Target: MacOS 11.1 and above
C++, Juce 8, XCode 16.2
Testing: Sonoma 14.5
Logic Pro (latest version), Reaper 7.34, Pro Tools 2023.12 and 2025.6
I'm developing an audio plugin that creates an NSStatusItem ("menu bar status icon" or MBSI for short) to provide visual feedback for one of the components. I've encountered a Logic Pro-specific behavior that I'd like to fix. I'm building for Mac-only, Intel and Silicon, and for AU/VST3/AAX.
Summary:
The NSStatusItem for the MBSI is created successfully and functions properly in some hosts (Reaper (AU and VST3), Pro Tools (AAX)) but isn't visible in Logic Pro, despite identical API behavior.
Details:
NSStatusItem Creation: implementation using [[NSStatusBar systemStatusBar] statusItemWithLength:NSSquareStatusItemLength]
All API calls report success in both working (Reaper) and non-working (Logic Pro) hosts.
Logging shows Logic Pro and Reaper create the NSStatusItem with the same properties:
Window frame: {{0, -36}, {38, 36}} (both hosts)
statusItem.visible: YES (both hosts)
Button exists and responds to state changes (both hosts)
Y coordinate is -36 pixels (above visible screen, both hosts)
In Reaper, I can see the MBSI but in Logic Pro I can't. Note: the MBSI has no functionality beyond visual feedback. It's not clickable nor does it create a corresponding menu.
Questions:
Are there known differences in how Logic Pro's AU hosting service handles system UI elements compared to other hosts? And if so, is there guidance on AU plugins accessing system UI elements like the menu bar?
Link to NSStatusItemTest.component: https://app.box.com/s/i3rq0hii3qf43iojrayc17fsfq7fnssd
Link to video showing issue: https://app.box.com/s/icefqk898timqov77t468lqtio0rjqul
Link to Console output for testing in Reaper vs Logic Pro: https://app.box.com/s/ph6nv1lmozo3phtjx3md6abdms5atgg6
Explore the art and science of app design. Discuss user interface (UI) design principles, user experience (UX) best practices, and share design resources and inspiration.
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On iOS 26 beta 3, my app and some other apps got greyed out app icon.
It only happens in Default (Light) appearance.
Apple automatically converts third-party app icons to support Liquid Glass, but is there any specific requirement with third-party icons to avoid above greyed out app icon issue?
Hi everyone, I'm currently working on my own Apple TV app. So far, things are going pretty well, but right now, I'm stuck on the design of the categories or selection menus.
Here's a screenshot of how it looks right now:
The green color and the border are intentionally added for now so I can see what is where. My actual goal is to remove the gray bar (or is this the "main bar"?). The pink bar and its border are just design elements that can be removed if needed. I want it to look more "original," like this:
Here is the code:
let title: String
let isSelected: Bool
var body: some View {
HStack {
Text(title)
.foregroundColor(isSelected ? .black : .white)
.font(.system(size: 22, weight: .regular))
.padding(.leading, 20)
Spacer()
Image(systemName: "chevron.right")
.foregroundColor(isSelected ? .black : .gray)
.padding(.trailing, 20)
}
.frame(height: 50) // Einheitliche Höhe für die Kategorien
.background(Color.pink) // Innerer Hintergrund auf pink gesetzt
.cornerRadius(10) // Abrundung direkt auf den Hintergrund anwenden
.overlay(
RoundedRectangle(cornerRadius: 10)
.stroke(Color.green, lineWidth: 3) // Äußerer Rahmen auf grün gesetzt
)
.padding(.horizontal, 0) // Entferne äußere Ränder
.background(Color.clear) // Entferne alle anderen Hintergründe
}
}
struct SettingsView_Previews: PreviewProvider {
static var previews: some View {
SettingsView()
}
}
I’ve adjusted the code, but it’s still not quite right. When a category is not selected, it appears black instead of gray, like in the original design
Here is the code:
struct SettingsView: View {
@State private var selectedCategory: String?
