Notices by Jim Nielsen (jimniels@mastodon.social)

The Squint logo from @nikitonsky is so fun, even more so when it's interactive.

https://tonsky.me/design/

@mwichary @gruber are there any apps that, in your mind, are doing “contrasty shape on squircle” really well?

Because I look at a wall of icons from my collection and none really stand out. The mandatory shape really constrains and dilutes any expressivity.

Like in this screenshot, I look at it and think maybe Sketch does the best job of contrast + irregular shape to try and provide uniqueness / recognizability at a glance…

@mwichary i know the history of many of these, which is kind of it's own fascinating rabbit hole.

like "system toolkit pro" you can see the evolution from bigsur to tahoe, both borrowing heaviily from the direction of apple’s own app icons in each respective OS release

https://www.macosicongallery.com/apps/6471391855/xl/

@mwichary it's worth saying: i don't presume to have answers lol.

i’ve just _really_ enjoyed the art and history of app icon design brought on by ios/macos over the last ~15 years

And it feels like a lot of that is being lost.

i don't know or understand all the considerations apple faces.

I get the easy job of sitting back and pointing at stuff that I think is/was really rich.

Or, conversely, pointing out “that doesn’t feel like it fits in the rich tradition and function of past icons”

@mwichary this reminded me of a post from Louie Mantia years ago. I had to go find it because his example is still seared into my head

but i think it gets at this idea of designing app icons vs. logos (slash glyphs)

obviously a lot has changed since 2018, especially with all the customizations Apple now allows, but there's a lot to ponder in there

https://x.com/Mantia/status/1013508524830121984

📝 Some of my favorite blog posts from others must’ve undoubtedly felt to them like, "Is this even worth saying?"

Get yourself a blog and state the obvious.

https://blog.jim-nielsen.com/2026/blogging-stating-the-obvious/

@manualdousuario should've got them a domain name instead

Me to my kids as they go off to college:

“Here is my going away gift. When you were born, I didn’t setup an investment account for you. But I did snag you a Gmail account. Here are some pristine usernames you could’ve only got 20 years ago!”

@nikitonsky for the "X" example, they should've just included an actual menu from Tahoe

Came home to find Fluffy sitting like this in the backyard.

Not gonna lie, feel a bit threatened.

#Caturday

@manualdousuario yeah like i have my kids android mp3 players, which are usb-c, but they don't work with my apple usb-c cables and so now i have to remember to bring the "right" chargers/cables even though they're all usb-c.

idk why it's the way it is, i just know it doesn't work ha

@manualdousuario I have a block battery/charger with usb/c but it has multiple ports but you have to plug into the right port depending on the device and some devices won’t charge on the same usb/c cable they need a different one.

Whereas something like this just has ports. Plug it into any one and it figures it out (or so I hear)

https://www.twelvesouth.com/products/plugbug-multiport-usbc-charger-with-find-my

I want the process of charging my device to take up zero mental bandwidth.

It used to be simple — that's my charger & device, plug it in, it works.

Now using a charger is like using a computer.

"It's not working?"
"Did you look at the screen? What's it say?"
"Try unplugging it / plugging it back in. Does it work now?"

To err is human.

To err continuously is agentic.

@manualdousuario oh interesting...i guess that kinda makes sense. and also i'm sorry ha

My #macOSTahoe keeps getting stuck in this weird state

- use computer at night (in dark mode)
- wake up in AM, turn on computer, it switches to light mode
- various tabs and UI elements in Finder, Mail, etc. get stuck in hydrid light/dark

If i go manually change modes at system level, they stay stuck in this "hybrid" mode.

Been this way for like months. Happen to anybody else?

@manualdousuario @mray TY for the links!

I miss the music app that was centered on _my music_

Playlists, Artists, Albums, Songs, these were the primary axis of navigation — the Nouns of the system.

Now I get Discover, Radio, New, all _their stuff_ while my stuff is tucked away under “Library”

@mray what app do you use for your music collection?

I keep thinking of that phrase — something like, “They reduce the meaning of the word to that which their machines can achieve.” And now I just see it everywhere.

- They made artificial "intelligence".
- They made a "browser" in a weekend.
- They added “presence” to the UI.

Rich human concepts narrowed to fit what a technology can achieve, then they lay claim to the name.