Construct and manage a graphical, event-driven user interface for your macOS app using AppKit.

AppKit Documentation

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NSDocument duplicate problem
The aim is to save the data of a program in 2 different formats of choice, say type1 (default) and type2. No problem when + (BOOL)autosavesInPlace is NO, you can save as… and get a choice. No problem when + (BOOL)autosavesInPlace is YES and you created a new document, you can choose when saving. But you do not get a choice when you created the new file by duplicating a existing file. It takes the type of the latter. (Using dataOfType:error:, but did not find a solution either by using writeToURL:ofType:error:, duplicateDocument:, etc.)
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207
Jan ’25
[macOS Sequoia] Using RegisterEventHotkey with option and shift modifiers doesn't working anymore
Hello. In my app, I use RegisterEventHotkey to implement global keyboard shortcuts to trigger actions. Up until macOS Sequoia, I was able to use a keyboard shortcut with option and shift as the modifiers, like option shift 2 (⌥ ⇧ 2). Now, on macOS Sequoia, using RegisterEventHotkey to register a hotkey with those exact modifiers (option and shift), regardless of the key, fails with the error -9868 (eventInternalErr). Is this a documented and wanted change, or is this a bug? Other modifier keys (just command, command option, command shift, command control, control shift, etc), all work. Any insight into this would be appreciated. (Feedback filed: FB15163561) Thank you, Matthias
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9.4k
Sep ’24
macOS dark mode while window is in background
Hi, I detect dark mode on macOS like following: NSAppearance *appearance = NSApp.mainWindow.effectiveAppearance; NSString *interface_style = appearance.name; NSAppearanceName basicAppearance = [appearance bestMatchFromAppearancesWithNames:@[ NSAppearanceNameAqua, NSAppearanceNameDarkAqua ]]; if([basicAppearance isEqualToString:NSAppearanceNameDarkAqua]){ theme = "Adwaita:dark"; dark_mode = TRUE; } if([interface_style isEqualToString:NSAppearanceNameDarkAqua]){ theme = "Adwaita:dark"; dark_mode = TRUE; }else if([interface_style isEqualToString:NSAppearanceNameVibrantDark]){ theme = "Adwaita:dark"; dark_mode = TRUE; }else if([interface_style isEqualToString:NSAppearanceNameAccessibilityHighContrastAqua]){ theme = "HighContrast"; }else if([interface_style isEqualToString:NSAppearanceNameAccessibilityHighContrastDarkAqua]){ theme = "HighContrast:dark"; dark_mode = TRUE; }else if([interface_style isEqualToString:NSAppearanceNameAccessibilityHighContrastVibrantDark]){ theme = "HighContrast:dark"; dark_mode = TRUE; } But this doesn't work if my window is in background. As the application window is put into background, it loses dark mode. Howto fix it? regards, Joël
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351
Jan ’25
"Add-on" services no longer supported?
Our MacOS app has for some time been able to create so-called "add-on" services, which are dynamically written to individual bundles in ~/Library/Services/ (as opposed to being statically defined in the app's Info.plist). These worked fine for a long time until recently. They still appear in other app Services menus, but do not get as far as calling the specified instance method in our app. Does anyone know if add-on services are no longer supported? Perhaps due to some new security constraint? The documentation on app services in general seems to be out of date. I did try copying the add-on service definition from the add-on plist into the app's Info.plist. That seemed to work, so the basic specification doesn't seem to have changed.
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224
Jan ’25
*** -colorSpaceName not valid
Here is a relatively simple code fragment: let attributedQuote: [NSAttributedString.Key: Any] = [ .font: FieldFont!, .foregroundColor: NSColor.red] let strQuote = NSAttributedString.init(string:"Hello World", attributes:attributedQuote) strQuote.draw(in: Rect1) It compiles without an issue, bur when I execute it, I get: "*** -colorSpaceName not valid for the NSColor <NSColor: 0x6000005adfd0>; need to first convert colorspace." I have tried everything I can think of. What's going on?
