Wenzel MassagApr 2
I’m still very sceptical, but I’ve decided to risk it. Some of it, like the floaty sidebars that waste space, I’ll probably dislike, but other things, I’m really looking forward to. I hope I won’t regret this, but made sure my backups are up to date, and I know how to roll back.
Show threadWenzel MassagApr 2

First impression after installing, the “Get Started” button looked disabled. It wasn’t its just poorly designed and clicking it did the job. This (see screenshot) is shown after the wizard that informs you about the changes in this upgrade finishes.

Oh, btw: The wizard uses “Continue” buttons that look like Apple meant for you to hunt around to find them, but then decided only to hide them half heartedly.

cc @wendythedruid — the updates you asked for shall be appearing in this thread… 🫡

Show threadWenzel MassagApr 2

I immediately ran into a new gripe: The sidebar icons in Finder and in System Settings now use the same size, and you can change them, but because Finder uses way too large leading, it works better with small icons, while System Setting works better with medium icons. No way to change these separately (anymore? I think I it was possible in Sequoia).

Also: I set Finder to always show the tab bar some OS versions ago, the preference stuck (good) and it looks like Tahoe (= ugly).

Show threadWenzel MassagApr 2
Does anybody know what that “On My Mac” folder is? I’m guessing its the “No iCloud Drive” folder, but Apple gives no hint as to where it is on the hard drive. I don’t like the opaqueness of hiding the true location of folders like this one and iCloud Drive!
Show threadWenzel MassagApr 2

macOS did not respect my my selected voice for the text to speech features. It also did not forget.

The setting is hidden more or less poorly in System Settings > Accessibility > Read & Speak > System voice > info-i-icon.

To restore the voice settings, I had to navigate there, and select the voice that was already selected, again.

Show threadWenzel MassagApr 2
The label of the volume-info (which is now in the top-right corner of the screen) is really difficult to read. And that is with the tinted look of Liquid Glass, not the clear look…
Show threadWenzel MassagApr 2
These free floating bubbles with buttons in them look very messy/cluttered. I’m not a fan… the compact layout of Safari is ok, if you always show bookmarks (which you have to, because the bookmarks in the sidebar are _HORRIBLE_).
Show threadWenzel MassagApr 2
Actually, its not OK. Compact also looks tahoe (yes, I’m using that word to mean “ugly” at this point).
Show threadWenzel MassagApr 2
Latest accomplishment: macOS #Tahoe thinks my Time Machine Drive is empty. It is most certainly not.
Show threadWenzel MassagApr 2
OK, that didn’t take long. Every time I open an app that has opted out of Liquid Glass, I feel myself relax. It's like exhaling after you’ve held your breath without noticing. macOS #Tahoe is extremely poorly designed. Its full of visual noise, the UI is cluttered and ugly. Things are very hard to read, very often. This is actually worse than Vista! Ugh!
Show threadWenzel MassagApr 2
If you like music and use #AppleMusic on Mac, make sure to disable the Auto Mix feature. It uses AI to somehow transition seamlessly between songs, and its yet another attack by Apple on music.
Show threadWenzel MassagApr 2

By combining the tinted look with reduced transparency, I effectively turned off #LiquidGlass in macOS Tahoe (and on my iPad as well).

Its still not pretty, but hey… #WWDC26 is in 67 days (according to Apple Intelligence).

Show threadWenzel MassagApr 2
Jup, that is better. I might keep using Tahoe with those two settings…
Show threadWenzel MassagApr 3

With reduce transparency turned off and liquid glass set to transparent, the floaty sidebars in all apps on #Tahoe pick up on color several layers behind the currently active window. It looks very odd… here you can see the yellow glow in the Feedback Assistant app’s sidebar.

Behind Feedback Assistant is a Finder window, and behind Finder is the source of the yellow glow: Steam.

Show threadWenzel MassagApr 3
Nothing to see here, move along… #Tahoe
Show threadWenzel MassagApr 3
Do I regret risking the Upgrade yet? Yes. Is it bad enough to invest the afternoon into rolling the upgrade back and returning to Sequoia? Almost… maybe soon.
Show threadWenzel MassagApr 3
Reduced transparency makes Light Mode better and Dark Mode worse. So I turned it off again… but with Reduced Transparency the menu bar got a background, which is missing in normal mode. This setting fixes that:
Show threadWenzel MassagApr 3
This is fine… each orange bubble is a click. Eventually, I am permitted to edit the settings. #Tahoe
Show threadWenzel Massag

After a few days, I have to say, some of the decisions #Apple made with #Tahoe are growing on me. Many of my complaints about Liquid Glass were also true for the UI of Sequoia, if I’m honest. I’m hopeful that with #LiquidGlass, its now a priority for Apple to fix the UI.

Apple really missed the mark on the release date. Liquid Glass should have been released in stages. Maybe with iOS & iPadOS 26, but macOS 27.

Apr 7 at 12:02pmWeb