Best of Mac — December 2025

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    Article
    Avatar of theregisterThe Register·22w

    pearOS is a Linux that falls rather close to the Apple tree

    pearOS is a Romanian Linux distribution that revives the concept of the original 2011 Pear Linux, now built on Arch Linux and KDE Plasma 6.5.4 with heavy macOS-style theming. It features a working global menu bar, custom Settings app resembling iOS style, and GNOME Files instead of Dolphin, though many advertised features like Focus Mode and Pear Intelligence aren't yet implemented. The custom installer has limitations including whole-drive installation only (no dual-boot partitioning) and requires 12GB disk space and 1.2GB RAM at idle.

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    Article
    Avatar of sketchSketch·23w

    Sketch in 2025: Stacks, Glass & a macOS Tahoe Redesign

    Sketch shipped three major releases in 2025: Athens introduced Stacks (auto layout system) and Frames/Graphics (new container types replacing Artboards); Barcelona added glass effects, progressive blurs, and fade effects for iOS/macOS 26 design; Copenhagen brought a complete UI redesign for macOS Tahoe with focus mode, rewritten Inspector, stack wrapping, and one-click background removal. Additional updates include infinite folder nesting in Workspaces, a local-only MCP server for AI integration, enhanced Command Bar with component insertion, and a new Private Cloud offering for enterprise teams.

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    Article
    Avatar of reidburkeReid Burke·21w

    steipete/RepoBar: Show status of GitHub Repos right in your menu bar and terminal: CI, Issues, Pull Requests, Latest Release.

    RepoBar is a macOS menu bar application that provides a dashboard for GitHub repositories without opening a browser. It displays CI status, releases, pull requests, issues, and activity metrics. The tool includes local Git state monitoring, automatic repository syncing, OAuth authentication via Keychain, and a bundled CLI for terminal access. Installation is available via Homebrew or direct download, with auto-updates through Sparkle.

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    Article
    Avatar of jeffgeerlingJeff Geerling·23w

    1.5 TB of VRAM on Mac Studio - RDMA over Thunderbolt 5

    Testing RDMA over Thunderbolt 5 on a four-Mac Studio cluster with 1.5 TB unified memory shows significant performance gains for running massive AI models. The M3 Ultra Mac Studio outperforms comparable systems from Nvidia and AMD in CPU, AI inference, and power efficiency benchmarks. RDMA support in Exo 1.0 enables linear performance scaling across nodes, achieving 30+ tokens/second on trillion-parameter models. However, limitations include Thunderbolt 5's four-node maximum, macOS cluster management challenges, stability issues with prerelease software, and lack of standard networking options like QSFP for larger deployments.

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    Article
    Avatar of searlsJustin Searls·22w

    Just verified this: macOS Tahoe 26 is…

    macOS Tahoe 26 introduces the ability to accept inbound SSH connections on FileVault-protected Macs before the first unlock after a cold boot. The process involves SSHing in normally, being disconnected as macOS finishes booting, then reconnecting via SSH again.

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    Video
    Avatar of developedbyeddevelopedbyed·22w

    Arch Linux...time to say goodbye?

    A developer shares their experience using Arch Linux as their primary operating system after switching from VS Code to Neovim. While praising the tiling window manager and low resource usage, they encounter significant challenges with audio drivers, video editing software compatibility, application availability, and constant troubleshooting. The developer is considering switching to macOS (Mac Mini or MacBook Pro) or dual-booting to regain productivity and access to essential applications like DaVinci Resolve, Streamlabs, and Affinity, prioritizing stability over customization.

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