Setting Up a Mac for Development: A Comprehensive Guide 🧑🏻‍💻 ‍

is a must-have package manager for macOS, simplifying the installation of software.

Run the following command to install Homebrew:

/bin/bash -c "$(curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/Homebrew/install/HEAD/install.sh)"

After installation, ensure it’s updated:

brew update

Installing Essential Applications 📲

Here’s a list of CLI tools and GUI applications you’ll likely need:

Command-Line Tools

Install these using Homebrew:

brew install git

Graphical Applications

Install these with the — cask flag:

brew install - cask \

visual-studio-code \

google-chrome \

firefox \

rectangle \

iterm2 \

docker \

discord \

slack \

spotify \

postgres \

obsidian \

todoist

Note : Do not install Node.js via Homebrew. Use nvm for better version control (details below).

Setting Up the Shell

macOS comes with zsh as the default shell. Enhance it with Oh My Zsh :

sh -c "$(curl -fsSL https://raw.github.com/ohmyzsh/ohmyzsh/master/tools/install.sh)"

Add Shortcuts

Edit your ~/.zshrc file to include aliases for convenience. For example:

alias x86="env /usr/bin/arch -x86_64 /bin/zsh - login"

alias arm="env /usr/bin/arch -arm64 /bin/zsh - login"

Custom Brew Packages and Zsh Configuration

To further enhance your development environment, you can reference and use custom configurations from my personal repository.

This repository contains my curated list of brew packages , Zsh plugins , and shortcuts to optimize productivity.

Access the Repository

Rectangle

• Full Screen: CMD + SHIFT + ' (prevents messing with other commands)


• Left Half: CMD + OPTION + LEFT


• Right Half: CMD + OPTION + RIGHT

iTerm2

For some reason, iTerm2 does not let you use ⌥ + ← and → to tab through words in the terminal by default. I found this article to fix it:

This guide is designed to provide a quick, repeatable process for setting up a Mac for development. By automating installations and configuring settings upfront, you can focus on coding and productivity rather than setup hassles.

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