Mac OS¶
Mac is better than Windows for my daily use, but Linux is still my preferred workstation OS.
I had a Mac in 2007 plus a few years, and after a long break, by the end of 2023 a friend poked me and challenged me to try again with Apple Silicon. So now I'm a Mac user again, unfortunately. I still use Linux and Windows (work) daily though. I'm impressed by the low power consumption.
If you're weird enough to consider buying one, then remember to give it high specs. I was told by multiple people I shouldn't care about ram, since it's better at handling it than the others. It's a lie, I get lag spikes when it runs out. It's better than Windows, but worse than zram in Linux.
CH34x chips require you to install a driver from their Chinese site...
I've installed more drivers on Mac in 2024, than I've done on Windows since 2014 (Windows downloads automatically from Windows Update) :(
Neat Apps¶
| App | Description |
|---|---|
| Ghostty | A lightweight terminal that looks good |
| Whisky | Run Windows applications and games. Remember to install ALL frameworks needed for your software (usually silent exits) |
| Stats | Adds some neat stats to the status bar |
| DarkModeBuddy | Sometimes the sun shines enough for you to need the light mode. This uses the ambient light sensor to switch themes automatically |
| BetterDisplay Pro | Change the external screen brightness. Only advanced features requires Pro version. |
| LuLu | Free, open-source firewall to block unauthorized outgoing connections |
Ghostty Config¶
macos-option-as-alt = left
#macos-titlebar-style = hidden
macos-titlebar-proxy-icon = hidden
term = "xterm-256color"
font-family = "JetBrains Mono"
font-size = 10.0
window-decoration = client
background-opacity = 0.8
background-blur = 20
window-padding-x = 5
# Tokyo Night colors
cursor-color = "#c0caf5"
background = "#1a1b26"
foreground = "#c0caf5"
SSH & FIDO2¶
The built-in SSH version has FIDO2 support disabled, because Apple wants you to use their keychain.
brew install openssh # Installs a standard OpenSSH version, this enables FIDO2 but disables Apple Keychain
brew uninstall openssh # Revert to the system version
You can easily switch between these versions as needed, unless you have Apple Keychain options set in your
~/.ssh/config.
Apple Keychain¶
If you don't use FIDO2, you can enable Apple Keychain integration.
This remembers your private key passphrase, allowing "passwordless" usage.
Simply add the following to your ~/.ssh/config