Uses This

Who are you, and what do you do?

I'm Shiro Kawai, a freelance programmer and actor. I was fascinated by programming a hand-made Z80 board computer when I was a kid, and I fell in love with acting while I was in a high-school drama club. After finishing my graduate degree in Tokyo, I moved to the US to work as a programmer on projects such as the video game series Final Fantasy, and the full-CG film "Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within".

Alongside the programming, I take acting classes and auditions, and have appeared in some films and on stage. In my spare time, I've been developing a Scheme implementation Gauche.

I've lived in Honolulu for the last couple of decades.

What hardware do you use?

I've assembled my own desktops since the '90s. The current one is a bit dated - a Core i7 quad-core + NVIDIA GTX 1060. A Mac Mini on the side, for OSX gigs and media editing. On trips, I carry ThinkPad X1 Carbon.

Several years back I got a 3D printer, a da Vinci Jr. It's a good one for light hobby use. Although it has many limitations, the idea that I can convert electronic data into tangible 3D objects still excites me.

The acting side is pretty analog - these days I self-tape my auditions frequently, but an iPhone with an attachable microphone (RØDE VideoMic Me) does the job. Adding a tripod (with an iPhone attachment I 3D-printed), a couple of LED lights, and a collapsible background, it pretty much satisfies my needs.

My other hobby is music, but that is also analog; I play the piano (I got a secondhand grand right after I moved to the US before I bought a bed and other furniture. I slept in a sleeping bag for a while with the grand piano as the only furniture in the apartment), and an Indian bamboo flute (Bansuri). I have a digital piano (Technics SX-PX222) to practice at night, though.

And what software?

I've been using Linux and Emacs for my main work since around 1995. Adding Chrome to it, I can do most of my work.

Unless the project requires specific programming environments/languages, I use Gauche for my programming gigs. My second choices are Common Lisp (Allegro CL, if I work with Franz guys) and Clojure; though C++ and Go frequently come in to play.

When I have to edit my self-taped clip, I just use iMovie, plus Audacity to work on audio tracks.

When I need to hack up some 3D objects, I use Blender, but I'm no 3D artist. My teenage son knows Blender a lot better than me.

Oh, I have to mention it: Synergy. It's software to share a keyboard/mouse between Linux, Mac, and Windows machines. With multiple monitors, the mouse cursors travels seamlessly between machines as if I'm using a single machine. It's indispensable.

What would be your dream setup?

I grew up in Tokyo where space was extremely limited, and when I was a kid I always dreamed of living in a house with a workshop - a table saw, a drill stand, a lathe, etc. Now I realize if I had a house I'd have to maintain it, which isn't my forte; living in a condo is convenient and I'm lazy. If I were to make lots of money - enough to hire maintenance people - then yeah, a house with a workshop and a soundproof piano room would be my dream setup.

Other than that, my dreams are mostly in what I'll make, rather than what I'll have.

Uses This is supported by ZSA, makers of the Moonlander, ErgoDox EZ and Planck EZ keyboards. They also publish an awesome newsletter.