I’m a Mac despite having worked for Microsoft since 2015. 😅
I love the Mac / Apple platform, but also loathe it. The latest changes Apple is pushing are ruining the entire ‘desktop’ experience. As such, I’ve yet to upgrade to Ventura – it’s a hot mess I’d prefer to avoid for as long as humanly possible. To extend Monterey and address some of its shortcomings, these are the apps I can’t seem live without:
- Homebrew – For all the missing junk Apple doesn’t ship https://brew.sh
- Amphetamine – Keeps your box awake for long-running stuff https://apps.apple.com/us/app/amphetamine/id937984704?mt=12
- Mic Drop – set up a PTT (push to talk) hotkey that globally (un)mutes your hardware mic https://apps.apple.com/us/app/mic-drop-mute-manager/id1489816366?mt=12
- SoundSource – Control audio on external devices, route audio to different playback endpoints, set per app EQ and volume, etc https://rogueamoeba.com/soundsource/
- Little Snitch – Application Firewall (I don’t pirate apps anymore, but still useful to make sure they’re not doing anything untoward) https://obdev.at/index.html
- Shottr – Way better screen shot tool, can even replace elements of images https://shottr.cc
- Later – Restore Apps on your workspace later https://getlater.app
- Hidden Bar – You’re going to need this when you have an out of control menu bar area https://apps.apple.com/us/app/hidden-bar/id1452453066?mt=12
- Latest – Update all the Apps you didn’t get from Apple’s App Store https://max.codes/latest/
- Synergy – Share your mouse and keyboard across machines https://symless.com/synergy
- Parallels Desktop – Even a Mac guy sometimes needs Windoze for work https://www.parallels.com/products/business
- 1Blocker – Best ad blocker I’ve found, and it works on iOS too https://apps.apple.com/us/app/1blocker-ad-blocker/id1365531024
- Alfred – Replace Apple’s janky Spotlight nonsense with something more extensible https://alfred.app
- iTerm2 – Again, replace Apple’s janky terminal app with something better https://iterm2.com
I am in no way compensated by or affiliated with any of these Apps or their developers or parent corporations. I just use their software. 🤓