var body: some View {
NavigationStack {
ZStack {
Color.black
.edgesIgnoringSafeArea(.all)
VStack(spacing: 0) {
// Überschrift oben in der Mitte
Text("Einstellungen")
.font(.system(size: 40, weight: .semibold))
.foregroundColor(.white)
.padding(.top, 30)
HStack {
// Linke Seite mit Logo
VStack {
Spacer()
Image(systemName: "applelogo")
.resizable()
.scaledToFit()
.frame(width: 120, height: 120)
.foregroundColor(.white)
Spacer()
}
.frame(width: UIScreen.main.bounds.width * 0.4)
// Rechte Seite mit Kategorien
VStack(spacing: 15) {
ForEach(categories, id: \.self) { category in
NavigationLink(
value: category,
label: {
SettingsCategoryView(
title: category,
isSelected: selectedCategory == category
)
}
)
.buttonStyle(PlainButtonStyle())
}
}
.frame(width: UIScreen.main.bounds.width * 0.5)
}
}
}
.navigationDestination(for: String.self) { value in
Text("\(value)-Ansicht")
.font(.title)
.foregroundColor(.white)
.navigationTitle(value)
}
}
}
private var categories: [String] {
["Allgemein", "Benutzer:innen und Accounts", "Video und Audio", "Bildschirmschoner", "AirPlay und HomeKit", "Fernbedienungen und Geräte", "Apps", "Netzwerk", "System", "Entwickler"]
}
}
struct SettingsCategoryView: View {
let title: String
let isSelected: Bool
var body: some View {
HStack {
Text(title)
.foregroundColor(.white)
.font(.system(size: 22, weight: .medium))
.padding(.leading, 20)
Spacer()
Image(systemName: "chevron.right")
.foregroundColor(.gray)
.padding(.trailing, 20)
}
.frame(height: 50) // Einheitliche Höhe für die Kategorien
.background(isSelected ? Color.gray.opacity(0.3) : Color.clear) // Hervorhebung des ausgewählten Elements
.cornerRadius(8) // Abgerundete Ecken
.scaleEffect(isSelected ? 1.05 : 1.0) // Fokus-Animation
.animation(.easeInOut, value: isSelected)
}
}
struct SettingsView_Previews: PreviewProvider {
static var previews: some View {
SettingsView()
}
}
Hello,
I used icon composer to create an icon for my Mac OS app and it seemed to have worked. I see the app icon everywhere except for window expose or stage manager.
Any help or guidance would be greatly appreciated!
Dear Developer, Is there a way to create a function to search with inside a text without having to be outside all of the messages? In other words, could I go into one of my contact’s texts and then search specifically inside that message as can be done on Android? This would be such an amazing function And make life so much easier. Thank you.
Hi everyone,
I've noticed that on iOS 26 beta 1 through beta 4, when using a List with the .plain style, the section header overlaps with the cell content below it, as there is no background for the header. This creates a poor visual experience.
Additionally, when using NavigationSplitView on iPad, the second column's list always shows this issue.
Is this an intentional design change, or just a temporary issue? I haven't found a good workaround so far.
Thanks!
FB19066489
Hi everyone 👋 I’m a new iOS developer working on my first app and I’ve run into a frustrating visual bug involving my app icon during the launch/close transition.
Issue:
When I use Icon Composer (the new tool introduced for iOS 26) to generate my app icon, I consistently see a thin white border or “fringe” around the icon only during the transition animation (when the app opens or closes). It disappears once the animation ends.
What I tested and confirmed:
• I exported the exact same design directly from Adobe Illustrator as a 1024×1024 PNG, fully opaque, RGB color mode, background color filling the entire canvas (no transparency, no borders, no rounded corners).
• When I place that exported PNG directly into the AppIcon asset catalog in Xcode, the icon renders perfectly — no white fringe appears, just a slightly darker shade of blue during transitions (expected and acceptable).
