New iMac and the SW I need

In 2006 I bought a MacBook Pro, my first Mac:Intel. My checklist for software and configuration back then is still available. But 2007 started with a new iMac (actually 3 late 2006 and 2 more arriving at the lab January 2nd), and this is the software I installed on them and the configuration I did the first day. Be aware that the iMacs are for the lab, and they are not meant for personal usage (not email, calendar, media-stuff, and so on). I grouped the steps into configuration, free stuff (donations sometimes accepted), and stuff to buy.

Configuration

• Enable secondary mouse button: Go to System Preferences, select Keyboard & Mouse, and change the rightmost part of the mouse to Secondary Button. You might also change the middle button to Button 3 or something else (default is Dashboard). On the MacBook Pro I did enable two fingers on the trackpad for secondary click (see System Preferences, Keyboard & Mouse, and Trackpad on a MacBook).
• Open Safari preferences and enable tabbed browsing. Why isn't this on be default?
• CapsLock is a key of no practical use. Open System Preferences, select Keyboard and Mouse, then Keyboard, and then the button Modifier Keys. Change Caps Lock to None or Control (or whatever you prefer). See Changing modifier keys for details.
• Support for Norwegian characters in the terminal depends on the shell you are using. I prefer bash (see Terminal preferences), and how this is done in bash is described at bullet 19 here.
• To be able to login to the Mac with ssh (or to be able to create a ssh tunnel to it), you have to start the Remote Login service (use System Preferences and select Sharing – under Services start Remote Login). It is also recommend to start and configure the firewall (also under Sharing).
• Enable root user using the Security menu in the Netinfo Manager (you have to authenticate first – same menu). Sometimes only sudo isn't good enough. See also this article on sudo and root.

Free- or donate-ware

• UNO: I don't like the mixed UI feel of the current Mac OSX installation (more, more).
• Quicksilver is the best application-launcher, and much more (more, more).
• I prefer many virtual desktops, and my usual configuration includes 6 (Mail, Web, Life, Doc, Src, and Misc). VirtueDesktops is the best alternative so far (next version of Mac OS X will support virtual desktops, but why wait).
• Safari is OK (at least after you have turned on tabbed browsing and installed Saft – see above and below), but sometimes Firefox is the only option (debugging web page with complex JavaScript Ajax style, see FireBug).
• To make your Macs available remotly using VNC, you need a VNC server. The Vine Server (earlier known as OSXvnc) is a good alternative. The server is free (the client is charged for). If you run the server on your Mac, you can access it with (almost) any VNC client. On a Mac I use Chicken of the VNC, and on a Windows machine I use the free VNC client from RealVNC (see this posting for more information). Remember to configure your firewall (if it is running) so vnc connections are not blocked.
• To access your Windows boxes remotly (if you have any), the Remote Desktop Connection Client for Mac from Microsoft is your friend. I've seen some problems with the .bin distribution (it includes the office package and not RDC), so download and install the hqx distribution (you might need the free StuffIt expander for Mac to access the content of a hqx file).
• Your new Mac is an Intel box, and yes, it can run Windows. Apple provides BootCamp to make it possible to dual-boot Windows and OS X on your new Mac. (Another alternatives where rebooting isn't needed is Parallels, see below.)
• As a developer on a Mac, Xcode is essential. It is free, but you have to be an ADC member (it is also free).
• Another tool for developers is Emacs. Many Mac options exits, but I've become an Aquamacs user. It is Emacs like an OS X application. And the normal Apple and Emacs keybord shortcuts works. I've done some minor tweaking (see also Customize Aquamacs) to get it right (from my perspective), and almost all code and text is written in Aquamacs on my Macs.
• I'm a programmer, and most of my code is written in Python. Native updated Python builds for Mac are available. The version of Python bundled with your Mac is old, and you should install a newer version. Python on the Mac has the ability to work with Apple Events (you can use Python instead of Applescript), native Mac libraries (you can call all the Objective-C libraries, including Cocoa), Mac application bundles ("apps", written in Python), and much much more of the Mac infrastructure. Python packages and extensions pre-built for the Mac are available. I usually install PyObjC (the Python – Objective-C bridge), the WxPython and the PIL package. See also PythonMac for more information.
• Subversion is available as a precompiled package for Mac (cvs is included with Xcode).
• Spell checking is nice, and ispell (combined with flyspell in Emacs) is an option. CocoaSpell is another spell checker for Mac that is popular. I've installed both and I use ispell in Emacs and CocoaSpell (aspell) in Mac applications (Mail, Pages, ...). With CocoaSpell, remember to install the dictionaries you need.
• I can not work without TeX and friends. On the Mac I've the best experience using the i-Installer (more). I use i-Installer to install the TeX package (gwTeX), the ConTeXt updater, ImageMagick (you need to install Freetype 2, PNG reference library, and libwmf with i-Installer first), and XeTeX. If you need a better GUI for TeX, iTexMac and TeXShop are good options (I think – I don't use them).
• The Flip4Mac plugin for QuickTime is needed. Perian is another plugin that you might find usefull. It adds native support for many other popular video formats.
• If QuickTime isn't good enough, then VLC is a good alternative. Download the Mac OS X version.
• Skype is a must, and 2.x includes video support on the Mac.
• Growl is a global notification system for Mac OS X. Any application can send a notification to Growl, which will display an attractive message on your screen (how it is displayed is configurable). A lot of applications supports Growl. (Some Growl Extras needs SIMBL, and since it is used by other software too [like PithHelmet, see below], I always install it on my Macs.)
• Traditional tar doesn't support HFS+ specific information such as resource forks, type and creator codes as well as other finder flags. Hfstar is a patched version of tar that support those (more). It is PPC binary, but Rosetta makes it work (and source is available if you want to recompile it).

SW I bought

• iLife is included with the new Macs, but I have to buy iWork. The price of both are $79.
• I use two plugins for Safari that I have to pay for. Saft extends Safari in a lot of ways. It is (almost) the first thing I install on a new Mac. The price is $12. PithHelmet is the other plugin I've bought for Safari. PithHelmet is an extended site preferences and ad blocking plugin for Apple's Safari browser. You can block ad images, Flash, Shockwave or horrible midi loops. The price is $10.
• NovaMind is a mind mapping tool for Mac and Windows. The price is $119, but if you need such a tool this one is a good option. Mindjet® MindManager® 6 for Mac is an alternative. It is priced at 199€, but you might get an academic price.
• Microsoft Office is a must for some. The Mac version is not Intel ready yet, but it works on your Mac:Intel. Price from $399 ($149 for students/teachers, but we have a site license).
• Adobe Acrobat Professional (version 8) is available for the Mac (version 8 of the free reader is also available). The cost of professional is $449 (we have a site license).
• Roxio Toast is the most complete CD and DVD burning application for your Mac. You don't need it to burn CDs or DVDs on your Mac, but its extra features are nice. The price is $99.88 (currently $79.99). Disco is the cool guy of the burning software. Introduction price is $14.95.
• It is possible to run Windows on your mac (see BootCamp above, and this posting). If you want to run Windows (or other OSes) at the same time as Mac OS X on your Mac (inside Mac OS X), Parallels is one possible solution (more). Current price is $79.99.

January 5 2007 (aa)