This is a living document that might evolve over time.

Setup

I generally try to keep the setup as simple and minimal as possible. I also use most of the Apple apps so that I do not need to install third party alternatives. Of course there are some apps that I just need because there is no Apple counterpart. There is also a great guide to privacy and security on macOS by Privacy Guides.

General

  • As an AirDrop alternative I like to use LocalSend so that I can also send files to my Fedora Linux PC.
  • To manage my e-books and fanfiction I like to use the Calibre software.
  • Writing my blog posts and notes with Ulysses.
  • NordVPN to keep my privacy online.
  • MacFamilyTree so I can someday create a family tree.

Development

  • Because I want to try game development I also installed Godot.
  • Xcode for iOS app development.

Safari Extensions

  • I have a self-hosted instance of Bitwarden so of course I use that in Safari as well.
  • 1Blocker is the best ad and content blocker I have found so far for Safari.

Homebrew

The missing package manager for macOS. I have a bunch of packages and casks installed and you can find more information on my bog post about it.

.zshrc

# --- Aliases ---
alias t='tree -C -L 2 --dirsfirst -I "node_modules|.git|.DS_Store"'
alias ls="eza --icons -a --git --group-directories-first"
alias glow="glow -t -l"

# --- Functions ---
f() {
  FZF_DEFAULT_COMMAND='/opt/homebrew/bin/fd --type f --hidden --exclude .DS_Store' \
  fzf --style full \
    --padding 1,2 \
    --preview 'fzf-preview.sh {}' \
    --bind 'result:transform-list-label:
      if [[ -z $FZF_QUERY ]]; then
        echo " $FZF_MATCH_COUNT items "
      else
        echo " $FZF_MATCH_COUNT matches for [$FZF_QUERY] "
      fi
      ' \
    --bind 'focus:transform-preview-label:[[ -n {} ]] && printf " Previewing [%s] " {}' \
    --bind 'focus:+transform-header:file --brief {} || echo "No file selected"' \
    --bind 'ctrl-r:change-list-label( Reloading the list )+reload(sleep 2; git ls-files)' \
    --color 'border:#aaaaaa,label:#cccccc' \
    --color 'preview-border:#9999cc,preview-label:#ccccff' \
    --color 'list-border:#669966,list-label:#99cc99' \
    --color 'input-border:#996666,input-label:#ffcccc' \
    --color 'header-border:#6699cc,header-label:#99ccff'
}

# --- Auto Run Commands ---
fastfetch

Other Programs

I have not tested these programs yet or I have used them and decided they were not to my liking.