• But when I generate the icon using Icon Composer, the white edge always appears, even if I disable effects, use full coverage layers, or only keep a flat color layer.
Notes:
• Tested on iOS 26 (latest beta) using Xcode 16.
• The issue seems specific to Icon Composer’s export format or metadata — maybe it’s not stripping alpha correctly or something related to the squircle mask?
• I followed all recommended specs: 1024×1024 px, PNG, sRGB, no transparency, exported from Illustrator at 72ppi with solid background.
Even tested without the logo, just the icon made with icon composer
Is anyone else experiencing this issue with Icon Composer exports?
Is there an official recommendation to avoid this during transitions or should I simply avoid Icon Composer for production icons for now and stick with Illustrator / Figma exports?
Thanks so much
Here’s a visual example:
Hello Apple Developer Support,
We initially uploaded our INRx App on a different Apple Developer account for internal testing purposes.
Now, we would like to publish the same app under a new Apple Developer account for production, but we're currently facing a design-related rejection during the review process.
We believe the app meets all guidelines, and there were no design issues flagged previously when submitted from the testing account.
Could you please help us understand:
Why the same app is now being rejected for design issues?
Is there a way to resolve this while moving the app to the new account?
Any advice or clarification would be greatly appreciated so we can successfully proceed with publishing.
Thank you!
I can't find any documentation on design guidelines for "Login with Game Center" button. My app allows users to "Play as Guest" or "Login with Game Center". Since Apple provides somewhat strict guidelines for designing "Sign in with Apple" button, i was wondering how to design the button for Game Center login. Should i use Game Center icon. And will Apple review reject this?
Hi,
Upon reviewing our app, we got feedback that our app icon within the Wallet app is not behaving as expected when the home screen is set to "light mode" only.
In that case, on the home screen, the app icon remains its default color (e.g., red), regardless of the device's appearance settings (light or dark), which is expected.
However, in the apple Wallet, e.g., under the From Apps from your device, app icons change their color (e.g., red in light mode, black in dark mode) when iOS appearance is changed - which is reported as an app issue.
I've noticed that all apps in that section are changing the color, not just ours, so it seems to me like a bug in iOS or a behavior that was not clearly defined in the app store guidelines.
If there is an API we must use to cover that case, which one would that be?
Is this a bug that Apple should resolve, or is this the intended behaviour?
I found that on my cutomer's mac device, webflterproxyd start interferiing with the NE traffic. Tried to stop it, but "screen time" was not enabled at all.
Who started this webfilterproxyd process and how to stop it?
Context & Issue
I am developing an iOS application.
My app icon uses colors that are relatively close to each other.
When the user enables Accessibility → Display & Text Size → Color Filters → Grayscale (or similar modes), the icon becomes harder to distinguish because it loses color and contrast is reduced.
Goal
When iOS switches to grayscale mode, I want the app icon to maintain good contrast between its elements so it remains clearly recognizable.
What I’ve tried
Redesigned the icon with more contrasting colors.
Added strokes/outlines, but it still doesn’t look much better in grayscale.
Researched how iOS renders app icons when grayscale is enabled, but couldn’t find a way to override or provide an alternative icon.
Specific questions
Is there any API or mechanism in iOS that allows providing a different version of the app icon when the user has grayscale mode enabled?
If there’s no direct API, are there any best practices for designing iOS app icons to ensure good contrast when converted to grayscale?
Do we have to design grayscale version for app icon?
Thank you!
Hi,
Normally we need many shades of gray in any App and Apple system have only 3 , Primery, Secondary, and Gray, so to make Gray regress that automatically adapt to Dark Mode we just use opacity on these colors ? there's no system built in Gray degrees ?
Kind Regards
https://developer.apple.com/documentation/appstoreconnectapi/devicecreaterequest/data-data.dictionary/attributes-data.dictionary
According to the API documentation above, the parameter values for platform can be three: IOS, MAC-OS, and UNIVERSAL. After debugging, it was found that IOS and MAC-OS can be used normally, but UNIVERSAL encountered an error UNIVERSAL' is not a valid value for the attribute 'platform'. Expected one of: 'IOS', 'MAC_OS', I would like to know if this value has been deprecated or if the API interface requires new version support, and how to use this value! Please help me solve it! thank you!
