What type of licensing does it apply for the usage of FONT_FAMILY='System' in Apple/iOS app?
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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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
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!
Hey there,
I redesigned my apps icons for Liquid Glass in the icon composer app. I have to say it's been a pleasure to use and my icons look stunning when rendered in the icon composer app, whatever rendering mode and context I've been testing.
But once in a developer release on my device (iOS 26 beta 3), the rendering is very disappointing. They look blurry, very far from what icon composer is showing.
I would like to know whether I have a design issue, or if the current state of the beta release is known to not render icon properly. I'm kind of panicking :)
I have completed a code with chatgpt and I am unising the latest version of code. i am also using an m1 MacBook air (2020). would love to know if anyone have resolved this issue. by using the ai to correct the code it disrupts it with something. an incorrect imoout line,but after multiple attempts ai get it right. I have notice that the code shows up on the start meaning run, take some time to load the intro page.
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.
I have really examined the swipe left Camera function mode and sincerely believe it is no more important especially when there no option in the settings to turn it on or off.
I will highly recommend a total scrap in the iOS 26 or if possible a function to activate and deactivate it.
What is the step-by-step process to run an iOS application paired with the Mac in my MAUI project?
I am using Windows with Visual Studio 2022 V17.13.5.
Application: Multiplatform;
Language: C#;
Framework: MAUI 8;
Xcode: 16.2;
Objective: Identify and fix the issue to allow the application to run correctly.
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?
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
I like this font. but in license only allowed for use in Mockup UI.
Feel free to use in commercial?
https://mobbin.com/apps/bloom-ios-e1251835-34e6-426e-9f94-f9595f2567fa/1c919e9a-d144-4aa0-b788-f9752111e281/screens
I've made the code in xcode for apple watch with 2 swift view (contentView.swift and interfaceController.swift).The swift for sound and haptic feedback is in InterfaceController.swift. But the the sound does not appear with haptic feedback in apple watch after complete the xcode.
the app is done but no sound appear with haptic feedback when rotate apple watch digital crown. when crown rotated but sound appear
code
import WatchKit
import AVFoundation
import WatchKit
class InterfaceController: WKInterfaceController {
// ... your UI elements
func playSelectionHapticAndSound() {
// Play a haptic feedback pattern
WKInterfaceDevice.current().play(.success)
// Load and play a selection sound effect
guard let soundURL = Bundle.main.url(forResource: "spin", withExtension: "wav") else { return }
do {
let player = try AVAudioPlayer(contentsOf: soundURL)
player.play()
} catch {
print("Error playing sound: \(error)")
}
}
}
I have an ongoing activity in progress.
Think of:
a delivery in progress
house internet reboot in progress
some water / electricity / internet / tv outage.
(food) order processing
I want to show a persistent toast message above the tab bar, across all tabs and screens across the app. It could take 15 minutes until the activity is finished.
Obviously there's a challenge of:
accessibility
content overlaying with each other
extra engineering effort.
What we've thought of doing is:
Option1: show a toast message, but when a modal is presented then it presents on top of the toast message. The toast message no longer updates itself. Once the modal is finished, then the toast message re-appears and continues to update.
Option2: keep the toast message across all tabs and modals and work through the challenges mentioned
Question:
What are some other design approaches that could be taken to persist an ongoing activity (much like 'Live Activity', but just across the app when it's in foreground) or what are some design reasons that the two options considered are bad?
I previously written here, and some advices were to appeal to rejection sending them message describing uniqueness of the app. Nothing is working.
In short, i have a vpn app (of course by design shares some concept with other apps that are in the app store). But since the rejection i have completely changed the ui, added built in browser, p2p messenger so users could interact with each other without any interference. The app is completely free with no ads. I thought this is it, there's no way it would reject this time, but... i get a notification with rejection repeating the same old message. I'm extremely frustrated and don't know what to do.
Tried changing the logo of the app, the name to "Incognito - Messenger, VPN", app store screenshots.
I've already appealed with screenshots describing unique features that other vpn apps don't have, but the message just repeats from app review team.
Submission ID: 1a49ee0b-c4e2-4a36-8372-e4d3b9a8b13f
Does anybody have an advice what i can do?
I have an app that displays a MapView. While I am in light mode everything is fine. I can scroll around the map and my overlays (made by UIVisualEffectView containing an UIGlassEffect) stay light and look well!
