Most other native Mac apps don't really have this set with their toolbars.
Aesthetic request: Rounded edges on main window
alicerunsonfedora ya, my original description wasn't super clear - I meant that app windows themselves have rounded edges.
As you point out, straight lines aren't at all uncommon, and this is obviously personal preference, but I strongly prefer the rounded aesthetic on the main browser window
I felt that your original description was clear enough. However, I disagree that the sidebar is not part of the main window. My response was to show that, because the sidebar is considered a main part of the window (even though it can be hidden), the corners of the toolbar aren’t really touched upon. In any case, I personally don’t see a benefit to breaking native design language like this other than for cosmetic reasons. What use cases would this enable? Is there some benefit that isn’t superficial that I’m missing?
Nonetheless, if this does come to fruition, I ask that this be a setting of some kind, as I personally prefer my browsers to follow the HIG Apple has set out, even if it’s “ugly” in looks.
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haveanicedavid I understand how this may appear appealing. Have in mind that none of the browsers you mentioned follow Apple's HIG and thus are not native apps on macOS (they appear to be out of place or even gimmicky to the "trained" eye).
We could discuss all day long whether one design is better than another, but the whole point of HIG was to prevent such discussions and have apps follow standards set by Apple, whose designers still do have the greatest authority in design (in the world probably, but certainly inside the Apple eco-system).
Thus Orion is commited to following HIG as this is not only what Apple asks of any developer but ensures consistant experience for all users. When we deviate from Apple (rarely, but happens), it is for strong reasons and convictions - for example Safari shows redundant tabs in its sidebar which we believe is against HIG and we can defend the position; second example is how Safari does compact tabs - in both we are talking more about UX choices than design though).
In this case it would be hard to defend thie position as this is literally a matter of taste question, inside very well defined design rules for macOS apps.
However the whole purpose of this forum is to have covnersations like this, and see if our users can achieve concensus. If that happens, we are more than happy to oblige. So thank you for starting the conversation and I am happy for @alicerunsonfedora to offer an opposing view.
I'm 100% in agreement with @alicerunsonfedora on sticking to Apple's HIG and keeping Orion as native as possible.
@alicerunsonfedora @Vlad thank you for the thorough responses!
the whole point of HIG was to prevent such discussions and have apps follow standards set by Apple, whose designers still do have the greatest authority in design (in the world probably, but certainly inside the Apple eco-system)
I'm not a native developer, and was ignorant of HIG. This makes a lot of sense.
Just to be clear: Orion by no means looks bad, just doesn't fit my biased preferences
Thanks again! Feel free to close this thread, if you'd prefer
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haveanicedavid Sure, this is why we have conversations. You are not the only one - I presume lot of people like Arc and Edge aesthetics and this sets certain expectations that we want to learn more about, and also use the opportunity to educate why things look the way they do in Orion.
Just leaving my opinion as an user, personally I think it's really nice to follow guidelines like in this case with Apple HIG, but they're still just guidelines and I think the desing looks pretty in the other browsers, and probably would look pretty on Orion too, I would like to have the option to use the design.
Gartunius Things like this are usually not an option. You can not make Arc or Edge follow HIG design language, they do not give you that choice - it is their way or you are out of luck. There are a lot of users who use Orion because it does look native and consistent with other native apps in macOS. So we are very careful about making any such decisions and would certainly require a concensus in our user base. Until then, following Apple HIG is a safe bet.
One important thing to not follow Arc/Edge border style is the useless space around the window.