How it works

Choose a setup

The homepage opens Custom with Git selected for first-time visitors, along with its Homebrew and Xcode Command Line Tools prerequisites. You can change or clear the selection; saved choices are restored on your next visit. Preset languages, runtimes, frameworks, and toolsets remain in the navigation. Each preset lists its software; package managers may install additional dependencies.

Custom setups

Required tools are included once, before the tools that need them. Editors, browsers, and database services are optional. Package managers may install further dependencies.

Configure zsh is optional and off by default. Without it, shell startup files stay unchanged; tool paths and runtime activation need your own shell setup. Selecting it configures zsh for the chosen tools without changing your login shell.

The preview, copied text, and downloaded file contain the same script. A downloaded Custom script runs with bash macish-custom.sh. It confirms your selection in Terminal before installation.

Run that command from the folder containing the file. If it is in Downloads, you can run bash "$HOME/Downloads/macish-custom.sh" from any folder. Adjust the path if you saved it elsewhere or your browser renamed the file.

Selections stay in this browser. No account or server is involved; JavaScript is required for Custom selection.

Inspect, then run

Open the script directly from its setup page, or expand the download option to save a local copy. Downloading does not run it.

Preset quick commands finish downloading before execution. The && check runs Bash only if curl succeeds, so a failed download does not execute partial output. This does not verify the script's contents.

Run the install command in Terminal on your Mac. The scripts execute in Bash. Presets configure zsh; Custom does so only when selected. Other shells need separate setup.

If setup stops

If Xcode Command Line Tools are missing, finish Apple's installer and run the script again. For other failures, check the command and error shown in Terminal before retrying.

Existing Homebrew packages are usually skipped on a rerun. Runtime selection and service startup still run. There is no automatic rollback.

After installation

Open a new terminal to load the shell changes. App dependencies are separate from the workstation setup. The Rails preset provides prerequisites; it does not install the Rails gem.

Custom's Rails option installs the Rails 8.0 gem. Its Python option uses uv-managed Python without replacing your default Python.

Django installs an isolated django-admin command with uv. Add Django to each project's dependencies separately. Rust uses rustup and preserves existing default toolchains.