As soon as I change my phone to dark mode, depending on what's underneath the buttons (a light residential area or darker wooded areas) some of my buttons change color. But not all, only where it's supposedly lighter or darker underneath. This makes my whole UI look strange. Some buttons bright, some dark.
Is there a way to lock a "color" or interfaceStyle to the effects-view? In light mode everything is fine, but in dark mode it just looks super strange.
I have accidentally missed the sign up window for the UX Writing lab by 1 hour, but I'd still love to join it if at all possible. I have had this lab several times in the past and it was always very informative.
I have a time tracking app that helps people make the most of their time. https://apps.apple.com/us/app/timelines-time-tracking/id1112433234
I'm looking for guidance on how to improve copywriting in my onboarding sequence, on my paywall, and overall throughout the app.
Thank you for considering. My Apple ID is lukas[at]glimsoft.com.
Hi there. Our designer is designing our app in Figma with the navigation element with compact size navigation bar, and large title. I couldn't find an API to actually configure the nav bar to be compact while keeping the large title enabled. Figma uses the libraries provided by Apple so it's weird I can't find such configuration in iOS26.
I'm adding a screenshot of the options in Figma.
First option is: Large size & large text.
The one our designer is using is compact size & large text.
Existing smartphones store multiple NFC card information. When the NFC antenna of the phone is close to the card reader, it is usually necessary to open the APP to select NFC card information or default to one card information to be transmitted to the card reader. It is not possible to quickly select or switch cards among multiple cards. For example, after using the NFC function to swipe the subway card, the phone needs to open the car access control and community access control again. It is necessary to open the mobile NFC card information management APP to select the community access control card and then swipe the mobile NFC access control, which causes inconvenience.
(现有的智能手机存储多个 NFC 卡信息。当手机的NFC天线靠近读卡器时,通常需要打开APP选择NFC卡信息或默认一个卡信息传输到读卡器。无法在多张卡之间快速选择或切换卡。例如,使用NFC功能刷完地铁卡后,手机需要重新打开车内门禁和小区门禁。需要打开手机NFC卡信息管理APP选择社区门禁卡,然后刷手机NFC门禁,造成不便。)
Divide the smartphone screen into multiple areas, and users can freely define corresponding NFC information for each area. When the screen is turned off and not unlocked, select NFC card information by pressing different screen areas with your fingers. When the mobile NFC is close to the card reader, the selected card information will be transmitted to the reader(将智能手机屏幕划分多个区域,每个区域手机用户可以自由定义对应NFC信息。在熄屏’不解锁的情况下,通过手指按压不同屏幕区域选择NFC卡片信息,手机NFC贴近读卡器时将选择的卡片信息传递给读卡器。)
Below, the method will be further explained in conjunction with the accompanying drawings and embodiments.
Figure 1 is a schematic diagram of a utility model;
Figure 2 is the flowchart of the present utility model;
NFC reader, 2. Mobile screen partition, 3. NFC signal in Figure 1.
In Figure 2, 1. Press the area of the screen partition with your finger. 2. Place the phone close to the NFC reader. 3. The phone senses the returned NFC signal. 4. The phone detects the pressed area.(
下面结合附图和实施例对方法进一步说明。
图1为实用新型示意图;
图2为本实用新型流程图;
图1中1.NFC读取器,2.手机屏幕分区,3.NFC信号。
图2中1.手指按压屏幕分区的区域2.手机贴近NFC读取器3.手机感应到返回的NFC信号4.手机检测到按压的区域,5.是否检测到手机用户按压区域的动作,6.检测到按压区域,根据按压区域做出匹配相对应的NFC的动作7.选择用户所需的NFC卡8.NFC卡收到信息并发出卡片信息9.NFC读卡器收到NFC卡的信息。)
For example, a smartphone user has N NFC virtual cards in their phone. Users can divide the smartphone screen into N areas, distinguished as A area, B area, C area..., each area controls different NFC. When a smartphone user holds down the B area that controls NFC (such as virtual access cards) and brings the phone close to the NFC card reader (such as access control). The mobile phone will sense NFC signals (access control signals), triggering the phone to detect the area that the user is pressing. There are two possibilities. Firstly, if the user's pressing action is not detected, the NFC card corresponding to the default A zone (set as the default here) will be selected. If the user's pressing action is detected and it is detected that the pressing is in Zone B (the partition corresponding to the access card), then the NFC information corresponding to Zone B is triggered. The smartphone receives this message, and the corresponding NFC sends out a card message. The NFC card reader (access control device) receives the message and reacts (door opens).(例如,一智能手机用户手机中有N个NFC虚拟卡。用户可以将智能手机屏幕分为N个区域,分辨为A区、B区、C区······,每个区域分别控制不同的NFC。当智能手机用户按住控制NFC(如虚拟门禁卡)的B区域并将手机靠近NFC读卡器(如门禁)。手机将会感应到NFC信号(门禁信号),触发手机检测用户正在按压的区域。有两种可能性,第一没有检测到用户的按压动作则选择默认的A区(这里把A区设为默认)所对应的NFC卡。第二检测到用户的按压动作并检测出按压的是B区域(门禁卡所对应的分区),则触发B区域所对应的NFC信息。智能手机收到此信息,相对应的NFC发出卡片信息,NFC读卡器(门禁设备)收到信息,做出反应(门打开)。)
图1 image1
图2 image2
Hello -
I have an older app on the store, iAchieved, that suddenly stopped working properly on iOS 18. You can see it on the store, here:
https://apps.apple.com/us/app/iachieved/id1069338478
It still opens runs, and I can try to enter a new item, but something is wrong with the date, so that the "Done" button does not appear. And since it does not, I cannot tap it and create the item.
