Having used an iMac since 2005, I have come across some useful open source software; this article is dedicated to it. I am a software engineer with Java and web development ties and extensive Linux experience; this collection is for you if you fulfill a similar profile.
One advice though: If you are a developer, go Linux. Every OS can be obtuse in their own way, but proprietary OSes like MacOS or Windows will strictly forbid you to change it, while open source OSes only have to stay unchanged if our limited will and focus is not enough.
A decent terminal comes in the form of
iTerm2
[dl]; it has tabs
and code completion.
Linux comes in the form of
Fink
[dl]
and, if you do not like command line, FinkCommander.
This allows you to install ssh, gnupg,
mmv and other goodies.
Password keeping can be done with
KeePassX
[dl].
File synchronisation can be done with
Unison
[dl]
(ssh required). OpenVPN is best handled with
Tunnelblick
[dl].
File storage encryption via the half-proprietary
VeraCrypt
[dl]
(or TrueCrypt
[dl]
before 2016). ZIP archives are handled by
7zip
[dl]
(or Zipeg
before 2021).
For internet use, I recommend
Tor Browser
[dl] for www,
Thunderbird
[dl]
(including
EnigMail
[dl]
for PGP; gnupg required) for mail,
Cyberduck
[dl]
for (S)FTP/SCP. For chatting,
Colloquy
[src]
(pay for binaries) does the job.
Web editing can be done with SeaMonkey [dl] (or Kompozer [dl] before 2011). For checking pages, I used Firebug, now built into the Firefox [dl] browser.
The best video viewer is VLC [dl] (or MPlayer OS X [dl] before 2005; also Miro for channels before 2013). Image editing is done using GIMP [dl] in 2D, and model editing with Blender [dl] in 3D. For music I stick to Amarok [dl], composing via MilkyTracker [dl].
For programming, Java OpenJDK [dl] and Eclipse [dl] are a good start. Thoughts are structured in FreePlane [dl] (or FreeMind [dl] before 2014). As a standard text editor, Geany [dl] or JEdit [dl] are as good as any.
Office work can be done with LibreOffice [dl] (or NeoOffice before 2013). PDF annotation is possible with Skim [dl].
MacOS X may be appealing on an aesthetic basis, but being proprietary is always bad for developers -- see the corporate-controlled app store vs the free way Debian packages can be distributed. So while you are on MacOS, use open source whenever possible, and evolve to an open source OS at the earliest conceiveable moment. And most of all, have a sunny day!
EOF (Apr:2021)