4 ms·

This looks interesting. Personally I have been moving away from homebrew and use nix-darwin (https://github.com/LnL7/nix-darwin https://github.com/LnL7/nix-darw

This looks interesting. Personally I have been moving away from homebrew and use nix-darwin (https://github.com/LnL7/nix-darwin https://github.com/LnL7/nix-darwin) with home-manager for my local software. It has been working great, but there are still a few packages that require Homebrew due to their complex build process. Maybe this helps.

conradev 2y ago
Same. The story with app bundles in Nix is a little rough, currently, though: - Located in the nix store, so not indexed by Spotlight - Not signed so I have to grant permissions all over again when an app gets rebuilt
- mbrumlow 2y ago
  I have a post hook that renders a Automator app to Applications to call the next one for me. Seems to work well for the few apps I use like that.
- loveparade 2y ago
  Instead of Spotlight I use Raycast. It has been working great for me.
  - tymscar 2y ago
    I also do that, but when I search for emacs for example I get like 2-3 different ones and they are named as the full path in the nix store. That sometimes goes away after some time with indexing, but sometimes it does not. And another annoying issue is that sometimes even when theres only one, its called by the path, and Im not a wizard so I don’t know if that path is the latest, so I am still using outdated software because its not launching the newest version. Did you have any of these issues?
- nothrabannosir 2y ago
  I actually wrote a script which creates a trampoline launcher for this. It has its flaws but it solves the spotlight issue, and supports pinning to Dock across updates. Available as a plug-and-play module for nix-darwin and home-manager: https://github.com/hraban/mac-app-util https://github.com/hraban/mac-app-util
  - sunaookami 2y ago
    This is great! I run a script with mkalias[1] which works fine but all icons have this ugly arrow. Yours works perfectly - only thing missing is the icon in the spotlight search. EDIT: Hm seems to not affect every app. [1] https://github.com/reckenrode/mkalias https://github.com/reckenrode/mkalias
- deleted 2y ago
  [deleted]
parhamn 2y ago
Mind sharing some reasons to switch? Been meaning to check out nix.
- colordrops 2y ago
  Package installation and personal config in a single declarative language, reproducible with a single command, and shareable across platforms. But that's just scratching the surface of Nix's capabilities.
- loveparade 2y ago
  Here are a couple: - Learn Nix - Homebrew can be a pain. I've had several occasions where it broke something on my system with its magic. The main reason for this is its imperative (as opposed to declarative) nature. You can easily install things that clash with other software installed on your system. - You can easily install different versions of the same software without having to worry about clashes - Fully declarative configuration. You know exactly what is installed on your system at any time. - Portable reproducible configuration. Imagine you get a new laptop. Because you have have your system configuration declared with nix and home-manager you can copy the configuration file, run install, and your system is set up, exactly the way the old one was. - To add to the above, you can also do the same with non-MacOS systems if you make your config conditional on MacOS. I sometimes want to work on a remote Linux machine. I can set up a full dev environment with all the tools I use locally with a single command now.
  - mikemcquaid 2y ago
    If you want a more declarative approach to Homebrew: ‘brew bundle’ uses ‘Brewfile’s for this. You can share these on macOS and Linux and add similar conditionals. Not nearly as reproducible but: this is something I’m working on. Stay tuned…
    - pxc 2y ago
      The existing Brewfile functionality what Nix-Darwin's Homebrew module currently uses behind the scenes, so any improvements here might also benefit some Nix users on macOS (including me!). The conditionals and cross-platform stuff might also make it possible to write a single module here that enables use of Homebrew as an escape hatch both on macOS and Linux/NixOS, which would maybe be kinda cool. So thank you for that work. :)
srid 2y ago
You don't even need nix-darwin per se. You can get by just with home-manager and do a lot with it. Here's a template config to get started: https://github.com/juspay/nix-dev-home https://github.com/juspay/nix-dev-home --- That said, nix-darwin is still useful for doing system level things, like enabling Touch ID for `sudo`. I use that in my config: https://github.com/srid/nixos-config https://github.com/srid/nixos-config

conradev 2y ago

Same. The story with app bundles in Nix is a little rough, currently, though: - Located in the nix store, so not indexed by Spotlight - Not signed so I have to grant permissions all over again when an app gets rebuilt

mbrumlow 2y ago
I have a post hook that renders a Automator app to Applications to call the next one for me. Seems to work well for the few apps I use like that.
loveparade 2y ago
Instead of Spotlight I use Raycast. It has been working great for me.
- tymscar 2y ago
  I also do that, but when I search for emacs for example I get like 2-3 different ones and they are named as the full path in the nix store. That sometimes goes away after some time with indexing, but sometimes it does not. And another annoying issue is that sometimes even when theres only one, its called by the path, and Im not a wizard so I don’t know if that path is the latest, so I am still using outdated software because its not launching the newest version. Did you have any of these issues?
nothrabannosir 2y ago
I actually wrote a script which creates a trampoline launcher for this. It has its flaws but it solves the spotlight issue, and supports pinning to Dock across updates. Available as a plug-and-play module for nix-darwin and home-manager: https://github.com/hraban/mac-app-util https://github.com/hraban/mac-app-util
- sunaookami 2y ago
  This is great! I run a script with mkalias[1] which works fine but all icons have this ugly arrow. Yours works perfectly - only thing missing is the icon in the spotlight search. EDIT: Hm seems to not affect every app. [1] https://github.com/reckenrode/mkalias https://github.com/reckenrode/mkalias
deleted 2y ago
[deleted]

parhamn 2y ago

Mind sharing some reasons to switch? Been meaning to check out nix.

colordrops 2y ago
Package installation and personal config in a single declarative language, reproducible with a single command, and shareable across platforms. But that's just scratching the surface of Nix's capabilities.
loveparade 2y ago
Here are a couple: - Learn Nix - Homebrew can be a pain. I've had several occasions where it broke something on my system with its magic. The main reason for this is its imperative (as opposed to declarative) nature. You can easily install things that clash with other software installed on your system. - You can easily install different versions of the same software without having to worry about clashes - Fully declarative configuration. You know exactly what is installed on your system at any time. - Portable reproducible configuration. Imagine you get a new laptop. Because you have have your system configuration declared with nix and home-manager you can copy the configuration file, run install, and your system is set up, exactly the way the old one was. - To add to the above, you can also do the same with non-MacOS systems if you make your config conditional on MacOS. I sometimes want to work on a remote Linux machine. I can set up a full dev environment with all the tools I use locally with a single command now.
- mikemcquaid 2y ago
  If you want a more declarative approach to Homebrew: ‘brew bundle’ uses ‘Brewfile’s for this. You can share these on macOS and Linux and add similar conditionals. Not nearly as reproducible but: this is something I’m working on. Stay tuned…
  - pxc 2y ago
    The existing Brewfile functionality what Nix-Darwin's Homebrew module currently uses behind the scenes, so any improvements here might also benefit some Nix users on macOS (including me!). The conditionals and cross-platform stuff might also make it possible to write a single module here that enables use of Homebrew as an escape hatch both on macOS and Linux/NixOS, which would maybe be kinda cool. So thank you for that work. :)

srid 2y ago

You don't even need nix-darwin per se. You can get by just with home-manager and do a lot with it. Here's a template config to get started: https://github.com/juspay/nix-dev-home https://github.com/juspay/nix-dev-home --- That said, nix-darwin is still useful for doing system level things, like enabling Touch ID for `sudo`. I use that in my config: https://github.com/srid/nixos-config https://github.com/srid/nixos-config