Maxime Heckel is a software engineer originally from France, now based in New York City.
He is currently working as a product engineer at Linear.
In his spare time, he loves to tinker with frontend development, WebGL/WebGPU, shaders, and graphics programming at large. This area of computer science is an endless source of knowledge and he has spent the past 5 years learning as much as possible.
He’s documenting all of these learnings and distilling them into experiments and essays that he wished existed when he was getting started on his blog which is also his longest ongoing side project (8 years this year).
Twitter (X) → x.com/MaximeHeckel
GitHub → github.com/maximeheckel
Blog → blog.maximeheckel.com
What items are in your workspace?
Display: 27" Apple Studio Display from 2022
MacBook Pro M4 Max 36GB of memory (Silver)
Monitor arm: Jarvis Monitor Arm from Fully
Desk Mat: Wool Felt Desk Pad from Grovemade (light gray)
Mouse: MX Master 3
TrackPad: Apple Magic Trackpad (USB-C)
AirPods Pro 3 as my daily driver at my desk or on the go
Apple wired earbuds USB-C when I need high mic quality
Lamp: Xiaomi Mi Home Smart Led Desk Lamp (I don't think you can buy it anymore)
Pencil Case: Muji Polypropylene Pen Case
Books
The Little Book of Deep Learning by Francois Fleuret
The Shape of Design by Frank Chimero
Bootstrapping Computing by Alexander D. Obenauer
(I'm not a huge fan of "tech books" despite working in tech, but these are 3 books I really enjoyed and that coincidentally fit my desk aesthetic quite well)
What software do you find yourself using on a regular basis?
Arc browser (at this point you'd have to take this from my cold dead hands)
MyMind to save inspiration
Cursor as my main editor (I still write code by hand)
Codex (when I do not feel to write code by hand)
Linear (even outside of work)
Apple Notes (this is my source of truth for everything, I store and sort inspiration for upcoming projects and topic ideas for blog posts). I like having these available offline and automatically synced across all devices without having to think about it. I trust Apple with my notes although I did set up some scripts to back them up in markdown on a monthly basis "just in case" and also to try out other note taking apps
Superwhisper (when I feel to talk to my computer instead of typing)
What is the most recent item that you've added to your workspace?
It's my Mode 65 keyboard, which I got back in 2024. I missed the first gen Mode 65 and was pretty sad about it so the moment they released the second version of it, I jumped on it and immediately bought it. It's my first mechanical keyboard. I picked this one for its:
compact form factor
material used: it feels heavy and premium, it's all aluminium
I opted for a Copper accent to add a subtle pop of color to the desk
What is one change you'd like to make to your current workspace?
My biggest regret is opting for the VESA-mounted Studio Display instead of the one with the adjustable mount. My girlfriend has it, and it feels so much better to adjust than my monitor arm. Since this display now has a second generation version, I may get tempted to upgrade it and finally scratch that itch.
Another small detail concerns my laptop stands, ideally, I'd have them hidden behind my monitor to keep the desk surface clear since it's pretty small. I've seen several people 3D print custom mounts for their MacBooks, but I haven't attempted that yet.
Walk us through your morning routine—what’s the first thing you do at your desk?
First thing is bringing in my small tray with a nice pour over coffee and a quick breakfast (I know eating at one's desk is not a good habit, but I still do it)
While eating and drinking coffee, I catch up on everything work-related: Pull Request reviews from my European coworkers that happened overnight, newly filed issues, etc. I always dread this part because you can quickly get flooded with information first thing in the morning, which is why I pair it with coffee to make it a bit more enjoyable. I try to get it out of the way as soon as possible so I can organize my day quickly
What’s one productivity trick that actually works for you?
I have many side projects going on, including my blog and shader-related work. It can feel overwhelming, especially when learning about a brand new topic. I always try to chip away at my task list a little bit daily, for at least 1 hour. The daily goal is always very reachable and doesn't necessitate all this time. In general, once I complete it, I get into the flow and continue working through my project, often pushing further than anticipated.
Another trick is to keep my desk neat and clean after work; I rarely let it get out of control. I'm more willing to sit down and work there if it's orderly.
What’s the most underrated app or tool you use every day?
Not underrated at this point but Raycast is the app I interact the most with (besides Linear of course). Here are my favorite extensions:
Window Management: I have keybindings to move my windows around very easily and cycle through different sizes, this lets me keep my desktop environment
Apple Reminders: Basically pilot everything in Apple Reminders from Raycast to set quick reminders, or reminders using natural language
Download Video X/Twitter: Any work shared that I wish to consult later ends up in my personal offline archive (I just don't trust anyone to keep their account alive anymore, so I archive a lot of designs, URLs, and in this case videos featuring shaders, animations, etc)
Quick Links: I have quick links to open my editor for each project and to access their custom URLs, all directly from Raycast
Also, a quick shoutout to MyMind which is the second app I use the most. It's perhaps the most thoughtfully built app I've gotten to use
