Apple transition


Two months ago, I decided to switch back to Apple. I bought a MacBook Air M3 and an iPhone 16 Pro. Earlier this year, I had already transitioned from Microsoft to Apple for my work setup. Here’s how the transition has been going:

Development Tools

Most of my development tools—like IntelliJ, Visual Studio Code, Android Studio, Xcode, and shell environments—work flawlessly on the Mac. They’re fast and reliable, which has been a huge plus. However, I still need to keep my old PC to work with .NET and Microsoft Visual Studio, as these tools are not natively supported on macOS.

External Screens

For my dual 4K screens, I use a Dell WD19TBS docking station with Thunderbolt. While managing two external monitors on a Mac can be tricky, I resolved this by using an extra Thunderbolt port and an HDMI cable. Now everything runs smoothly.

Advantages

Here are the main advantages I’ve experienced:

• Most of my development tools work as expected.

• My setup is far more portable than before.

• I can now code anywhere, including downstairs and outside.

• I can still use Microsoft Outlook for my e-mail without issues.

• The MacBook keyboard is absolutely fantastic!

Downsides

That said, there are a few drawbacks:

• Microsoft Visual Studio doesn’t work on macOS.

• Running an Ubuntu VM isn’t ideal due to CPU compatibility issues.

• I had to spend a lot of time customizing keyboard mappings.

• Some HAM radio software, like radio programming tools, are incompatible with macOS.


Overall, switching back to Apple has been a mostly positive experience. While there are a few challenges, the portability, speed, and user experience make it worthwhile for my workflow.

Will I create Apple software again…? I do not know..

BlueDV Connect

Picture by Jose CT4TX

Kenwood TH-D75 at the JARL HAM fair in Tokyo (2023)

My daughter Feline made this beautiful Peanut ICON with ProCreate on the Apple IPAD pro. (proud!)

ZUM AMBE Server case

I created a box for the ZUM AMBEServer. You can download it from https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:6084893

New NXDN server for testing

I developed a new NXDN reflector with number 711. It is a multi room reflector so you can switch rooms from the dashboard while connected to the reflector. When you send messages with your NXDN radio, the messages will be displayed in the middle of the dashboard.

Have fun!

http://nxdn1.digitalevoice.nl

New Peanut beta version 2.4.2

New in version 2.4.2

  • You can see who is online in a room
  • Some protocol additions towards the server
  • You will receive a message when there is a new Peanut version available
  • Bug fixes
  • VOX mode ( press CTRL-F10 )

Be carefull with this feature!

  • PTT and SQL control via serial port

Add the following lines to the peanut.ini file.

[SERIALPTT]
enabled=0
serial=COM4
invertRTS=1
invertCTS=0

Manual howto use packet with peanut

Treehouse DMR

Last weeks I am working on a new DMR master. The server is written from scratch and really fun to make and learn more from the DMR protocol.

http://dmr.digitalevoice.nl

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