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311
Dec ’24
Crash on Intel during UI layout
We've got a hard to repro issue on Intel only when performing UI layout. It seems the collection view code gets into a recursive loop of doom and eventually the app crashes. This is only happening on Intel, the ARM version is fine. It seems related to this issue: https://developer.apple.com/forums/thread/732580 There an Apple Dev acknowledges that there are issues with the Intel version of the OS. Here's the simplified stack we're seeing: -[NSISEngine _coreReplaceMarker:withMarkerPlusDelta:]" -[NSISEngine constraintDidChangeSuchThatMarker:shouldBeReplacedByMarkerPlusDelta:]", -[NSISEngine tryToChangeConstraintSuchThatMarker:isReplacedByMarkerPlusDelta:undoHandler:]", -[NSLayoutConstraint _tryToChangeContainerGeometryWithUndoHandler:]", -[NSLayoutConstraint _setSymbolicConstant:constant:symbolicConstantMultiplier:]", -[NSLayoutConstraint setConstant:]", -[NSView(NSConstraintBasedLayoutInternal) _updateSimpleAutoresizingConstraintsInPlace:forAutoresizingMask:]", NSViewUpdateConstraintsForFrameChange -[NSView setFrameSize:]", -[NSView setFrame:]", -[NSClipView _updateOverhangSubviewsIfNeeded]", -[NSClipView _reflectDocumentViewFrameChange]", -[NSView _postFrameChangeNotification]"," -[NSView setFrameSize:]", -[NSCollectionView setFrameSize:]", -[NSView setFrame:]", NSViewActuallyUpdateFrameFromLayoutEngine", -[NSView resizeSubviewsWithOldSize:]", -[NSView setFrameSize:]", -[NSClipView setFrameSize:]", -[NSView setFrame:]", -[NSScrollView _setContentViewFrame:]", -[NSScrollView tile]", -[NSScrollView _tileWithoutRecursing]", -[NSScrollView reflectScrolledClipView:]", -[NSClipView _reflectDocumentViewFrameChange]_block_invoke", -[NSClipView _reflectDocumentViewFrameChange]", -[NSView _postFrameChangeNotification]", -[NSView setFrameSize:]", -[NSCollectionView setFrameSize:]", -[NSView setFrame:]", -[NSCollectionView _resizeToFitContentAndClipView]", -[_NSCollectionViewCore setContentSize:]", -[_NSCollectionViewCore _updateVisibleCellsNow:]" -[_NSCollectionViewCore _updateVisibleCellsNow:]" -[_NSCollectionViewCore _updateVisibleCellsNow:]" -[_NSCollectionViewCore _updateVisibleCellsNow:]" . . It seems to be limited to macOS 13.1 too. Hoping someone might have a clue? Thanks, Robert. Here's a link to the full stack: https://www.icloud.com/notes/076h1RXj4rvv7TzS5ICnvG6vw#NSCollectionView_crash_stack:
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273
Dec ’24
Whats the Appkit equivalent of SwiftUI's NavigationSplitView?
How do I implement the same Navigation split view with a side bar in Appkit? Basically I have this code: import SwiftUI struct ContentView: View { var body: some View { NavigationSplitView { // Sidebar List { NavigationLink("Item 1", value: "Item 1 Details") NavigationLink("Item 2", value: "Item 2 Details") NavigationLink("Item 3", value: "Item 3 Details") } .navigationTitle("Items") } content: { // Main content (detail view for selected item) Text("Select an item to see details.") .padding() } detail: { // Detail view (for the selected item) Text("Select an item from the sidebar to view details.") .padding() } } } struct MyApp: App { var body: some Scene { WindowGroup { ContentView() } } } and wanted to somehow convert it to Appkit. I tried to use an NSSplitViewController but I still don't have that side bar and that button to collapse it, how do I go about this?
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Dec ’24
NSTextField Delegates Not Triggering After Refactoring NSView to NSViewController in macOS App
I'm developing a macOS application and facing an issue with NSTextField delegates after refactoring my code. Here's the situation: I have an NSWindowController. Inside the NSWindowController, there's a container NSView named containerView. On top of containerView, I added a custom NSView subclass named MyDetailsView. MyDetailsView has two NSTextField instances, and their delegates are properly set. The delegate methods like controlTextDidChange(_:) were getting called as expected. Due to some additional requirements, I refactored MyDetailsView into MyDetailsViewController, a subclass of NSViewController. I created a corresponding .xib file for MyDetailsViewController. Updated the code to load and add MyDetailsViewController's view (view property) to containerView. Verified that the NSTextField delegates are still being set, and the fields are displayed correctly in the UI. However, after this refactor, the NSTextField delegate methods (e.g., controlTextDidChange(_:)) are no longer being triggered. **What I've Tried: ** Verified that the delegates for the NSTextField instances are correctly set after the refactor. Ensured that the MyDetailsViewController's view is added to containerView. Question: What could be causing the NSTextField delegate methods to stop working after refactoring from NSView to NSViewController? @IBOutlet weak var customeView: NSView! var myDetailsViewController: MyDetailsViewController! var myDetailsView: MyDetailsView! var isViewController: Bool = true override func windowDidLoad() { super.windowDidLoad() if isViewController { myDetailsViewController = MyDetailsViewController(nibName: "MyDetailsViewController", bundle: nil) self.customeView.addSubview(myDetailsViewController.view) } else { myDetailsView = MyDetailsView.createFromNib() self.customeView.addSubview(myDetailsView!) } } override func showWindow(_ sender: Any?) { super.showWindow(nil) window?.makeKeyAndOrderFront(nil) } override var windowNibName: NSNib.Name? { return NSNib.Name("MyWindowController") }} class MyDetailsViewController: NSViewController { @IBOutlet weak var textField: NSTextField! override func viewDidLoad() { super.viewDidLoad() // Do view setup here. } } extension MyDetailsViewController: NSTextDelegate { func controlTextDidChange(_ obj: Notification) { guard let textField = obj.object as? NSTextField else { return } print("The value is ----> (MyDetailsViewController) \(textField.stringValue)") } } TextField delegate is set in XIB.
