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Setup a new Mac for web development

Published Nov 2, 2023

A lean checklist for tooling a fresh Mac: shell, Node, Docker, databases, and the quality-of-life defaults that save hours.

A new Mac is only productive after the boring setup is done. Start with Homebrew, a modern shell, and SSH keys. Add Node via a version manager, Docker Desktop (or Colima), and your editor of choice.

Then clone your dotfiles, enable git signing if you use it, and install the CLIs you actually touch weekly — not every trendy tool. Finally, smoke-test by running one full-stack project end to end.

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