3” packing tape dispenser: https://geni.us/fBjclC6   Watch on YouTube:  https://youtu.be/uVCwU78XimE   For show notes and transcript visit: https://kk.org/cooltools/marc-payne-it-specialist/

Theodore Gray is a co-founder of Wolfram Research and creator of the Notebook user interface (since lovingly copied by Jupyter Notebooks). He is the author of several books and iPad apps including the NYTs best-seller The Elements, and writer/director of Disney Animated (BAFTA award winner and Apple's iPad App of the Year 2013). His latest book is TOOLS, which is all about his favorite tools.   Website: https://theodoregray.com   Watch on YouTube: https://youtu.be/k2eZ4W7VgYs   For show notes and transcript visit: https://kk.org/cooltools/theodore-gray-co-founder-of-wolfram-research-3/   To sign up to be a guest on the show, please fill out this form: https://forms.gle/qc496XB6bGbrAEKK7  

EDITOR NOTE: Due to technical audio issues, this episode might sound better for those listening at 1.5x or 2x speed.   Tom Robertson is an IT professional, currently leading IT at FreshBooks out of Toronto, Canada. Tom has a background in theatre, and has written and produced several shows in the Toronto area. In his spare time, he enjoys computer related hobbies, and has built a retro arcade cabinet, a kitchen display, and during Covid wrote an automated newsletter summarizing Covid numbers for his home province of Ontario. His website is tommertron.com.   TOOLS: 0:00 - Intro 1:40 - Ryobi Inflator: https://www.homedepot.ca/product/ryobi-18v-one-high-volume-power-inflator-tool-only-/1001063829 7:43 - Partake Non-Alcoholic IPA: https://drinkpartake.com/collections/beers/products/ipa-ca?variant=40002665611469 11:16 - Anker GAN Prime Charger: https://www.anker.com/products/a2148?ref=ganprime_top_itemlist&discount=WS7D5ZM242 15:26 - Dakboard: https://dakboard.com/site   Watch on YouTube: https://youtu.be/uw1vvpwFeHI   For show notes and transcript visit: https://kk.org/cooltools/tom-robertson-it-professional   To sign up to be a guest on the show, please fill out this form: https://forms.gle/qc496XB6bGbrAEKK7  

Miles Hunter is a UX researcher, based out of Seattle but originally a Brit. Learning to woodwork. I enjoy restoring things, everything from old tools to video and photos.   LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mileshunter/   TOOLS: 0:00 - Intro 0:53 - Evaporust rust remover: https://www.evapo-rust.com/evapo-rust-remover/ 5:29 - Incogni - personal information removal service: https://incogni.com/ 10:17 - Japanese 'paper clam' for clipping together papers more securely than a paperclip: https://geni.us/siEAg0 14:34 - Topaz Video AI - video enhancement tool for slow resolution video: https://www.topazlabs.com/topaz-video-ai 22:35 - Miles Hunter’s Linktree: https://linktr.ee/aboutmiles   Watch on YouTube: https://youtu.be/XpUiFkeUGCY   For show notes and transcript visit: https://kk.org/cooltools/miles-hunter-ux-researcher/

Will Walker is a lead human interface designer at Google, working on wearables, digital assistants, generative AI and conversational controls. His design career has spanned across interfaces for hybrid digital maps, 3d printers and volumetric scanners to leading the design of exotic running shoes. He paints, hikes, plants and rennovates a victorian with his daughter, partner and shiba in San Francisco and sunny Oakland CA. You can find him on Instagram @wr_walker and on Twitter @walkerwill.    Website: www.willwalker.design   TOOLS: 0:00 - Intro 2:00 - Supercritical dryer for making aerogels: https://www.tousimis.com/critical_point_dryers/MEMS_drying_system.html 13:40 - Paint shaver pro for historic plaster restoration: https://paintshaver.com/paintshaver-pro/ 23:18 - Abacus for finite element analysis for design of structural gels or foams: https://www.3ds.com/products-services/simulia/products/abaqus/ 32:49 - Form 3 resin printer for biohacking or making ceramic slip cast molds: https://formlabs.com/store/refurbished-3d-printers/refurbished-form-3-package/   Watch on YouTube: https://youtu.be/MitjxPvqF6s   For show notes and transcript visit: https://kk.org/cooltools/will-walker-lead-designer-at-google/   To sign up to be a guest on the show, please fill out this form: https://forms.gle/qc496XB6bGbrAEKK7

