This content originally appeared on Level Up Coding - Medium and was authored by 4gray
My macOS Apps Journey: A Year of Upgrades and Discoveries
It’s been a year since I shared my MacBook setup, and a lot has changed. I’ve stopped using some of the old apps and discovered new ones that have transformed my workspace. In this article, I’ll share what’s new in my setup and what from the previous lineup has been archived.
Let’s start with what I’ve stopped using. Some apps simply didn’t stand the test of time or were replaced by more functional alternatives. In the comments of that article, various alternatives and new apps were suggested, and I want to thank the commenters for their input — some of these I’ve started using regularly. I’ll also introduce you to several new tools that have become fundamental in my daily workflow.
Dev Setup:
Here’s where the most changes have occurred.
GitButler (SourceTree): First off, I’m thrilled to have discovered GitButler, which has not only changed my workflow but also replaced Sourcetree for me.
Bruno (Postman): Within the development environment, Bruno, an open-source tool, has taken the place of Postman, allowing for synchronization of all saved requests with the development team via git.
Alongside Bruno, I also recommend checking out the promising client, yaak.
OrbStack (Docker Desktop): Another significant shift in my development environment was moving from Docker Desktop to OrbStack, and I’m genuinely glad I discovered this alternative — it’s a simple, intuitive application with all the essential functionality, running fast and conserving resources.
Warp: I’ve switched over to Warp, especially since the login feature has recently become optional, which should make this app even more appealing to all the privacy-conscious folks out there ;-). Just recently, Ghostty was released, and its speed certainly merits attention, though I haven’t had the chance to try it yet.
TablePlus: For database management, I recommend TablePlus, although it’s not free, and once my SetApp subscription, which I don’t plan to renew, expires, I’ll likely look for an alternative for working with SQLite. If anyone can recommend something, I’d be grateful.
Redis Extension: For working with Redis, I use the official extension for VSCode, which does its job well.
Regarding browsers, I tried Arc but wasn’t impressed, especially since the Arc team is already working on a new browser, Dia.
AI Tools:
I’ve integrated several AI tools into my workflow. The native apps for ChatGPT and Perplexity have become daily drivers for quick queries and assistance. Additionally, GitHub Copilot with its new Edits preview function has significantly enhanced my coding efficiency.
App Generators: Beyond these, I’ve explored services like bolt.new, v0, and lovable.dev, which are alarmingly good at creating small web applications and landing pages from simple text prompts using Large Language Models (LLM).
Ollama: And where would we be without Ollama? :-) It’s the go-to application for running open-source models locally, and its API has become the standard for integrating local models into applications.
Other:
Raycast/macOs native: I’ve ditched Rectangle App since window management has been improved in macOS and is also available in Raycast. Raycast has also replaced Past for me, as it includes clipboard history.
NordVPN: For VPN services, I recently subscribed to NordVPN, and so far, it’s been entirely satisfactory.
Quick Notes/Todos: When it comes to quick notes and spontaneous todos, I haven’t found anything better than the “Favorites” chat in Telegram. Yes, I agree it’s not organized or structured, but it works for my case.
That’s all the changes I’ve made over the past year. I hope my experience is helpful to you and that you find something useful among these apps for your own use. Technology evolves, and our toolkit should evolve with it. As you can see from the list, AI applications are increasingly becoming part of my daily developer life, which mirrors the broader tech trends of the past year. It’ll be fascinating to review the outcomes at the beginning of next year and see what new services and apps 2025 brings us. Betting on AI again seems like the safest bet ;-)
If you have your favorite apps or have noticed something new that I’ve missed, please share in the comments! I look forward to your feedback and suggestions.
My macOSApp Journey: A Year of Upgrades and Discoveries was originally published in Level Up Coding on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.
This content originally appeared on Level Up Coding - Medium and was authored by 4gray
4gray | Sciencx (2025-01-10T02:25:20+00:00) My macOSApp Journey: A Year of Upgrades and Discoveries. Retrieved from https://www.scien.cx/2025/01/10/my-macosapp-journey-a-year-of-upgrades-and-discoveries/
Please log in to upload a file.
There are no updates yet.
Click the Upload button above to add an update.