Equipment: I have located a cat door that could be installed in a window. I could also get one of those self-cleaning litter boxes so the cat would not have to go out. The Litter Robot is the most entertaining but there are other self-cleaning litter boxes which are much less expensive and which cannot break down. Finally, if one adopts cats from Craigslist or Animal Control, they will not have you sign paperwork promising never to let the cat outside. Only the nice shelters make you do that.
Names: What are good cat names? I am considering Valentine (after my first cat, a toy cat), Dieudonné (that is very old-timey and Louisiana), and Al-Mu’tasim, that is to say المعتصم (which I like best). Yet I cannot see myself using either this or Dieudonné in daily life, and I might need a name more like Babar.
Quantity: I really only want one cat, and I feel I can only afford veterinarian bills for one cat, yet I also feel I should have two for the cats’ sake. I am also unsure about the cat sitter situation. These are the reasons I do not yet have a cat.
Axé.
coldhearted scientist وداد 
I would need outdoor stairs for that window, too — four feet high.
I could consider these, but would like suggestions.
http://fast-stairs.com/floating-stairs/
Dieudonné is also the name of that horrible French comedian. I love Minou and Valentine as names.
Oh, good to know about Dieudonné. Minou is a little too common here since it means cat. I might just have to go with Valentine.
If you can only properly take care of one cat, get only one cat. The ‘company’ factor is much less if you’re letting the cat go outside at will: indoor-only cats are more bored and need more human interaction than indoor-outdoor cats who can stalk wildlife when they’re bored.
These are good ideas. 🙂