Homebrew Can Now Help You Install Flatpaks Too

"Homebrew, the package manager for macOS and Linux, just got a handy new feature in the latest v5.0.4 update," reports How-To Geek.

Brewfile install scripts "are now more like a one-stop shop for installing software, as Flatpaks are now supported alongside Brew packages, Mac App Store Apps, and other packages." For those times when you need to install many software packages at once, like when setting up a new PC or virtual machine, you can create a Brewfile with a list of packages and run it with the 'brew bundle' command. However, the Brewfile isn't limited to just Homebrew packages. You can also use it to install Mac App Store apps, graphical apps through Casks, Visual Studio Code extensions, and Go language packages. Starting with this week's Homebrew v5.0.4 release, Flatpaks are now supported in Brewfiles as well...

This turns Homebrew into a fantastic setup tool for macOS, Linux, and Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL) environments. You can have one script with all your preferred software, and use 'if' statements with platform variables and existing file checks for added portability.

So what's the actual advantage to this?

[93 Escort Wagon]

Bookkeeping?

I mean, both Mac App Store packages and Flatpaks are already self-contained... so there's no dependency management you have to think about with those "apps". And WSL already supports numerous Linux distros, each of which already has its own package manager (e.g. dnf, apt).

Re:

[PPH]

Why?

Odds are that, if I'm building a flat pack on my system, I've built the application from source. So the dependency issue doesn't exist. Because they were checked by the build scripts (in any competent source distribution I've ever seen). Or the binary was downloaded through a package manager which also handles dependencies.

For some small s/w house or within a company for enterprise apps, maybe. But there are already tools for this.

Re:

[jenningsthecat]

Bookkeeping?

I mean, both Mac App Store packages and Flatpaks are already self-contained... so there's no dependency management you have to think about with those "apps". And WSL already supports numerous Linux distros, each of which already has its own package manager (e.g. dnf, apt).

FTA: "For those times when you need to install many software packages at once, like when setting up a new PC or virtual machine, you can create a Brewfile with a list of packages and run it with the 'brew bundle' command. However, the Brewfile isn't limited to just Homebrew packages. You can also use it to install Mac App Store apps, graphical apps through Casks, Visual Studio Code extensions, and Go language packages.

So it seems that Homebrew streamlines the process of installing a specified set of progr

Re:

[93 Escort Wagon]

That could also be done with a BASH script, but as TFA points out BASH isn't always available or up-to-date.

That seems like a ludicrously specious argument. Bash is pretty much always available on any of these platforms - and exactly how "up-to-date" would it need to be to run a script?

Besides, you know what's not available on pretty much any brand new system? Homebrew.

Flapjacks

[VorpalRodent]

I regularly homebrew my flapjacks. The whole family gets involved. It's great!

Flatpacks Caused 2 Problems on my Mint Computers

[BrendaEM]

I never had any such problems with APT.