@chockenberry @gruber For all the other apps, there probably is no easy solution, and many apps will never work well with a touch screen. I love my Mac, but don't have an iPad, so for me the option to use some iPad apps as they are intended would be great. But otherwise, I don't think the Mac in itself needs the touch screen, so I was just thinking which value it would add.

@chockenberry @gruber I completely agree that this is not the way to go for all apps. However, with Swift UI or Catalyst there are already quite a few apps which have a Mac UI and an iPad UI. The Mac app could include both of them and show one or the other depending on the mode. I think it would be strange to offer a touchscreen, but not the touch optimised UI when it's already there.

@gruber @chockenberry
The Surface Book switches to "Tablet Mode" when you take out the display or via a software switch in the task bar. So the user triggers it when he wants to have the touch experience instead of the classic MacOS way. I would expect the HW as well to have some slide, flip or detach mechanism to support this, but we don't have more than rumours now.

@gruber @chockenberry
Right, iPad mode was probably misleading. MacOS won't work well with touch and probably should not per default. But it can already natively run iPad apps and many Mac apps have iPad versions as well, especially Apples apps. If there will be a Mac with a touchscreen, I think it might have a mode were the apps run with their iPad interface, and there might be an optimised window manager in that mode as well.

@chockenberry @gruber Very nice episode, made me start at Mastodon. Just a thought on touchscreen Macs: Wouldn't they just switch to iPad mode when touch is active, maybe even with a detachable display/iPad? Similar to the Surface Book, just better? Seems like most of the pieces are already in place.