Mastodawn

With Mac apps just all over the place (react native, AI slop, Catalyst apps, Mobile-first apps)... I thought I'd maybe try to rein it in a bit with this new article I have published.

It is not exhaustive and it is not done yet (I have more items to add) -- but I thought I'd share it now.

It's a checklist of things you can do to your #macOS app to make it feel more Mac-y. These are in response to things (even simple, obvious things) that I just don't see anymore. :(

https://marioaguzman.github.io/design/macintoshchecklist/

Macintosh Checklist

A list of to-dos before you publish your Mac app.

Mario Guzman

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Mario Guzmán Mar 29

Let me know if there is something you think I should add! (and I’ll look into it!)
#macOS

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noah witherspoon

@marioguzman great list! thanks for doing the research on how to get a Help book working these days—I’ll definitely be referring to that in future. one thing that might be worth mentioning: testing your app with the “full keyboard access” setting turned on. I’m constantly seeing apps where keyboard focus starts in a weird place or has an ugly button highlight which would take two minutes to fix if the authors were aware of it.

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Mario Guzmán Mar 30

@noah thanks Noah! I remember how long it took to get it right in my MiniPlayer app. It would start in a weird place, and it has a “drawer” too — so it had to account for that if opened or closed. It’s all fixed. But I also custom drew the focus rings because I have round buttons and it would draw squares by default. Haha. You’d be proud.