How Homebrew Became Mac's Package Manager with Mike McQuaid

How Homebrew Became Mac's Package Manager with Mike McQuaid

From Screaming in the Cloud by Corey Quinn

January 27, 2026 · 41 min · Episode 664

About this episode

Mike McQuaid discusses the origins and significance of Homebrew as a package manager for Mac users.

Mike McQuaid, Project Leader of Homebrew, joins Corey Quinn to share how a package manager conceived in a London pub became essential for 10 million Mac users. Homebrew lets you install software with one command instead of downloading files and clicking through installers, maintained by just 30 people who each get $300 a month. Mike shares the origin story from a drunken conversation about package management, explains how Homebrew Bundle can set up a new Mac with one command, and why Homebrew refuses to package software with fake open source licenses like Terraform's new versions. Show Highlights: (01:44) Why Homebrew Works on Linux (04:02) The Curl Bash Security Problem (05:02) Homebrew Was Conceived in a London Pub (06:42) Apps That Auto-Update Four Times a Day (08:43) Brew Bundle (14:00) Why Homebrew Auto-Updates Itself (18:18) Homebrew Maintainers Get $300 a Month (22:19) The Brew Doctor Command (29:10) Why Homebrew Doesn't Package Fake Open Source (32:05) Open Source Is Not a Career (35:27) When Someone Blamed Homebrew for Breaking Their Business (37:39) Auto-Update Options for Homebrew (39:40) Where to Find Mike Links: Website: https://mikemcquaid.com Homebrew…

People in this episode

Host: Corey Quinn

Guest: Mike McQuaid

Topics covered

  • package management
  • software installation
  • open source
  • Mac
  • Homebrew
  • technology

Keywords

  • Homebrew
  • package manager
  • Mac
  • open source
  • software installation
  • Linux
  • Brew Bundle

Sponsors

duckbillhq.com

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Homebrew, Terraform

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