From macOS Native Design
Design, critique, or scaffold native macOS applications using current HIG, Liquid Glass, menu/toolbar conventions, safe areas, accessibility, and SwiftUI/AppKit patterns. Use when the user invokes /macos-design or names this skill for macOS app design, UI review, native UI generation, or notch-style / Dynamic Island macOS apps.
How this skill is triggered — by the user, by Claude, or both
Slash command
/macos-design:macos-designThe summary Claude sees in its skill listing — used to decide when to auto-load this skill
Hub skill for designing, critiquing, and scaffolding native macOS applications. Read this file first, then open only the spoke files relevant to the task.
Hub skill for designing, critiquing, and scaffolding native macOS applications. Read this file first, then open only the spoke files relevant to the task.
Create macOS applications that feel unmistakably native: powerful, spacious, precise, keyboard-friendly, accessible, and visually calm. Favor standard macOS structures and system components before custom UI. When custom UI is justified, make it harmonize with the system rather than compete with it.
This skill is written for an LLM. Use it as a design-generation and design-review checklist. It is not a substitute for Apple's Human Interface Guidelines, current SDK documentation, or testing in the latest Xcode/macOS, but it is structured to make generated macOS applications substantially more native and polished.
A generated macOS app should assume the following unless the user explicitly asks otherwise:
SKILL.md).Produce output in this order:
Inspect it against:
Use critique-checklists.md for the full audit sections and output templates.
| If the task involves… | Read |
|---|---|
| App archetypes, principles, mental model, privacy, onboarding, notifications, app-type patterns | foundations.md |
| Windows, split views, sidebars, inspectors, safe areas, camera housing, settings, controls, documents, performance | layout-and-windowing.md |
| Sidebar/tab/segmented nav, search, drill-down, pointer/keyboard/gesture/drag-drop | navigation.md |
| Toolbars, menus, shortcuts, context menus, menu bar extras | toolbars-and-menus.md |
| Liquid Glass, glass hierarchy, materials restraint | liquid-glass.md |
| Typography, semantic color, SF Symbols, app icons, shape/concentricity, motion | icons-and-visual-language.md |
| VoiceOver, keyboard, contrast, transparency, localization | accessibility.md |
| SwiftUI shells, NavigationSplitView, commands, MenuBarExtra, code recipes | swiftui-patterns.md |
| AppKit split views, responder chain, NSScreen safe areas, Mac Catalyst | appkit-patterns.md |
| Notch-style app, top-center panel, hardware-aligned notch UI, peek/HUD/shelf modules | the macos-notch skill (separate plugin) |
| Critique checklists, anti-patterns, output templates, source map, launch checklist | critique-checklists.md |
| Task | Spokes to read |
|---|---|
| New app design spec | foundations → layout-and-windowing → navigation → toolbars-and-menus → icons-and-visual-language → accessibility → critique-checklists |
| Toolbar + menu review | toolbars-and-menus → critique-checklists |
| Liquid Glass audit | liquid-glass → icons-and-visual-language → critique-checklists |
| SwiftUI scaffold | foundations → layout-and-windowing → swiftui-patterns |
| AppKit / hybrid app | foundations → appkit-patterns → layout-and-windowing |
| Notch-style app | the macos-notch skill (foundations → module spokes → integration-shipping) + appkit-patterns → toolbars-and-menus → accessibility |
| Full design audit | All spokes + critique-checklists |
| File | Contents |
|---|---|
| foundations.md | Mental model, design principles, app archetypes, SwiftUI vs AppKit, onboarding, privacy, app-type patterns |
| layout-and-windowing.md | Windows, layout regions, safe areas, controls, settings, errors, documents, performance |
| navigation.md | Sidebar/tab/segmented navigation, search, input and interaction |
| toolbars-and-menus.md | Toolbars, menus, shortcuts, context menus, menu bar extras |
| liquid-glass.md | Liquid Glass placement, hierarchy, tinting, anti-patterns |
| icons-and-visual-language.md | Shape, typography, color, materials, icons, motion |
| accessibility.md | VoiceOver, keyboard, contrast, transparency, localization |
| swiftui-patterns.md | SwiftUI shells, NavigationSplitView, commands, searchable, MenuBarExtra |
| appkit-patterns.md | AppKit split views, responder chain, safe areas, Mac Catalyst |
| (moved) | Notch-style apps → the macos-notch hub skill (separate plugin) |
| critique-checklists.md | Critique checklists, anti-patterns, output templates, source map, launch checklist |
Creates, edits, and optimizes skills for Claude Code, including drafting, evaluating with test prompts, iterating on performance, and improving skill descriptions for better triggering accuracy.
npx claudepluginhub robzilla1738/roberts-skills --plugin macos-design