I'm not a developer, I don't code, I only designed the app and had someone build it for me.
But, if you can put it in layman's terms, any idea what's causing this?
Thanks so much for any insight you can provide,
-- David
This is a follow-up to my previous question: How to attribute/credit Apple Fonts added to app?
In that previous post, I misremembered what I did and said I found fonts via macOS' FontBooks, when instead I came acrossUIFont.familyNames. Since these are included via UIKit, the legal implications should be different.
I looked at various license agreements that govern iOS app development but haven't found anything mentioning fonts. Since these are included as part of UIKit, its reasonable to assume that developers are allowed to include these fonts--but in what ways?
Am I allowed to let users create, say, documents with these fonts?
Am I only allowed to display these fonts?
There are 84 fonts, and judging by their FontBook entries, there is a wide range of licenses and restrictions. It seems unnecessarily harsh to have every iOS developer verify each one and figure out which they can legally keep if they want to offer their users access to all (for, say, a text-editing app). There must be some overarching rule that supersedes/encapsulates them, but this rule isn't clear to me after hours of research. I'm not a lawyer, and I don't think Apple expects every app developer to consult their lawyers on whether they can use system fonts.
I'm about to send an email to Apple's legal team (I will post their response here if allowed), but in the meantime I want to hear what other devs think about this.
In Xcode, entering UIFont.familyNames returns the following:
["Academy Engraved LET", "Al Nile", "American Typewriter", "Apple Color Emoji", "Apple SD Gothic Neo", "Apple Symbols", "Arial", "Arial Hebrew", "Arial Rounded MT Bold", "Avenir", "Avenir Next", "Avenir Next Condensed", "Baskerville", "Bodoni 72", "Bodoni 72 Oldstyle", "Bodoni 72 Smallcaps", "Bodoni Ornaments", "Bradley Hand", "Chalkboard SE", "Chalkduster", "Charter", "Cochin", "Copperplate", "Courier New", "Damascus", "Devanagari Sangam MN", "Didot", "DIN Alternate", "DIN Condensed", "Euphemia UCAS", "Farah", "Futura", "Galvji", "Geeza Pro", "Georgia", "Gill Sans", "Grantha Sangam MN", "Helvetica", "Helvetica Neue", "Hiragino Maru Gothic ProN", "Hiragino Mincho ProN", "Hiragino Sans", "Hoefler Text", "Impact", "Kailasa", "Kefa", "Khmer Sangam MN", "Kohinoor Bangla", "Kohinoor Devanagari", "Kohinoor Gujarati", "Kohinoor Telugu", "Lao Sangam MN", "Malayalam Sangam MN", "Marker Felt", "Menlo", "Mishafi", "Mukta Mahee", "Myanmar Sangam MN", "Noteworthy", "Noto Nastaliq Urdu", "Noto Sans Kannada", "Noto Sans Myanmar", "Noto Sans Oriya", "Optima", "Palatino", "Papyrus", "Party LET", "PingFang HK", "PingFang SC", "PingFang TC", "Rockwell", "Savoye LET", "Sinhala Sangam MN", "Snell Roundhand", "STIX Two Math", "STIX Two Text", "Symbol", "Tamil Sangam MN", "Thonburi", "Times New Roman", "Trebuchet MS", "Verdana", "Zapf Dingbats", "Zapfino"]