Setting Up My New MacBook Pro

I just bought a new MacBook Pro to replace my mid-2010 MBP. This is my first retina laptop, and it’s beautiful. I’d been waffling for awhile, but I’m glad I took the plunge.

I briefly considered transferring all my stuff over from the old MBP, but I figured it was time to start clean. I use my laptop primarily for development (Objective-C, Java, Ruby, Clojure, JavaScript, Web, . . .), writing, and a little bit of graphics work. Here’s what I did after walking through the setup wizard:

• Go to the App Store and install all updates
• Set the hostname (System Preferences > Sharing > Computer Name) to “Truth” — homage to Paul Pierce
• Install Chrome Dev Channel
• Install Xcode from App Store
• Install Dropbox and let it sync
• Set up links to config files:
  1. ~/.bashrc -> ~/Dropbox/config/.bashrc
  2. ~/.bashrc.local -> ~/Dropbox/config/.bashrc.local
  3. ~/.vim -> ~/Dropbox/config/.vim
  4. ~/.vimrc -> ~/Dropbox/config/.vimrc
  5. ~/.vimrc.local -> ~/Dropbox/config/.vimrc.local
  6. ~/.vimbundles -> ~/Dropbox/config/.vimbundles
  7. ~/.gitconfig -> ~/Dropbox/config/.gitconfig
  8. ~/bin -> ~/Dropbox/config/bin
  9. ~/.atom -> ~/Dropbox/config/.atom
  10. ~/.lighttable -> ~/Dropbox/config/.lighttable
  11. ~/Library/Application Support/Sublime Text 3/Installed Packages -> ~/Dropbox/config/st3/Installed Packages
  12. ~/Library/Application Support/Sublime Text 3/Packages -> ~/Dropbox/config/st3/Packages
  13. ~/Library/Application Support/Brackets -> ~/Dropbox/config/Brackets
• From command line: echo ‘. “$HOME/.bashrc”‘ > ~/.bash_profile
• From command line: defaults write -g ApplePressAndHoldEnabled -bool false
• Change Caps Lock to Control
• Set Key Repeat Rate to Fast (slider all the way to right) and Delay Until Repeat to Short (slider all the way to right)
• Turn on display of ~/Library (open home in Finder, Cmd+J, check Show Library Folder)
• Install Homebrew and packages:
  1. macvim (editor)
  2. git (source control)
  3. hub (source control for working with Github)
  4. leiningen (Clojure project manager)
  5. node (JavaScript development framework)
  6. wry (App.net command-line client)
  7. mongodb (NoSQL database)
  8. tig (text-mode git interface)
  9. mysql (RDBMS)
  10. tmux (terminal multiplexer)
  11. elixir (Erlang-based language)
  12. ctags (tag generator)
  13. markdown (markup language)
• Install Homebrew Cask (thanks, @pittman!) and apps:
  1. tower (source control)
  2. evernote (note taker/junk drawer)
  3. appcode (Objective-C IDE)
  4. webstorm (JavaScript IDE)
  5. rubymine (Ruby/Rails IDE)
  6. marked (markdown viewer)
  7. path-finder (finder alternative)
  8. iterm2 (terminal alternative)
  9. kaleidoscope (diff viewer)
  10. codekit (less/sass/coffeescript autocompiler)
  11. fluid (make apps from websites)
  12. firefox (web browser)
  13. brackets (editor geared toward Web development)
  14. kiwi (App.net client)
  15. copy (cloud storage)
  16. hazel (automation utility)
  17. bbedit (editor that can edit plist files)
  18. calibre (ebook reader)
  19. balsamiq-mockups (interface mockup application)
  20. sizeup (window manager)
  21. alfred (launcher)
  22. lighttable (Clojure IDE)
• Install others:
  1. Java 7 & 8 (language)
  2. Ubuntu Mono font (my current favorite programming font)
  3. rvm (Ruby version manager) and latest ruby
  4. safe (password management utility — gem install safe)
  5. Atom (editor)
  6. Sublime Text 3 (editor)
  7. Eclipse (Java IDE)
  8. viPlugin (Eclipse vi plugin)
  9. meteor (JavaScript framework)
  10. Macaw (Web development tool)
  11. Photoshop (graphics editor)
  12. MS Office (productivity suite)
  13. Google Drive (cloud storage)
  14. Box Sync (cloud storage)
  15. Snapz Pro X (screenshots)
• Install App Store apps:
  1. Caffeine (prevent mac from sleeping)
  2. Archy (Google Docs management)
  3. Oyster (regex IDE)
  4. Paprika (recipe manager)
  5. Dash (documentation viewer)
  6. Unclutter (scratchpad/clipboard viewer)
  7. Glui (screenshots)
  8. Skitch (screenshots)
  9. Pixelmator (graphics editor)
  10. Sketch (vector graphics editor)
  11. CodeRunner (run code)
  12. Patterns (regex editor)
  13. Twitterrific (Twitter client)
  14. Requester (HTTP client)
  15. Todo (task manager)
  16. MarsEdit (blog editor)
  17. Base (SQLite client)
  18. OneDrive (cloud storage)
  19. OneNote (note manager)
  20. xScope (screen measurement utility)

Whew! That’s a lot of stuff, but I installed only the stuff I use (well, except for OneNote—I’m going to give that a whirl). That’s an awful lot of text editors, I know, but I hate to miss out. I left a lot of stuff out, too. Let’s see how long I go before I install something else!

EDIT: OK, so the nested lists look terrible, so I changed the nested ones to ordered. I also added xScope, which I had already installed but somehow missed on the list. I also noted that I had changed Caps Lock to Control and changed Key Repeat Rate and Delay Until Repeat.