عGet Started

macOS Installation

Requirements, installation and day-to-day use on a Mac.

Status: available from source. Tested on an Apple Silicon Mac, including sharing to an Android tablet on the same Wi-Fi. There is no packaged app — RTW runs from a terminal.

Requirements

  • macOS on Apple Silicon or Intel
  • Xcode Command Line Tools — provides git and Python 3 (xcode-select --install)
  • Homebrew
  • Disk space for content (see Preparing Your Library)

Install

git clone https://github.com/eslam-mahmoud/reinvent-the-wheel.git
cd reinvent-the-wheel
./rtw setup
./rtw start

./rtw setup:

  1. Installs nginx with Homebrew if missing.
  2. Downloads kiwix-tools for macOS from Kiwix into state/bin.
  3. Downloads the map viewer’s JavaScript, fonts and icons into web/vendor.
  4. Writes configuration to state/conf, creates a self-signed HTTPS certificate and the content folders.
  5. Asks for an admin password.

It’s safe to run again; it never touches your content or password.

Where things live

Path Contents
content/ Your library — one folder per section
state/conf/ Generated config, HTTPS certificate, password hash
state/logs/ Logs (./rtw logs admin, ./rtw logs kiwix)

Addresses

Address Use
http://127.0.0.1:8080 On the Mac itself
http://<mac-ip>:8080 Other devices on the same Wi-Fi
https://<mac-ip>:8443 Same, over HTTPS — needed for location on the map page

Updating

./rtw update

Pulls the latest version from GitHub and restarts the services.

Limitations

  • The Mac must stay awake while serving. Prevent sleep in System Settings or with caffeinate -d in another terminal.
  • macOS may ask to allow incoming connections for nginx the first time other devices connect.