My WWDC 2024 macOS Wish List

 

As I draft this post, the 2024 World Wide Developer’s Conference (WWDC) is just a few weeks away.

Normally, tech announcements like WWDC would excite me. But this year’s WWDC has me more concerned than excited. (I might be the only person who is NOT excited about AI coming to macOS.)

I’ve been using Apple products since 1987. I state this only to say that I have a lot of experience using Apple’s platforms, particularly the Mac. I’ve used nearly every iteration of macOS since the late 80’s.

While Apple’s hardware, on the whole, seems to be as solid as ever (particularly with the M-series Macs), my experience using macOS has confirmed that Apple’s software quality and usability have eroded. And I’m not alone in thinking this way.

Now, to be fair, macOS 14.5 (which is current, as of this post) seems (so far) to be a solid release. But the same could not be said for earlier iterations of macOS Sonoma, which were replete with bugs and other annoyances that affected my day-to-day productivity.

Let me share my biggest beefs with macOS Sonoma as it stands right now.

1. Stage Manager. I gave Stage Manager a fair shake when it was first released. I tried to make it part of my workflow, but I came away feeling frustrated. I don’t like it. I can see benefits to Expose and Mission Control, but Stage Manager still feels like a step back when it comes to window management. I understand the intent, but the implementation leaves a lot to be desired. On small screens, in particular, like my MacBook Pro’s screen, Stage Manager seems to take up a lot of screen real-estate. I have tried Stage Manager on and off but it hasn’t quite stuck with me.
2. System Settings. I’m not against a new way of organizing Settings. But I’d be lying if I said that System Settings makes it easy to find the specific settings I happen to be looking for. If you know what you’re seeking, search can help. But if you don’t, you’ll have to look through each of the menu items to find what you’re looking for. This has resulted in a few Google searches. And some of the groupings in System Settings really don’t make sense. The vertical layout is something else that baffles me. Given how wide displays are, Apple should allow for a more horizontal layout.
3. Icons. This one’s minor, but annoying. Changing hard drive icons used to be a simple matter. Go to the “Get Info” panel, copy the icon you want, then paste it to the destination hard drive’s Get Info window. This doesn’t work now. Plus, the Finder sidebar icons are so bland they are difficult to differentiate.
4. Poor contrast. Any light colored wallpaper will create readability issues for files, folders, and drive icons on the desktop. This is a big one for me. Drop shadows around white text on a light background make it difficult to read.
5. Eject problems. If there’s an open Finder window or application using data on one of your external drives, the Mac will throw up a warning saying that your drive cannot be ejected. I would prefer more info and the ability to quit the offending application right from within the macOS dialog.

And now for my 2024 macOS Wish List, in no particular order.

1. More customization options across the Finder, in the form of custom themes. Linux and Windows already do this. Make the Mac fun to use again, Apple!
2. A more logical and intuitively organized System Settings panel. The System Settings layout needs to be improved – and items within the System Settings needs to be better organized.
3. A better built-in window management for macOS. Right now, I’m using third party utilities like Raycast and Lasso for my window management, but having built-in support for window management in macOS would be fantastic. (Windows 11 window management is pretty solid, imho.)
4. Better visual contrast in the Finder, both in terms of text and icons.
5. A more effective method to organize / hide menu items in the Finder. Yes, third party tools like Bartender exist. But the experience of finding and searching for menu items is a tremendous source of friction for me.
6. The (slight) return of skeuomorphism – sometimes we need dials and buttons to make for a more intuitive UI.
7. The ability to display widgets on the Lock Screen. I’d like to have my weather, clock, and other commonly used widgets available even when I’m away from my desk.

And lastly, I’m going to cast my prediction for “Mammoth” for the forthcoming macOS name, given the buzz around Apple’s integration of AI across all of their operating systems. Let’s see what WWDC 2024 brings.

-Krishna

 

 

Krishna May 22, 2024 macOS, macOS Sonoma, WWDC 2024