nerdy bio

Who are you, and what do you do?

I'm Dan Mall. I'm a husband, dad, designer, creative director, developer, photographer, and musician.

What hardware(tools) and software do you use?

I use a maxed out [16-inch 2019 MacBook Pro][macbook-pro] as my main computer. When I'm at my desk, I dock it to two [LG UltraFine 5K displays][ultrafine-5k] with [Audioengine A2+ speakers][a2-plus], a large [Wacom Intuos Pro tablet][intuos-pro], a [Magic Trackpad][magic-trackpad], and [Magic Keyboard with Number Keypad][magic-keyboard-with-numeric-keypad] attached.

I use a [Sony Alpha 6400][a6400] as my webcam with a [Shure MV7 microphone][mv7] and 2 [Elgato Key Lights][key-light].

I've got an [iPhone 11 Pro][iphone-11-pro], [AirPods Pro][airpods-pro], and [Bose QuietComfort 35 II wireless headphones][quietcomfort-35-ii] always within reach.

I shoot photos with a [Canon EOS R][eos-r] and a [DJI Air 2S][air-2s].

I play music on a [Yamaha Clavinova CLP-775][clp-775] and [MOTIF6][].

• [Superhuman][] for email
• [Firefox][] for browsing the web
• [Shift][] as a wrapper for [Slack][], [Teuxdeux][], and [Pipedrive][]
• [Figma][], [Photoshop][], [Illustrator][], [Indesign][], [After Effects][after-effects], [Lightroom Classic][lightroom], [Final Cut Pro][final-cut-pro], [Animate][], and [Keynote][] for design, animation, and editing
• [ImageOptim][] and [ImageAlpha][] for image compression
• [Visual Studio Code][visual-studio-code] for web development
• [Harvest][] for time tracking
• [Notion][] for note taking
• [Droplr][] for screenshots
• [Sip][] as a color picker
• [FontExplorer X][fontexplorer-x] to manage fonts
• [f.lux][] to adapt display color
• [Amphetamine][] to keep my computer awake
• [Bartender][] for menu bar management
• [Zoom][zoom.2] to talk to people
• [Loom][] to send videos
• [LittleIpsum][] to copy placeholder text
• [MAMP Pro][mamp-pro] for local web development
• [Dropbox][] for cloud storage
• [Spotify][] and [Apple Music][apple-music] for tunes
• [1Password][] to manage passwords
• [Numi][] for smart calculations
• [HiddenMe Pro][hiddenme-pro] to pretend I have a clean desktop
• [Shush][] for microphone management
• [TG Pro][tg-pro] to monitor my computer fan and temperature
• [Alfred][] for better efficiency
• [Divvy][] for window management
• [Backblaze][] for automatic backups

What would be your dream/dream setup?

I think I have all of the hardware and software I'd want, so my dream setup to be desired is more about the space. I'd like a physical space that's comfortable for working and lounging, and looks cool. Probably lots of plants. I want all my books handy a few feet away in the room. I'd like to be able to play music when I want, or film a talking head video for YouTube or Instagram.