2d ago

Homebrew Installation Question

TL;DR: Hey guys, question here for everyone familiar with Homebrew on macOS, particularly through GUI apps such as Applite. I had a bunch of problems when installing apps through Applite in a macOS VM, and was wondering is this was likely more of a fault of the VM, Applite, or a legitimate Homebrew issue. I made a checklist of all the apps I wanted to install and/or test out, along with their successes and failures. https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1k0FKaoWZD7JC0P641MalLtzefpMaZZVWfWZpLHMr7qw/edit?usp=drivesdk

Long explanation: See, I’m a tech – both in the sense that I’m a power user who can familiarize myself with just about everything, and that I do tech support and break down a lot of things for other people. As a result of this, once I first used Linux a few years ago and started learning about package managers for other systems, Homebrew caught my eye. I saw people recommending it left and right, and as soon as I got comfortable with my Mac and found my application suite, I knew I was going to test it.

…thing is, a majority of applications that I tested on through a virtual machine failed in one way or another. Almost to none of them seemed to allow in-app updates or work with apps like Latest (which use Sparkle for update detection). Some part of this could be due to the virtual machine nature of this test (I created a macOS Sequoia VM ON macOS Sequoia using UTM and Apple Virtualization), and some part of it could be Applite specifically (though I set the app up to use my Homebrew directory set up via the actual Homebrew website, not using “Applite’s custom directory”), but either way, a lot of programs just flat-out didn’t work. Any thoughts as to why this could be?

Also, before you say “just use the CLI,” there’s a reason I used Applite, and it’s the same reason I mentioned tech support: Most people still do not feel comfortable using a command line interface. Convenient as it may be for fellow “power users” with brewfiles and the instantaneous setups, most users still default to their app stores. Helped FIVE people with their Macs on installing different browsers, and they ALL went to “why isn’t it in the App Store?” If Applite or another free program works for this, that could solve the “missing App Store” problem for average users. With it being Homebrew-powered too, that could even open up the door to help people become more technologically savvy. Question is though, was I just doing something wrong, or is Applite not a viable solution for homebrew installations? I’m going to test things out one more time in another VM today, and if I still run into the same issues, I’ll post a follow-up comment. Thank you all for your help!

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4 comments

Without knowing what “fails” means it’s gonna be incredibly difficult to say something useful about specific apps. But where the fault is it’s easy to decipher. Does it work in the CLI without applite? Then it’s clearly an applite issue.
- In most instances, app installations via Applite went one of multiple ways:
  Just plain not available in Homebrew (very few)
  Available but depreciated or otherwise unable to be installed (few)
  Installs but crashed upon opening (some, including crucial apps for me like GIMP and Darktable)
  Installs but has some random error message (a few, including Inkscape, which didn’t save configurations to the app in my brief test)
  Installs but doesn’t allow checking for updates (all others, though this might just be because they update through Homebrew)
  Again, 100% admit that I likely messed up somewhere doing something, hence why I’m redoing this test now. That. and the fact that almost no app that normally does allowed checking for updates within itself makes me think that all update checking is disabled since it’s just handled through Homebrew. By all means, please correct me anywhere I’m wrong there.
  
  Just plain not available in Homebrew (very few)
  Available but depreciated or otherwise unable to be installed (few)
  These are easy to check on https://formulae.brew.sh/
  Installs but doesn’t allow checking for updates (all others, though this might just be because they update through Homebrew)
  If a GUI tool can auto update, Homebrew leaves it to auto update and actually stops updating the tool.
  
  Okay, so I'm still testing things out in terms of the Homebrew installations, but things are working MUCH better this time around. For instance, both GIMP and Darktable actually downloaded the latest versions AND actually work, so this might well become my new solution for app installations for everyone!
  Your last statement regarding the app updating though, the part where you said:
  If a GUI tool can auto update, Homebrew leaves it to auto update and actually stops updating the tool.
  I do want a bit more clarification if possible.
  Apps like GIMP and Darktable DON'T auto-update, though apps like Latest will detect that new versions are available. Normally, this means I have to go to the application's website and download the new version myself. Will Homebrew automatically update these programs?
  Further, for the apps that do get auto-updated, do they remain in my Homebrew catalog and all to where I'd be able to remove or configure them with brew commands?
  Regarding apps that DON'T have built-in updaters like GIMP and the like, if I go to the developer's website and get the newest versions, do I have to do anything with the originals installed via Homebrew CLI or app wrappers like Applite?
  Thank you sincerely for your time. I apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused.