New Mac OS X Install (started 2009-05-15):

• Install OS
• Install Developer Tools, XCode (on OS DVD)
• Install iLife ('08)
• Install iWork ('08)
• Run Software Update
• Restart (You'll probably have to anyway)
• use iSync to get all stored backups for Mail.app, iCal, Address Book, Safari Bookmarks, etc...)
• Run Software Update again
• Run Mail.app to start building local cache
• Run one of the iWork apps as the first time will ask for product Serial #
• Install iSlayer iStat Pro Dashboard widget (http://www.islayer.com/apps/istatpro/)
• Restore backups of:

Pictures/

Music/

Movies/

Documents/

• Run iPhoto to ensure restored photo library is intact
• Run iTunes to ensure restored music/podcast/etc... library is intact
• Run iMovie to ensure restored movie projects library is intact
• Install Fink (http://www.finkproject.org/)

update /sw/etc/fink.conf to enable main/unstable crypto/unstable

fink selfupdate-rsync

fink scanpackages

fink selfupdate

Install packages: source-highlight vim gawk sed wget

In order to satisfy dependencies, this will install many other packages as well

Install package coreutils-default (without "g" prefix)

now includes 'date' yeah!

Install python (Leopard comes with 2.5.1, this fink package is 2.6.2)

Install netpbm (beware that netpbm10 also exists and is a bit mutually exclusive)

Some philosophy:

I'm coming to the perspective that only (mostly) command-line software will be installed via fink.  The reason being that I can now very easily install a Linux Virtual machine on the Mac via VirtualBox.  Several packages I use there require either KDE or GNOME.  I don't think it very practical to build all of those support libraries for the Mac and then have to use X11 on the Mac, when I can easily install RPMs/.debs on the Linux virtual machine.  After that, each of these applications is just a ⌘-tab away.

Install Firefox (http://www.mozilla.com/firefox/)

• Install Google Earth (http://earth.google.com/)
• Install Qt Creator (http://www.qtsoftware.com/products/developer-tools)
• Install Netbeans (http://www.netbeans.org/)
• Install MySQL (http://www.mysql.com/)

I've gotten in the habit of building from source tarballs.

http://developer.apple.com/internet/opensource/osdb.html

http://hivelogic.com/articles/view/installing-mysql-on-mac-os-x

tar zxvf mysql-5.1.34.tar.gz

cd mysql-5.1.34

./configure --prefix=/usr/local/mysql \

--with-unix-socket-path=/usr/local/mysql/run/mysql_socket \

--with-mysqld-user=mysql --with-comment --with-debug

make

make install

• Install Tomcat (http://tomcat.apache.org/)
• Install Pebble Blog software (http://pebble.sourceforge.net/)
• Install VirtualBox (http://www.virtualbox.org/)
• Install FedoraCore 10 KDE Live
• Turn on 3D Acceleration (why not?)
• After installing FC10 from ISO image, make sure you install the kernel source so you can
• Install the Guest Additions so that you can use the full display
• yum update
• yum install kernel kernel-devel gcc
• yum install xpdf
• yum install inkscape
• yum install geda-* pcb
• yum install gerbv gerbv-devel kicad
• some useful info: http://davidherron.com/blog/topics/1027-installing-fedora-core-10-virtualbox
• Install OpenOffice (http://www.openoffice.org/)

Install Sun's template pack (has some useful graph paper templates)

Oh, and this one: http://templates.services.openoffice.org/files/68/graphpaper_2.ott

• Install Skim (http://skim-app.sourceforge.net/)
• Install Blender (www.blender.org)
• Install Google SketchUp (http://sketchup.google.com)
• Install .bash_profile .vimrc

Some configuration steps:

Go to http://www.macromedia.com/support/documentation/en/flashplayer/help/settings_manager.html

and deny everything for Flash cookies and set all buffers to 0 size.

How To Keep Tabs On Sneaky "Flash Cookies" | bMighty.com: Blogs For Small Business and Mid-Sized Business

This is a good overview with links to much more information (dated May 8, 2009)

Configure less (should be in .bash_profile):

LESS="-c -R "

LESSOPEN="| /sw/bin/src-hilite-lesspipe.sh %s"

Configure Terminal: (note: I used to use iTerm, but Terminal has gotten much better with OS X 10.5)

make the "Pro" settings the default

turn on anti-aliased text (computers are fast enough now ;-))

turn off unlimited scrollback, 10000 lines should be enough

use visual bell and turn off audible bell

set display size to 168x42 (allows two 80-columns docs to be diff'ed 'diff -yW168' side-by-side)

set the font size to 16 (the default Monaco font seems fine)

Configure Clock in Menu

Use 24 hour notation

Get rid of AM/PM

Configure Main Menu

/System/Library/CoreServices/Menu\ Extras/Eject.menu

Configure Safari

Enable Develop menu (Preferences->Advanced check "Show Develop menu in menu bar"

Configure Firefox

Add Firebug extension

Configure/Add Aftermarket Codecs:

Avid QuickTime Codecs LE (1.10 though it appears 2.0 is out)  (http://tr.im/n7hP)

Install QuickTime 7 Pro key (see e-mail for key)

Commands that are handy:

drutil eject (eject an errant CD/DVD from the drive, especially useful on laptops)

hdiutil eject [volume] (eject a .dmg image once your done with it)

Some keyboard shortcuts: Macintosh Accent Codes

Ω alt-z

º alt-0

® alt-r

∂ alt-d

µ alt-m

π alt-p

Ø alt-O

∆ alt-j

… alt-;

≠ alt-=

± alt-+

≤ alt-,

≥ alt-.

≈ alt-x

 alt-K

umlaut alt-u then character ë, ü, ö, etc...

Å alt-A (ångström)