Daniel Klopper

Daniel Klopper (aka betraydan) is a multidisciplinary designer with 17+ years of experience specializing in Product, UI/UX design, prototyping, and creative direction. He is currently freelancing.

He also runs a little shop for mockups and design resources.

He actually has two setups as well. One for his day-to-day work and the other is exclusively for 3D work. All of his desks are on wheels so he is able to move them around in the space whenever he needs a refresh.

Twitter (X) → x.com/betraydan
Instagram → instagram.com/betraydan

Workspace Setup

Desk: Tekdesk 2.0 by Standing Desk on Wheels
Monitor: Studio Display on height adjustable stand
Laptop: M3 Macbook Pro
Headphones: Bose QuietComfort II
Keyboard: Space Grey Magic Keyboard
Mouse: Space Grey Magic Mouse
Trackpad: Apple Magic Track Pad
Desk mat: YSAGI Black Leather (35.4" x 17")
Chair: Herman Miller Aeron
Laptop Stand: TwelveSouth BookArc
Tablet: iPad Pro (12.9 inch)
Pencil: Apple Pencil
Desk Charger: Belkin 2in1 Boost Charge Pro with Magsafe
Desk lamp: Mi Smart LED Desk Lamp 1S

What apps or tools do you use?

Depending on what I am doing day to day I use the following apps religiously:

Things 3 (task management and project organization)
Apple Notes (General scratchpad for documenting stuff)
Figma (UI/Product Design)
Framer (Websites)
Photoshop (All image based editing)
Blender + Cycles (Conceptual ,Interior and general 3D concepts)
Raindrop.io (To collect all visual inspiration and resources)
Reeder (Curated reading sources and blogs)
Principle (Prototyping product and interaction ideas)
Slack (Team communication)
Zoom (Video Conferencing)
Spotify (Keep the day flowing with tunes)
Pocketcasts (Daily podcasts)
Twitter/X (Community, inspiration and general banter)

What is the most recent item that you've added to your workspace?

❝

Apple Studio Display, it’s truly a lovely display. I generally find myself using only anexternal display with the MacBook being in clamshell mode 🙂

What does your typical day look like?

❝

I try to keep my days as meeting free as possible. I only attend meetings where I’m able to add value or the group is small enough where everyone can participate. I’m pretty routine based in the day but still allow myself enough space to be flexible. A rough outline:

8-9am — Wake up, shower and have a cup of coffee. Answer urgent items whether it be emails, messages etc. Check what’s happening on Twitter/X.

10am — Catch up on Slack and what teams are working on locally and in the US while I was sleeping. I then plan my top three tasks for the day and get to work.

12pm — Break for lunch (usually 30 min).

1pm — For the next few hours I will put my head down and work on various Product/UI/UX tasks etc. I generally collaborate mostly with engineering rather than other designers. Being close to the code and implementation is important to get things right.

4pm — I usually review design work from other team mates and different areas of the product and provide feedback where possible.

5pm — Snack break and last push on current work tasks. On alternate days I attend a few potential team syncs.

6-8pm — I break for supper and spend time with my family. We usually catchup on the day’s happenings and take a 30 min walk with our cocker spaniel Finn.

9pm — I usually start working on freelance/collaborations or personal projects - and usually other design disciplines like 3D, Interior etc.

12pm — I’ll hit the lights and go to sleep.