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296
Dec ’24
Complex functions are not available
When I generate a dial through code, it prompts the following content: code: CLKWatchFaceLibrary * lib = [[CLKWatchFaceLibrary alloc] init]; [lib addWatchFaceAtURL:url completionHandler:^(NSError * _Nullable error) { }]; result: Complex functions are not available How to fix it? Make it usable, Thank you~
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Dec ’24
NSOutlineView with Diffable Data Source
Hi, On macOS, there seems to be a NSTableViewDiffableDataSource and an NSCollectionViewDiffableDataSource, but there seems to be nothing for NSOutlineView. Is it possible to somehow use NSTableViewDiffableDataSource with NSOutlineView that I'm missing? If not, is it possible to use NSTableView with NSTableViewDiffableDataSource to show a 'table' with section headers?
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Dec ’24
Application terminates on sleep even if windows are not closed
I've received some reports from users of my macOS app that the application quits when putting their Mac to sleep after hiding all windows. The NSApplicationDelegate implements applicationShouldTerminateAfterLastWindowClosed and returns true. However this method is called even though there are still windows open. Unfortunately I'm not able to reproduce the issue, but here are the steps to reproduce according to the user: Open app (single NSWindow visible) Press Command-H to hide the single window Put Mac to sleep The app is terminated when the Mac wakes. These steps have been confirmed by a user in Safe Mode, so I expect no interference of other applications (macOS 15.1.1). When this happens the application logs show that applicationShouldTerminateAfterLastWindowClosed is called when the Mac goes to sleep. But the main NSWindow is still open (yet hidden). The close() method on NSWindow is not called before applicationShouldTerminateAfterLastWindowClosed. Order of events: NSApplicationDelegate.applicationWillHide NSApplicationDelegate.applicationWillResignActive [...] NSApplicationDelegate.applicationShouldTerminateAfterLastWindowClosed NSApplicationDelegate.applicationShouldTerminate NSApplicationDelegate.applicationWillTerminate NSWindow.close I assumed that applicationShouldTerminateAfterLastWindowClosed is only called after all windows are closed. Is that assumption incorrect? Does a user-hidden NSWindow count as a closed window? For me (and other users) the API works as expected and the app stays running when the app is hidden as the Mac sleeps. applicationShouldTerminateAfterLastWindowClosed is not called until all windows are actually closed.
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Dec ’24
Screen record restriction in MacOS app
I have a MacOs AppKit app. This app we are developing for examination purposes. We dont want the user to screen record and also to take screen shot. We created a window and set the sharingType to none. also we have set window.level to CGShieldingWindowLevel() Below is the code if let window = NSApp.windows.first { window.title = "Test" window.sharingType = .none // Disable screen capture and recording window.level = NSWindow.Level(rawValue: Int(CGShieldingWindowLevel())) // } As per documentation the windows should be excluded from screen capture and also recording But the window is excluded only from screen capture and not from screen recording. Please give us a solution to prevent screen recording in MacOs native app.
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441
Dec ’24
I Need Help!
I am trying to carry out repairs on my computer, it is an old MacBook Pro which I really appreciate, and it works very well, before attempting a hardware repair, I am exhausting all the software resources, in one of its support forums I found a supposed solution, I just can't see the assigned plist, but I see that it appears in the example as root within xcode, could you help me with what the steps would be to enter root mode and thus be able to make the relevant adjustment , I attach the link to the example. thank you so much https://discussions.apple.com/thread/3114550?sortBy=rank) The example can be found in Grant Bennet-Alder coment
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Dec ’24
Possible to have NSWindow *without* NSWindowStyleMaskTitled to make the screen its on the main screen?
