I just picked up a new MacBook Pro 14" for personal use. Here’s what I’ve installed on my first day with it. In other words, these are my “essential items” for a comfortable macOS environment.
- 1Password, the keys to my digital world
- Aerial video screensaver
- Automounter to keep my NAS volume mounted
- Bartender to hide most of the Menu bar icons for the other apps on this list
- CleanShot X for better screenshot taking and sharing
- Fantastical to keep my calendar at my fingertips
- Homebrew for installing terminal apps/tools
- iTerm2 a more powerful terminal
- LaunchBar to do just about anything with a few keystrokes
- Little Snitch to block unwanted Internet connections from apps
- Mona Beta, my preferred macOS Mastodon client
- Moom to keep my windows tidy (see my video)
- PixelSnap, which integrates nicely with CleanShot X to auto-size screenshot selections
- Pocket Casts to listen to podcasts
- Reeder to read feeds
- Rewind to never forget anything I see, hear, or say
- Spark Desktop to read email (see my review)
- Things, my to-do list
- Unsplash Wallpapers to keep my desktop background fresh
- Visual Studio Code to write code
- Yoink to make drag-and-drop nicer
- Safari extensions:
- 1Blocker
- 1Password for Safari
- Homecoming for Mastodon
- Kagi Search
- Mapper to open Google Maps links in Apple Maps
- Super Agent to reduce cookie prompts
- Vinegar to clean up embedded YouTube videos