Post:
In macOS 26 Betas 1–3, the system applied an automatic dark-mode fallback for app icons. This ensured consistency across the Dock and Finder even when developers hadn’t provided dark assets.
Since Beta 4, this fallback was removed. As of Beta 7, icons now rely entirely on developer-updated assets. The result is mixed light and dark icons in the Dock, breaking visual consistency and making app recognition slower in dark mode.
Observed behavior:
• Icons without dark assets are displayed in their original light version.
• Some apps (e.g. Final Cut Pro) show a gray border treatment that feels inconsistent with the rest of the UI.
• The fallback applied in Betas 1–3 is completely absent.
Expected behavior:
System should provide a fallback rendering until developers supply proper dark assets, or offer a toggle in System Settings → Appearance (e.g. “Force Dark Icons”).
This is still present in Beta 7. Is there any plan to restore the fallback mechanism or provide a user option?
Hello,
I recently submitted my app to the Apple Store and received a rejection under Guideline 4.3(a) - Design - Spam, stating that my app is similar to others on the store. However, my app has a unique feature set, offers more functionality and content than competitors, and is completely free with ad monetization, unlike most similar apps that require subscriptions.
I have spent five months developing this app from scratch, ensuring it provides an original and valuable experience for users. I did not use an app template or repackaged code, and my app is not a reskinned version of any existing app. I genuinely believe it brings meaningful differentiation to the market.
I would appreciate any guidance on how I can better communicate my app’s uniqueness to the review team or what specific aspects I should adjust to comply with Apple's guidelines.
Thank you for your time and support.
Hi,
is it me or latest beta has pronlem with brightness?
i have iPhone 16 pro, and now i must keep disabled auto brightness , at keep slider more or less at maximum, in order to clearly see the screen.
fabrizio
As of right now Icon Composer does not support creating app icons for visionOS and tvOS. It appears that only system apps can provide glass icons for those platforms. How should developers handle this? In extreme cases, the flat icon on those platforms will look wildly different from their glass counterparts.
From what I have seen visionOS and tvOS also do not apply any automatic treatment like on iOS where legacy icons get a glass effect.
So, third party app icons are just going to look out of place for (hopefully just) a year on those platforms? What is the recommended approach here? You could obviously fake the effect, but I feel like that would be worse.
This has been an issue since installing the first beta and I haven't seen anyone else say anything about it so I feel like I'm going kind of bonkers. While using Dark Mode, double-tapping to select a word while using the Liquid Glass keyboard, like in Messages or Safari, produces a flashlight-like effect over the text with each tap. While this is a fine animation and pretty helpful when moving the cursor, the brightness of the flashlight effect on white text in Dark Mode makes it impossible to see what you're actually tapping to select. The brightness seems to intensify 100x when rapidly tapping. This is not an issue in Light Mode when the text itself is black.
To recreate this, just turn your phone to Dark Mode, go into Messages and type a few words into a thread. Try to double-tap to select a word in the text box. The brightness of the selected word should intensify to the point of being unable to see the word itself.
Has anyone been bothered by this? Is there a way to fix or adjust it? I've tried reducing transparency and a bunch of other settings but nothing has worked.
Building an app to edit the various parameters of digital musical instruments. A typical user would have perhaps max 6 instruments, out of the hundreds of possibilities.
Would like to structure the app with a global window, menu, etc which would be a free download. The user could download editor inserts for their particular set of instruments and ignore all of the others. The downloaded editors would show as options in a menu.
It seem like more than a widget but less than a library. Building a monolithic app containing all possible editors doesn't seem like an option, but separate full-app editors for each piece of gear doesn't sound right either.
Any suggestions out there?
Thanks very much
Brian