Summary

Gruber celebrates that MacOS 27 Golden Gate removes the icons that MacOS 26 Tahoe had added next to every menu bar item—a change he considered one of Tahoe's worst UI crimes. He recaps the chorus of criticism from Jim Nielsen and Nikita 'Tonsky' Prokopov, who showed the icons were not only a bad idea but inconsistently and inscrutably implemented across Apple's own apps. Top third-party developers had rejected the design outright, using open-source code from Brent Simmons to disable it. Apple has now reversed course and updated its Human Interface Guidelines to advise using menu icons 'sparingly and with purpose,' making Tahoe itself a living 'what not to do' example. Gruber calls this his favorite news from WWDC, not just because he loathed the feature, but because he sees it as proof that the design 'rot' has been rooted out following Alan Dye's departure. He frames the reversal as a necessary first step in restoring taste to Apple's software design team.

Key Insight

The removal of Tahoe's menu icons matters less as a single fix than as evidence that taste and competence are returning to Apple's software design leadership after Alan Dye's departure.

Spicy Quotes (click to share)

• 7

  Perhaps the worst UI crime in MacOS 26 Tahoe was the inexplicable decision to add inscrutable, distracting icons next to every item in the menu bar.

• 6

  Wonderful news in MacOS 27 Golden Gate: the icons are gone. It's like Tahoe's menu item icons never happened.

• 8

  MacOS 26 Tahoe — across every Apple app on the system — is a living example of the updated HIG's 'what not to do' example illustrations.

• 7

  This is my favorite news from all of WWDC this week. I mean that.

• 8

  In a large way I mean it because it's proof that the rot has been rooted out of Apple's software design team.

• 9

  I don't know if all the untalented hacks are gone, but the untalented magazine-designer hacks with clout and influence all left with Alan Dye.

• 7

  Backtracking on these idiotic menu item icons was a necessary first step.

• 8

  No real UI or icon designers think this is a good idea. None.

Tone

opinionated