Skip to content

macos-defaults.md

Latest commit

 

History

History
160 lines (105 loc) · 3.42 KB

macos-defaults.md

File metadata and controls

160 lines (105 loc) · 3.42 KB
Raw

macOS defaults

This repository includes a script that applies a curated set of macOS preferences for development and daily use.

The script is stored in:

scripts/apply-macos-defaults.sh

Applied settings

Finder

The script:

  • shows hidden files;
  • hides the path bar;
  • shows the status bar;
  • displays all file extensions.

These choices make development files such as .git, .env, and .zshrc visible while keeping the Finder interface relatively compact.

Finder showing hidden development files and file extensions

Dock

The script:

  • enables automatic hiding;
  • hides recently used applications;
  • sets the icon size to 50;
  • minimizes windows into their application icon.

Screenshots

Screenshots are stored in:

~/Pictures/Screenshots

The directory is created automatically.

Screenshots use the PNG format and retain window shadows.

Keyboard

Press-and-hold accent selection is disabled so that keys repeat normally in editors and terminals.

The configured repeat values are:

KeyRepeat = 2
InitialKeyRepeat = 15

Text substitutions

Automatic capitalization, typographic dash substitution, and smart quote substitution are disabled.

This prevents macOS from modifying code, commands, and technical text automatically.

Usage

Review the script before applying it:

sed -n '1,240p' scripts/apply-macos-defaults.sh

Validate it with ShellCheck:

shellcheck scripts/apply-macos-defaults.sh

Apply the configuration with the CLI:

mac defaults

Or run the script directly:

./scripts/apply-macos-defaults.sh

Finder, the Dock, and SystemUIServer are restarted automatically after the settings are written.

Validation

Inspect the Finder settings:

defaults read com.apple.finder AppleShowAllFiles
defaults read com.apple.finder ShowPathbar
defaults read com.apple.finder ShowStatusBar
defaults read NSGlobalDomain AppleShowAllExtensions

Inspect the Dock settings:

defaults read com.apple.dock autohide
defaults read com.apple.dock show-recents
defaults read com.apple.dock tilesize
defaults read com.apple.dock minimize-to-application

Inspect the screenshot settings:

defaults read com.apple.screencapture location
defaults read com.apple.screencapture type
defaults read com.apple.screencapture disable-shadow

Inspect the keyboard settings:

defaults read NSGlobalDomain ApplePressAndHoldEnabled
defaults read NSGlobalDomain KeyRepeat
defaults read NSGlobalDomain InitialKeyRepeat

Inspect the text substitution settings:

defaults read NSGlobalDomain NSAutomaticCapitalizationEnabled
defaults read NSGlobalDomain NSAutomaticDashSubstitutionEnabled
defaults read NSGlobalDomain NSAutomaticQuoteSubstitutionEnabled

Rollback

The script does not currently automate rollback.

Restore a setting by deleting its explicit value or writing the preferred replacement value.

For example, restore the Finder path bar:

defaults write com.apple.finder ShowPathbar -bool true
killall Finder

Delete an explicit preference to allow macOS to use its default behavior:

defaults delete NSGlobalDomain KeyRepeat
defaults delete NSGlobalDomain InitialKeyRepeat

Some changes may require restarting the affected application or logging out of the macOS session.

← Docs index · Project README