Stock UI in MacOS 27 Eschews Clarity

Thibault, in a post on Mastodon responding to Brent Simmons's "stock Mac UI" post, expressed their own explorations with the macOS design language. They specifically mentioned the modern title/toolbar, which they believe is one of the most significant design regressions on the platform. Thibault experimented with redesigning the Finder using the original hierarchy while retaining the current Liquid Glass styling.

Although the redesign is not yet their desired outcome, they decided to share it. The subtle mockup highlights the changes that, when described verbally, appear to be minor. However, looking at the differences feels like a significant and much-needed breath of fresh air. It provides relaxation by offering obvious differentiation for window chrome at the top, with a clear hierarchy separating the window area from the window's content.

Apple's MacOS 27 Golden Gate stock UI, however, intentionally eliminates this differentiation, with no clear justification. The reporter longs for clarity and observes that Apple's current Mac OS design language actively rejects it. For instance, it is unclear exactly where one can click to drag a window around, making it feel like a guessing game.

Thibault's simple example also reveals that this issue has nothing to do with the "Liquid Glass" controls.