Software Alternatives, Accelerators & Startups

Shortcat VS pkgsrc

Compare Shortcat VS pkgsrc and see what are their differences

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Shortcat logo Shortcat

Keep your hands on the keyboard and boost your productivity! Shortcat is a keyboard tool for Mac OS X that lets you 'click' buttons and control your apps with a few keystrokes. Think of it as Spotlight for the user interface.

pkgsrc logo pkgsrc

pkgsrc is a framework for building over 17,000 open source software packages.
  • Shortcat Landing page
    Landing page //
    2022-09-28
  • pkgsrc Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-06-30

Shortcat features and specs

  • Efficiency
    Shortcat allows users to quickly find and execute commands using keyboard shortcuts, minimizing the need for mouse usage and speeding up workflow.
  • Accessibility
    By reducing reliance on the mouse, Shortcat makes it easier for individuals with mobility impairments to navigate macOS applications.
  • Customization
    Users have the ability to customize shortcuts and create their own workflows, tailoring the tool to their specific needs and preferences.
  • Integration
    Shortcat integrates seamlessly with most macOS applications, allowing for a consistent user experience across different software environments.
  • Learning Curve
    The tool is relatively easy to learn for those familiar with keyboard shortcuts, providing intuitive guidance and help features.

Possible disadvantages of Shortcat

  • Limited Platform
    Shortcat is only available for macOS, leaving out Windows and Linux users who might benefit from similar functionality.
  • Compatibility Issues
    Some users may experience compatibility issues with certain applications, reducing the effectiveness of the tool in specific contexts.
  • Learning Curve
    For users who are not accustomed to using keyboard shortcuts, there might be a steeper learning curve that could initially slow down productivity.
  • Reliability
    In some cases, users may encounter bugs or glitches, which can interrupt workflows and undermine confidence in the tool's reliability.
  • Cost
    As a premium software, Shortcat requires a purchase, which might be a barrier for users looking for a free alternative.

pkgsrc features and specs

  • Cross-Platform Support
    pkgsrc is designed to be a portable package management system and can be used on a variety of Unix-like operating systems, including NetBSD, Solaris, Linux, and macOS. This cross-platform capability makes it a versatile tool for developers working in diverse environments.
  • Consistency Across Systems
    Using pkgsrc allows for a consistent package management experience regardless of the underlying operating system, reducing the learning curve and maintenance overhead for administrators managing multiple systems.
  • Comprehensive Package Collection
    pkgsrc offers a wide range of software packages, providing a robust collection that can meet diverse user needs from scientific libraries to web applications.
  • Quarterly Releases
    With quarterly releases, pkgsrc provides a balanced approach between stability and keeping software up to date, offering users new features regularly while maintaining reliability.
  • Flexible Build Options
    pkgsrc supports a flexible build system, allowing users to customize package builds with specific options or dependencies, tailored to their specific needs or system requirements.

Possible disadvantages of pkgsrc

  • Smaller Community
    Compared to other popular package management systems like apt (Debian/Ubuntu) or yum (RedHat/CentOS), pkgsrc has a relatively smaller community, which might affect the availability of support and community-driven improvements.
  • Potentially Older Software
    While pkgsrc maintains stable quarterly releases, it may occasionally lag behind other systems in terms of offering the very latest versions of certain software, which might not be ideal for users needing the newest features.
  • Manual Configuration
    Setting up pkgsrc might require manual interventions and configurations, which could pose a hurdle for users unfamiliar with its setup process or those who prefer more automated solutions.
  • Dependency Management
    Although pkgsrc is quite capable in dependency handling, some users may find its dependency resolution to be less automatic or seamless compared to other systems which offer more integrated solutions.
  • Performance Overhead
    Because it is designed to be cross-platform, there can be some performance overhead associated with using pkgsrc compared to native package managers that are optimized for specific operating systems.

Shortcat videos

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pkgsrc videos

pkgsrc on ChromeOS

More videos:

  • Review - Using pkgsrc for multi-platform deployments in heterogeneous environments, G Clifford Williams

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to Shortcat and pkgsrc)
Text Editors
100 100%
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Developer Tools
0 0%
100% 100
Web Browsers
100 100%
0% 0
Package Manager
0 0%
100% 100

User comments

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Social recommendations and mentions

Based on our record, Shortcat should be more popular than pkgsrc. It has been mentiond 38 times since March 2021. We are tracking product recommendations and mentions on various public social media platforms and blogs. They can help you identify which product is more popular and what people think of it.

