[tcas]

It's pretty easy using package. Here's what I just copied and pasted from my init.el

  (require 'package)
  (dolist (source '(("technomancy" .   "http://repo.technomancy.us/emacs/)
                    ("elpa" . "http://tromey.com/elpa/)))
    (add-to-list 'package-archives source t))
  (package-initialize)

  (defvar my-packages '(starter-kit zenburn-theme auctex color-theme-solarized csharp-mode ecb_snap find-file-in-project flymake-css flymake-php idle-highlight ido-ubiquitous ipython python-mode magit markdown-mode paredit pastels-on-dark-theme php-mode rainbow-mode smex solarized-theme starter-kit-js zenburn-theme)
  "A list of packages to ensure are installed at launch.")

  (dolist (p my-packages)
    (when (not (package-installed-p p))
      (package-install p)))

Where you add the package name to my-packages. It's kinda cool to see it download and compile everything on a new install.

[nic-ferrier]

this is really neat. what would be cool is to keep the package list up to date automatically (possibly by advising package installation - https://github.com/nicferrier/emacs-package-store/blob/maste...).

Then everytime you installed a package it would get written into the list and everytime you moved your init it would all happen automatically.

That would be cool. And not hard to do either. You could just keep a customization variable of the "base packages" or something and have it saved by the standard custom stuff.

[Derbasti]

I would have posted my own setup, but it is all but identical to yours, so there you go ;-)