Hi, my name is Granit and I’m a Full Stack Developer. As a full-stack developer, I sometimes build an API, a website, and a mobile application at work and for my project. For that, I used many applications to help me build those things. And by the way, I’m using Macbook Air M1 2020 with 8GB RAM and 256GB storage.
In this article, I will list some of the installed apps on my MacBook. Some of these apps will be only available on mac OS, but I will also provide alternatives for any Windows and Linux user out there.
Brave
For my browser of choice, I used Brave. I choose Brave because it is based on Chromium and has a security feature that I want, also I already used Brave in the past. I installed some extensions and I will write another post talking about my browser extension.
You can go to the Brave website or use this command brew install — cask brave-browser to install Brave. For alternatives browser, I recommended Vivaldi, Firefox, and Chrome.
Notion
I used Notion for dumping some notes, ideas, to-do lists, and pretty much everything that I need to write down. I save some important stuff, project idea, note-taking app, and much more. Notion has so many features that I can utilize and the best part is it free.
You can go to Notion website or use this command brew install — cask notion to install it. My alternative for Notion is Evernote.
Bitwarden
Bitwarden is a password manager that I used for quite some time. The biggest advantage is open source and free. Another advantage of Bitwarden is you get unlimited devices. That feature is the most I wanted.
You can go to the Bitwarden website or use this command brew install — cask bitwarden to install it. For alternatives, I recommended LastPass, 1Password, and Dashlane.
AppCleaner
AppCleaner is an app that I used for uninstalling my app. You can just drag the app to AppCleaner then AppCleaner will detect any junk file from that app. When we uninstall the app, all the junk files will also be deleted.
You can go to the AppCleaner website to install it. For alternatives, I will be recommending CleanMyMac.
Warp
For the terminal, I’m using Warp. The unique feature from Warp is every time you run a command, the output will be shown from the bottom and will continue to the top. The autocomplete and history are also very well-built.
You can go to the Warp website or run a command brew install — cask warp to install it. My terminal alternative besides Warp is Iterm2.
Raycast
Raycast is my app of choice for replacing Spotlight which is free. Raycast has a store so you can install plugins for your Raycast to boost your productivity. Raycast also already shipped with a lot of helpful features and automation.
You can go to the Raycast website or run this command brew install raycast to install it. For alternatives, you can stick to Spotlight or install Alfred.
VS Code
For text editor or IDE of my choice is VS Code. VS Code has a lot of features and support for so many programming languages. I installed some extensions and I will write another post to show you the extensions that I used.
You can go to VS Code website or use this command brew install — cask visual-studio-code to install it. For alternatives, I will recommend Sublime Text and IDE from JetBrains.
Rectangle
Rectangle is an app that can move and resize apps just like a Windows laptop. You can snap windows to the top left, top right, bottom left, bottom right, and many more.
You can go to Rectangle website or use this command brew install — cask rectangle to install it. I don’t think many alternatives to Rectangle are free, but you can try Magnet.
Kap
Kap is an app to record your screen. I use Kap primarily in my work to record some flow of a website. Kap produces small video sizes with good quality compared to other screen recording apps.
You go to the Kap website or use this command brew install — cask kap to install it. For alternatives, I will recommend Monosnap or Bandicam.
Sequel Ace
I use Sequel Ace for MySQL database management. It’s free and it gets the job done when I’m working with MySQL. If you used Sequel Pro, you will be familiar with Sequel Ace.
You can go to the Sequel Ace website or use this command brew install — cask sequel-ace to install it. Another app that you can use is Table Plus.
Another Redis Desktop Manager
For Redis management, I used Another Redis Desktop Manager for the GUI. It makes it easier to manage my Redis, like showing, updating, and deleting Redis data.
You can go to Another Redis Desktop Manager website or use this command brew install — cask another-redis-desktop-manager to install it. For alternatives, I recommended Medis and RedisInsight.
Postman
I used Postman for testing my API. I come with a lot of features, like standard HTTP requests, Websocket, event gRPC, mocking server, and many more. Postman collection has also already been a standard for developers.
You can go to Postman website or use this command brew install — cask postman to install it. Alternatives besides Postman are Insomnia and Firecamp.
Itsycal
Itsycal is a menu bar calendar that I used to check schedules. Primarily I used it in my work to check meeting schedules. It’s minimalist and serves me well.
You can go to Itsycal website or use this command brew install — cask itsycal to install it. I don’t have any alternatives for Itsycal, but you can search that works for you.
Docker
Docker is an app that I used to containerize my app. So basically I can run my app or website with a specific environment that I defined. I also can run some apps like Redis Server or MySQL server without installing them.
You can go to Docker website or use this command brew install — cask docker to install it. I used Docker for a long time, but you can try Podman if you want alternatives.
OpenVPN
OpenVPN is a VPN client that I used primarily for work. We used VPN to connect to the dev server and we are using VPN. I also sometimes used that to open websites that got blocked in Indonesia like Reddit.
You can go to OpenVPN website or use this command brew install — cask openvpn-connect to install it. For alternatives, I recommended NordVPN, Private Internet Access, and Proton VPN.
WPS Office
WPS Office is an app that I used to work on docs, spreadsheets, PowerPoints, and PDFs. It’s an alternative to Microsoft Office for my Mac. It’s free for the most part and got the job done.
You can go to the WPS Office website or use this command brew install — cask wpsoffice to install it. For alternatives, you can use Microsoft Office or LibreOffice.
Android Studio
As Full Stack Developer, sometimes I also develop a mobile app using Android Studio. But I used Android Studio primarily for the Android emulator. For the programming language I used React Native, so I used VS Code for the text editor.
You can go to the Android Studio website or use this command brew install — cask android-studio to install it.
Dropzone
Another app that I installed is Dropzone. I used Dropzone to easily copy and move files. It’s free and easy to use.
You can go to the Dropzone website or use this command brew install — cask dropzone to install it.
GitHub Desktop
I used GitHub Desktop for managing my local repository easily. I still use the terminal to do some Git action, but in some cases, it’s easier to use GitHub Desktop.
You can go to GitHub Desktop website or use this command brew install — cask github to install it. For alternatives, you can use Sourcetree or GitKraken.
MongoDB Compass
I also work with MongoDB, so I used MongoDB Compass for the GUI. It makes me easy to do some queries for MongoDB. It’s free to download and easy to use.
You can go to MongoDB Compass website or use this command brew install — cask mongodb-compass to install it. For alternatives, you can use Studio 3T.
Conclusion
I hope that the apps that I used can give you some inspiration for using them and help you save time and increase your efficiency. If you have any questions about any of these apps and services, feel free to contact me.