David Buxton is a tech founder based in London, UK. He loves making stuff, especially with software. He's also a qualified pilot and a pretty good cook.   LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/davidmrbuxton/ Website: https://hrharriet.com   TOOLS: 0:45 - Workflowy: https://workflowy.com 12:54 - Tern GSD e-bicycle: https://www.ternbicycles.com/uk/bikes/472/gsd 19:47 - Langchain (LLM dev framework): https://python.langchain.com/docs/get_started/introduction.html 27:29 - Leuchtturm Line a Day journal: https://geni.us/v0B7C5k 35:43 - Harriet AI HR assistant: https://hrharriet.com   Watch on YouTube: https://youtu.be/dp4IcBImx-U   For show notes and transcript visit: https://kk.org/cooltools/david-buxton-tech-founder/  

Asa Hillis is a furniture maker who lives in Silicon Valley. He is known for creating pieces of furniture that have a timeless quality. Asa combines traditional and modern techniques, including CNCs and 3D printers, to craft his furniture from wood and metal. He is currently managing Behind The Tech Labs in Los Gatos, CA. When he is not working in the shop, Asa enjoys spending time with his wife, daughter, and standard poodle.   Website: asahillis.com Instagram: @asahillis   TOOLS: 1:00 - Wixey digital angle gauge: https://geni.us/f20Hgi 6:42 - Surge leatherman: https://geni.us/a7sz91 14:49 - Festool domino: https://www.festoolusa.com/products/domino-joining-system/domino-joining-machines/576419---df-500-q-plus-us#Overview 25:44 - Shaper Origin: https://www.shapertools.com/en-us/   Watch on YouTube: https://youtu.be/MOH98lczKFM   For show notes and transcript visit: https://kk.org/cooltools/asa-hillis-furniture-maker/

Natalie Buda Smith is Director of Digital Strategy at the Library of Congress, the largest library in the world. Her career spans three decades in design, technology, and culture. The Library of Congress serves millions daily in their pursuit of researching our rich cultural archives, understanding U.S. legislation, and serving our nation's creative communities through Copyright.   LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nataliebuda/   TOOLS: 0:00 - Intro 1:09 - Newspaper Navigator: https://news-navigator.labs.loc.gov 6:55 - Citizen DJ: https://citizen-dj.labs.loc.gov 11:44 - Library of Congress photo library: https://loc.gov/free-to-use 16:39 - Lib guides: https://guides.loc.gov   Watch on YouTube:  https://youtu.be/NAShjOghAWo   For show notes and transcript visit: https://kk.org/cooltools/natalie-buda-smith-digital-strategy-director-at-library-of-congress/  

Arun is a product designer, engineer, photographer, and writer. Most recently, he was co-founder and product designer at Carrot Fertility. He writes at arun.is.   TOOLS: 0:00 - Intro 0:49 - BMI 40b x4 tape measure: http://www.bmitools.com/ads/products/categories/steeltapemeasures/window-tape.html 6:26 - BMI Inklinat level: https://www.bmi.de/en/products-spirit-levels-682-inklinat.php 10:00 - Merco packing tape dispenser: https://mercotape.com/products/merco-dtn 15:00 - Pinecil soldering iron: https://www.pine64.org/pinecil/   Watch on YouTube: https://youtu.be/Mu8HC75K78M   For show notes and transcript visit: https://kk.org/cooltools/arun-venkatesan-product-designer/