# Package dependency hell is *primarily* a function of unfamiliarity, and it’s
not like it doesn’t…

Maybe you have a fat wallet and your idea of marginal value is different from
mine, but I’d rather pay a few hundred dollars less and…

* * *

Package dependency hell is *primarily* a function of unfamiliarity, and it’s
not like it doesn’t exist on other platforms. Getting a functional development
environment up and running on a Mac is just as hard as getting one up on
Linux, so long as you’re OK with typing — the difficulties with homebrew are
almost exactly the same because homebrew is basically just a unix-style
package system! If you’re trying to get XCode to work properly and you’re used
to vim, you’re going to have a lot more trouble with that than you would with
installing a full development toolchain (minus IDE, because an IDE isn’t
useful or necessary) on another unix.

Maybe you have a fat wallet and your idea of marginal value is different from
mine, but I’d rather pay a few hundred dollars less and install my own unix on
a machine that will continue to work if I drop it.

By [John Ohno](https://medium.com/@enkiv2) on [October 31,
2016](https://medium.com/p/20e4d908bcc).

[Canonical link](https://medium.com/@enkiv2/package-dependency-hell-is-
primarily-a-function-of-unfamiliarity-and-its-not-like-it-doesn-t-20e4d908bcc)

Exported from [Medium](https://medium.com) on September 18, 2020.