JLH
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My initial macOS setup routine and favorite apps

August 31, 2023

Intro

I’m creating this post mostly for myself. This will serve as a quick reference for my initial setup routine as well as the apps I use most often on macOS. Maybe someone else will get some new configuration ideas or find a new favorite app by reading through these lists. I do have a few “dot files” that I use to configure settings for things such as Vim, Git, and Zsh. Nord is a nice theme that I typically use for iTerm2, Vim, and VS Code.

iCloud encryption

I just wanted to make a note at the beginning of this article regarding advanced data protection for iCloud. This is an optional setting that increases the number of iCloud services which use end-to-end encryption. I highly recommend enabling this feature. There are some risks involved since no one else has the encryption keys for your data. More information is available from Apple at this link.

First things first

  • Enable the firewall
  • Enable FileVault
  • Modify power settings for when the machine turns off the screen and sleeps
  • Set clock to 24 hour format
  • Setup Finder for list view
  • Enable iCloud for Desktop and Documents and do not enable optimize storage (this keeps all iCloud files on the local computer which ensures they get backed up)
  • Dock
    • Disable showing recent apps
    • Make it smaller
    • Minimize apps into their icon
  • Edit photos settings to download all iCloud photos locally (again, ensure everything is backed up)
  • Add all email accounts to Mail app

Apps to be installed from the App Store

  • 1Password
  • Bible Study (maybe switching to Logos)
  • Magnet
  • Pixelmator Pro
  • Screens 4
  • Todoist

Free apps

  • AppCleaner
  • Arduino
  • Brave (default browser)
  • Calibre
  • Chrome
  • Cyberduck
  • Discord
  • Firefox
  • FreeCAD
  • Git
  • Github desktop
  • iTerm2
  • KiCad
  • Node JS (use nvm to install and manage versions)
  • OpenVPN Connect
  • Proton VPN
  • Prusa Slicer
  • Transmission (check out this excellent combined block list or the level1 block list)
  • Vim
  • VLC
  • VS Code
    • Code Spell Checker
    • CSS Peek
    • Error Lens
    • ESLint
    • GitLens - Git supercharged
    • indent-rainbow
    • Markdown All in One
    • markdownlint
    • Nord
    • Prettier - Code formatter
    • Project Manager
    • Python
    • Serial Monitor
    • systemd-unit-file
    • Tailwind CSS IntelliSense
    • Version Lens (easily show the current version of packages in the package.json file)
    • vscode-icons

Paid apps

  • Carbon copy cloner
  • iStat Menus
  • MS Office (including OneNote)
  • Parallels Desktop 17
  • PDF Expert
  • ProtonMail Bridge (used to link my paid ProtonMail account to Apple Mail)

Setting up Zsh and Oh My Zsh

This is how I choose to install/setup Zsh and Oh My Zsh as well as a custom theme and font.

  • Zsh is currently the default shell on macOS. If the version needs to be updated for some reason, Homebrew can be used.
  • Install Oh My Zsh using the curl script on the home page.
  • Install the custom font and powerlevel10k theme using the Oh My Zsh option instructions on the theme’s website.
  • Walk through the setup tutorial. If it doesn’t load automatically, or it needs to be used later to change the configuration, just run p10k configure in the terminal. Personally, I like the “rainbow” and “classic” styles.
  • I’m particularly fond of the Zsh syntax highlighting plugin.
  • Lastly, here are a few aliases that I like to include in the ~/.zshrc file
# Aliases
alias ll="ls -al"
alias dl="cd ~/Downloads"
alias show="defaults write com.apple.finder AppleShowAllFiles -bool true && killall Finder"
alias hide="defaults write com.apple.finder AppleShowAllFiles -bool false && killall Finder"
# Disable Spotlight
alias spotoff="sudo mdutil -a -i off"
# Enable Spotlight¬
alias spoton="sudo mdutil -a -i on"

Summary

As I mentioned in the beginning, this post is mostly for me. It helps me keep track of everything I typically do on a new macOS installation. Having it on my blog makes it easily accessible. Maybe someone will find it interesting or helpful. If you made it this far, thanks for reading!