So it's not HomeBrew, but the cask of applications you want to install, that determines which binary version you'll get and it's the responsibility of HomeBrew developer team to keep tracking all ~3000 casks, but the 3rd party shall submit their cask to HomeBrew.īasically HomeBrew doesn't care whether a package/cask is X86 or M1. Here is the HomeBrew cask code for VSCode: if Hardware::CPU.intel? Does it make sense to install about ~200MB of command line tool software just for a command line installer based on all of the shortcomings I've listed above? For Joe Consumer, the answer is clearly no.VSCode can run on M1 natively since March, and HomeBrew will choose different version based on Intel/M1, because it's defined in cask file. The average Mac user doesn't have these installed. The third is the requirement for Xcode Command Line Tools. Homebrew Cask adds an additional layer of uncertainty because there is no assurance of the provenance of the software. At least when you use the Mac App Store or a developer's own download server, you can be relatively assured that you are getting a clean copy. There's always the chance of malicious Homebrew Cask maintainer pointing the installer mechanism to download a malware-infected version of the software from a different server. If I use Homebrew Cask to install the software, there's a certain amount of uncertainty about whether or not I'm installing the latest version. For example, if Google releases a new version of Chrome, there will be some lag time between that release and the updated cask. That means there's a lag between any new software release and an up-to-date cask. The casks themselves need to be maintained which is probably being done by third-party hobbyists, not the actual application developers. The more I think about Homebrew Cask, the more evident its shortcomings become. The Mac App Store is far superior to all other methods in terms of application updating and version control. That's the other major takeaway that the OP doesn't understand. That makes it vastly inferior to the Mac App Store for Joe Consumer who sees a badge, fires up the Mac App Store then clicks on the "Update All" button. "Is 'Check For Updates' in the File menu? Or maybe it's in the Help Menu? Or maybe it's in the Edit menu under Preferences? Or maybe the About screen?"Īlso, there are instances of DMG/developer download sites that have been compromised with malware, so the additional scrutiny provided by the Apple's App Store is probably a wiser choice for Joe Consumer.Īs far as I can tell from the meager documentation on Homebrew Cask's website, there is no notification and update mechanism like "brew cask update all" to update all applications previously installed by Homebrew Cask. I don't have to figure out where in any given app where the update mechanism resides. Personally, I'd rather have Mac App Store download since mass updating is taken care of by the App Store application using a single consistent interface. Would your mom like to turn on your microwave oven with a command-line interface or would she rather press the "Plus 1 Min" or "Popcorn" button? Yeah, I thought so. There are niche situations where a command-line tool is preferable for a handful of people, but for the average computer user, a graphical tool is simpler to use. Graphical user interfaces are more intuitive and easier to use which is why they become so popular.
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