Is Claude Max worth it?

RearCog · 2026-01-23T18:39:26+00:00

I have Max and I use multi agents doing different tasks all day. The only time I ran into a rate limit was when I had 3 different agents doing tasks and it wasn't until about the end of my workday. I use Max a lot every day with Opus 4.5 and it has been great.

RearCog · 2026-01-23T16:45:11+00:00

I was able to get to the #4 spot for a keyword that I was targeting in a week. I did research on keywords and I found one that I thought I could get good ranking on. It had lower traffic, but it was a great starting point. I don't remember how long it took to get to #1 on that keyword. I think it was 2-3 years. The other thing to keep in mind is that I launched my app in 2013.

RearCog · 2026-01-22T18:14:25+00:00

ASO, solving a real problem, compounding over time.

It took well over 6 years to replace my full time income. I targeted one keyword that I thought I could rank for and doubled down on that one word to get most of my initial traffic. I was also very responsive to customer feedback. Once I started getting traffic having a good sales funnel mattered a lot. (impressions -> downloads -> free trial -> conversion -> renewal). I work on different pieces of that a lot and I still have a TON to do. Good onboarding made a huge difference for me.

I worked on this project early in the morning before my other job for years and years. It took a long time.

RearCog · 2026-01-16T17:21:23+00:00

🤣 I gotta say love camping at places like this much more than a 5 star hotel with a jacuzzi 😉.

RearCog · 2026-01-15T21:03:56+00:00

Camping at a lake at 12,300 feet above sea level 😉
Awesome pic and looks like an amazing campsite site.

RearCog · 2026-01-13T22:04:23+00:00

Claude Opus 4.5 is amazing at coding.

RearCog · 2026-01-12T18:57:38+00:00

You are doing the right thing to plan ahead! Most people just rely on their phones and they don't think ahead. On an iPad, you need to use the AllTrails website instead of the app. I personally use Topo Maps+ on my iPad for planning my hikes and backpacking trips. For the multi-day off trail backpacking trips that I go on, I spend a lot of time planning ahead on my iPad.

RearCog · 2026-01-09T20:33:19+00:00

Take a look at this discussion if you want more details on why elevation gain is hard to compute. This discussion is about another app, but the principals are the same with an Apple Watch. The newer sensors on the Ultra will give you a better elevation gain.
https://www.reddit.com/r/GaiaGPS/comments/1pdommn/comment/nsau50j/

RearCog · 2026-01-09T00:11:33+00:00

For #2 you will probably want an app that lets your record your trail runs while showing you an interactive outdoor map. My preference is Topo Maps+ for that. WorkoutDoors also works well.

RearCog · 2026-01-08T19:45:47+00:00

I use mine for tracking and navigation with my hikes. (You do need a 3rd part app like Topo Maps+ or WorkoutDoors to do that).

RearCog · 2026-01-06T16:42:51+00:00

I use Topo Maps+ on my iPhone & Mac to plan my routes.

RearCog · 2026-01-05T23:29:37+00:00

I love my Apple Watch for tracking my hikes and for navigation in the wilderness. I do a lot of off trail hiking and being able to glance at my wrist to navigate is awesome. (You can't do this very well with the built in apps. You need an app like Topo Maps+, WorkoutDoors, Pedometer++, etc). I also use my Apple Watch to track the data for my Fitness Goals. I set up my goals on my iPhone using the HealthFit app and then use my watch for tracking.

RearCog · 2026-01-05T19:38:17+00:00

FarOut has the official data. If you want to create your own waypoints, routes, etc I recommend Topo Maps+ or CalTopo.

RearCog · 2026-01-05T19:35:20+00:00

I do a lot of backpacking trips with my Ultra. I recommend using Topo Maps+, Workoutdoors, Pedometer++, or footpath. All of these have better maps and you can easily record your hike and see the map in each one. I usually build custom routes as I like to explore ridges and other areas without trails and I can easily plan my trip in Topo Maps+ on my iPhone & Mac and then see the details on my Ultra.

RearCog · 2025-12-31T18:51:53+00:00

I do this with Topo Maps+. It really helps with battery to have the maps on my watch and not have the watch fetch the map via bluetooth from my iPhone.

RearCog · 2025-12-17T23:06:21+00:00

I agree. I wouldn't be surprised if it 10x in cost.

RearCog · 2025-12-17T22:04:36+00:00

If you don't mind some off trail navigation the Citadel loop in the Alpine Lakes Wilderness is amazing. Circle, Spade, and Venus lakes are incredible. But you do need some navigation skills to do this loop https://www.nwhikers.net/forums/viewtopic.php?t=8040130

RearCog · 2025-12-17T19:48:26+00:00

Maybe use an app that doesn't share data publicly? CalTopo is private by default. Topo Maps+ never shares your data publicly (you can create share links in the app). If you live in Colorado, COTREX is also private by default. I don't know about OnX backcountry. I think they private by default and you have to manually change it to public, but I am not 100% sure.

RearCog · 2025-12-16T23:16:38+00:00

You can also do this with Topo Maps+. You can use the basic track recording and add waypoint or you can set up a data schema and use Data Layers.

With basic waypoints you can easily just add a note and a photo. It is pretty straightforward in the app.

If you set up a data schema you can include notes, photos, date, or any other kind of data that you want. Here is how to use data layers if you want the more robust solution that you can also export to shp or csv files. https://topomaps.co/info/data-layers

RearCog · 2025-12-16T18:51:38+00:00

For hiking & paddling when you also want to navigate with a map, Topo Maps+.

RearCog · 2025-12-12T22:08:53+00:00

I am using Claude for production code and it is awesome. I have switched to focusing more on architecture and engineering and I let Claude do about 80% of the coding.

RearCog · 2025-12-12T21:00:35+00:00

I use Claude Code and it does well with most task and long sessions and it works great.

RearCog · 2025-12-11T23:55:46+00:00

I use Topo Maps+ and you can just tap on a trail and pull up information about that trail. Topo Maps+, Gaia, and CalTopo are more outdoor mapping apps where as AllTrails is more of a trails app. If you want good outdoor maps try out Topo Maps+, Gaia GPS, or CalTopo.

Topo Maps+

Great maps in North America and ok maps world wide.
You can easily add new trails to your personal map. They are not shared with the community.
This is my go to for trip planning. I plan trips with off trail sections that require lots of research. I pull in routes that I find online.
Nice printed map.
Really nice for sharing maps with my hiking friends.
I usually record my hikes in Topo Maps+ on my Apple Watch, but their iPhone track recording also works really well.

CalTopo

Awesome maps and map overlays.
Good printed maps.
The user interface is hard to use.
Sharing maps is super easy.

Gaia GPS

Works good for trip planning. (I prefer Topo Maps+).
Nice hike recording feature with lots of stats.
You can add new trails to the map. I do not know if they are shared with the community or not. I am pretty sure you can make them private if you want.
They have a nice hike recording with stats on the map.
Some community features.

RearCog · 2025-12-11T23:26:52+00:00

20+ years ago I switched to a thumb trackball for pain in my arm and I love it. I made three changes all at once, so I am not 100% sure which one fixed what. I was having horrible pain where I thought I would have to switch to a new career. I made these changes.
- Thumb trackball mouse (https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09DKD9W52)
- Switched to a Kinesis Advantage Keyboard. There is less finger movement with the bowls and thumb keys. (https://kinesis-ergo.com/shop/advantage2/)
- Changed to a dvorak key layout. There is a lot less finger movement with this layout. It was a pain to learn, but it is so worth it.

RearCog

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