The people who use our boards.

298 interviews since 2018

David Gunter

Computational Scientist, Builder of Things

Who are you, and what do you do? What do you like to do outside of work?

I’m Dave, and I do Dave Things. During the day, I’m a computational scientist working with some of the world’s fastest supercomputers. In my spare time, I like to design furniture and miscellaneous projects for my woodworking and 3D-printing hobbies.

Decorated desk for Community Desk Project
Dave builds desks and more for Community Desk Project, which gives children and young adults their own desks for at-home study

When I need a break from the screens, I like to go on long bicycle rides through the New Mexico countryside or traveling the world with my wife. I enjoy taking lots of pictures of just about every subject.

David Gunter's Seville photo
A trip to Sevilla, Spain provided this beautiful scene

What hardware do you use?

For my employer and most of my hobby work, I use MacBook Pros with corresponding Apple displays. I also have a frequently used Windows 10 box, since my CNC design software doesn’t exist for MacOS just yet.

I use a Wacom tablet for basic drawing and sketching, though a lot of that has been moved to my iPad Pro over the past few years.

My major build tools are an X-Smart 3D printer, a Shaper Origin handheld CNC router, and—through a local maker space—a four-foot-by-eight-foot ShopBot CNC router.

David Gunter's workbench
David's workbench is a busy place

I use a motorized standing desk that holds all three screens just where I need them. This was a custom desk that I built during the pandemic, when work-from-home looked like it was going to be a full-time gig for the foreseeable future. It still is.

David Gunter's setup
David made a desk just the right size for the things he needs to keep at hand

I keep all of this fueled with a Gaggia Brera espresso machine (for me) and a 5.2 kW solar array for the house and office.

And what software?

For work, I only need my employer’s VPN and multiple terminal windows provided from MacOS. There’s not a lot of glamorous-looking software to show off what scientific/math code looks like.

For my hobby work, I use Affinity Designer and Affinity Photo for the bulk of my photography work and DaVinci Resolve for video editing. I use Trimble’s SketchUp for 3D furniture and object design and Vectric’s VCarve for CNC design work.

David Gunter's husky Luna
This all sounds very cool—unless you're a dog

What’s your keyboard setup like? Do you use a custom layout or custom keycaps?

I have a Moonlander keyboard and a Logitech upright ergonomic mouse that I use to control all three systems. This is done using Synergy’s awesome device-sharing software. I have been studying French for a few years and recently started studying Spanish. I signed up with Duolingo for their language lessons and I wanted a keyboard layout that allowed me to type accented foreign characters easily, so I created a custom layout for the Moonlander. It is simply named “Duolingo.”

What would be your dream setup?

My ideal setup would have wall-mounted displays for the Windows system and my work MacBook and a wide, curved monitor for my design work. I would also like power outlets and charge ports on the surface of the desk, something I will add eventually. I also need more space in my office for our two huskies, four pugs, and an ornery chihuahua mix.

Two of David Gunter's pugs
Surely these dogs deserve more space. Surely they deserve the world

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