I have a NSWindow subclass. The window has a custom shape, and thus has a custom contentView which overrides drawRect to draw . Since the window has a custom shape it cannot use the system provided titlebar. The problem I'm having is when there are multiple screens, if my window is on the inactive screen (not mainScreen with menu bar) and I move the mouse over to the second monitor and click the window....the menu bar doesn't travel to the screen my app is on after the window is clicked. This does not happen with any other window. In all other windows, the menu bar moves to the screen once you click a window on that screen. So it appears this is because my window is not using NSWindowStyleMaskTitled. As far as I know, I can't use the system title bar and draw my custom window shape. Abandoning the custom window shape is not an option. Without going into too many details as to why I care, the menu bar really should travel with first click on my window like other apps.. Is there a way to tell the system (other than using the NSWindowStyleMaskTitled) that clicking on my window should make that screen the "main screen" (bring the menu bar over? I tried programmatically activating the application, ordering the window to the front, etc. but none of this works. This forces the user to click outside my app window, say on the desktop, to move the menu bar over, which feels wrong. Thanks in advance if anyone has any suggestions.
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Sep ’24
IKSaveOptions Only Calls its Delegate Once
I use IKSaveOptions to add an accessory view to an NSSavePanel to give the user choice of the image file type (etc) used to save a file. I limit the available file type choices in the accessory's menu by specifying a delegate object that offers the saveOptions:shouldShowUTType: method. Historically, my delegate was called repeatedly (for many file types) so, for those not supported by my code, I was able to omit them from the menu. This is expected behaviour from my interpretation of the documentation for saveOptions:shouldShowUTType: As of Ventura 13.1, the delegate was not called at all; instead, the entire (or at least a long) list of options was offered in the panel. Running the same build of my code on Catalina 10.15.7 still had the historical behaviour. In Sonoma (14.0) the delegate was called exactly once (for JPEG). This behaviour persists in Sequoia 15.1.1 . I have used test code and breakpoints to ensure that I pass a valid reference to my delegate and to inspect when (if) it is called. If there is some (new?) pre-condition for the accessory's use needed on Ventura and later, or a workaround, I would be grateful to be pointed to it.
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284
Dec ’24
Applying NSLayoutConstraints makes NSTableView unresponsive
In MacOS app I present modally NSTableView. The table is created in IB and its data and functionality are handled in corresponding NSViewController. As long as the positioning of modally presented table is left to the system, the tableview is placed in the center of the presenting view controller and everything works fine. But if I apply NSLayoutConstraints to position it as I need for visual design reasons, the table stops responding to mouse clicks. Here's the code inside the presenting view controller: bookmarks_TVC = Bookmarks_TVC() bookmarks_TVC.view.translatesAutoresizingMaskIntoConstraints = false self.present(bookmarks_TVC, animator: ModalPresentationAnimator()) NSLayoutConstraint.activate([ self.bookmarks_TVC.view.leadingAnchor.constraint(equalTo: self.view.leadingAnchor, constant:410), self.bookmarks_TVC.view.topAnchor.constraint(equalTo: self.view.topAnchor, constant: 170) ]) Once again, without NSLayoutConstraints the table responds as expected. Once the constraints are added, it becomes unresponsive. Thanks in advance for any helpful suggestions.
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294
Dec ’24
Failure when setting file modificationDate
I properly copy a scrFile to a dstFile with mManager = [NSFileManager defaultManager]; [mManager copyItemAtPath:srcPath toPath:dstPath error:&amp;error]; but on "some destination disks" the dstFile gets a modificationDate with truncated milliseconds. For instance, with this format "yyyy.MM.dd - HH:mm:ss:SSS" I visualize srcDate = 2024.11.03 - 12:42:35:772 dstDate = 2024.11.03 - 12:42:35:000 After the copyItemAtPath I even unsuccessfully tried to set the dstFile modificationDate this way NSMutableDictionary *dstAttrs = [NSMutableDictionary dictionaryWithDictionary:[mManager attributesOfItemAtPath:dstPath error:nil]]; [dstAttrs setObject:srcDate forKey:NSFileModificationDate]; [mManager setAttributes:dstAttrs ofItemAtPath:dstPath error:nil]; Again, the dstDate is 2024.11.03 - 12:42:35:000. I unsuccessfully tried even FSSetCatalogInfo(&amp;dstRef, fsInfo, &amp;srcFsCatInfo); No way. I noticed that the destination disk is an USB External Physical Volume, Mac OS Extended (Journaled) with "Ignore Ownership on this volume" on. Could this flag be the cause of the trouble? Shouldn't this flag regard only the files ownership? This issue brings another trouble. Since the srcDate and the dstDate are not equal, my macOS app performing a backup, copies the srcFile to the dstFile again and again. To workaround the trouble, I actually compare srcDate with dstDate after truncating their milliseconds. But I guess this is not a good practice. Any idea on how to fix this trouble? Thanks. P.S. I attach here the disk info Disk_Info.txt
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Nov ’24