Shortcat mentions (38)

  • Mouseless โ€“ keyboard-driven control of macOS/Linux/Windows
    Shortcat is the one I found I was willing to adopt without much effort: https://shortcat.app. - Source: Hacker News / about 1 month ago
  • Mouseless โ€“ keyboard-driven control of macOS/Linux/Windows
    I prefer ShortCat's model: https://shortcat.app/ Similar to Vimium, but for the whole OS. Apparently Homerow is similar, judging from comments I'm seeing here. I really wish I knew an equivalent for Linux. I might even leave Gnome behind if a different DE has a good model for this. - Source: Hacker News / about 1 month ago
  • Show HN: KayZeer โ€“ Vimium-style keyboard navigation for macOS
    How does this compare to Shortcat? https://shortcat.app/. - Source: Hacker News / 4 months ago
  • KeyTips now available in Office for Mac (Windows alt-shortcuts) (2024)
    I understand the appeal of using the same shortcuts one might use on a Windows system. If you like the concept of being able to manipulate buttons and other parts of your MacOS application or screen in general, though, have a look at Shortcat (https://shortcat.app/) and Homerow (https://www.homerow.app/). - Source: Hacker News / 8 months ago
  • I tried Servo, the undercover web browser engine made with Rust
    I'm no UX expert, but I regularly try out new (and old) toolkits to understand the problem space. It really sounds like you want an immediate mode toolkit. Retained mode will never be "super-snappy", there's an entire sandwich between your code and the pixels. Look at Blender or Reaper, this is the kind of "feel" you'd be getting. If you want retained mode + "true" native widgets on all platforms, investigate:... - Source: Hacker News / 12 months ago
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pkgsrc mentions (11)

  • Debian isn't waiting for 2038 to blow up, switches to 64-bit time for everything
    > Most open source software packages are also compiled for BSD variants, they switched to 64 bit time_t a long time ago and reported back upstream any problems. * NetBSD in 2012: https://www.netbsd.org/releases/formal-6/NetBSD-6.0.html * OpenBSD in 2014: http://www.openbsd.org/55.html For packaging, NetBSD uses their (multi-platform) Pkgsrc, which has 29,000 packages, which probably covers a large swath of... - Source: Hacker News / 12 months ago
  • Our Audit of Homebrew
    > https://pkgsrc.smartos.org/install-on-macos/ Note that Pkgsrc is a NetBSD-derived project. * https://pkgsrc.org The Joyent folks leveraged it to allow their customers, who were perhaps not as familiar with Solaris/SmartOS, a larger pool of packages. Pkgsrc was running on Solaris before Joyent, Joyent built on top of it. - Source: Hacker News / almost 2 years ago
  • Show HN: Brioche โ€“ A new Nix-like package manager
    Https://pkgsrc.org/ from netbsd runs on many systems. - Source: Hacker News / about 2 years ago
  • Installing packages without an internet connection?
    It seems according to pkgsrc.org that pkgin might follow the PKG_PATH environment variable. You're supposed to set PKG_PATH="http://cdn.NetBSD.org/pub/pkgsrc/packages/NetBSD/$(uname -p)/$(uname -r|cut -f '1 2' -d.)/All/", and according to uname(1), -p gives the processor architecture and -r gives the operating system [kernel] release. Source: over 3 years ago
  • pkgsrc.se is no more :(
    It seems like pkgsrc.org hasnโ€™t got the news yet. Source: over 3 years ago
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What are some alternatives?

When comparing Shortcat and pkgsrc, you can also consider the following products

Vimium - The Hacker's Browser.

Conda - Binary package manager with support for environments.

hunt-n-peck - Simple vimium/vimperator style navigation for Windows applications based on the UI Automation...

Homebrew - The missing package manager for macOS

Vieb - Browse the web with Vim-bindings

Yay - Yay is an AUR helper written in go, based on the design of yaourt, apacman and pacaur.