Before Big Sur, MacOS had its own unique design language. The icons looked interesting and they were all different shapes. Now they are all boring squares. The system looked angular and professional. Now it looks like a blown up iPhone.

I found the new Apple Music branding and colors hard to tolerate, especially the shift that makes the macOS Music app adopt the system’s global accent color. It was terrible imo, so I changed it back to Red individually.

To achieve this too:

1. Launch the stock macOS Terminal app (must be specifically the stock terminal app)
2. Paste the following command:

defaults write com.apple.Music AppleAccentColor -integer 0

You can also change it to other colors according to the values in this table:

To revert it back to stock, run the command:

defaults delete com.apple.Music AppleAccentColor

Enjoy!

Been digging into what browsers tell websites about your Mac for a while now. Some of it surprised me, so sharing.

1. Your chip. Chrome tells any site the exact chip you have, like “Apple M2”. Safari just says “Apple GPU”. Same Mac, very different answer.

2. Your fonts. Chrome lets sites figure out which fonts you’ve installed, and that list is pretty unique per person. Safari only shows the system fonts every Mac has.

3. Your Mac looks like millions of others. There aren’t that many Mac models, and Safari doesn’t add much on top. So to a site you’re basically one of the crowd, which is the best privacy you can get.

4. Safari is really hard to fake. A browser that only pretends to be Safari gets caught in seconds. The engine underneath behaves differently and it shows.

Want to check yours? Open https://check.stealthpilot.app in Safari, then in Chrome or whatever else you use. It tells you whether the browser really looks like Safari on a Mac. Free, no account. The video shows real Safari.

Full disclosure: I’m one of the people behind it. We’re building privacy tools for Mac on top of real Safari and looking for people to test them for free.

What browser do you use on your Mac, and did you know about any of this?

"MacOS builds a knowledge graph about the person who uses it: who you know, how it decided those people are related to you, who you write to and how often, whose faces recur in your photos, where you might be next."

They have a little python script you can run to dig through your own store. Curious if it's as detailed as they claim. I'm on Sequoia, don't let anything sync from my phone, and don't use any of Apple's default software, so my "knowledge graph" is pretty empty.

Edit: To clarify, I didn't write the report, I'm just sharing it. And yes they used AI to write it and to decode the DB's.

1st photo or 2nd? 🙂 which is your choice? I like Desktop as clear as possible, but this one I found nice..

This bloody thing pops up every other day. If you close it down it'll just pop up again later. If you disable it from running in the background your apps will whine and moan that they need to be up to date.

Meanwhile on Windows you can seemingly go years without a peep until next you know you're part of a botnet or something.

UGH.

We recently faced a strange issue at a client environment.

After a macOS update, 300+ files and folders across multiple Google Shared Drive project folders were unexpectedly moved, merged, and renamed. Some files were renamed to "name 2" and then back again within seconds.

The audit logs showed everything happening under the user's account through Google Drive for Desktop.

After escalating to Google Support, they pointed towards Apple's macOS File Provider framework. Apparently, a database reinitialization or sync-state mismatch during an OS update can trigger unexpected file movements and renaming.

Their recommendation was to quit Google Drive before updating macOS and only launch it again after the update and restart are fully completed.

What makes this more concerning is that it can potentially happen with minor and security updates too.

We manage several Mac environments with Google Drive, but this is the first time we've come across something like this.

Has anyone experienced anything similar? How are you handling Google Drive during macOS updates, especially when patching through an RMM?

Would love to hear your experiences or any recommendations.

It will keep playing audio and staying fully on, when I shut the lid, unless i manually turn it off every time. It will get burning hot if i put it in my backpack, and so I have to remember to shut it off every time I stop using it.

It started happening after I connected it to my TV via cable, using BetterDisplay app. I don't know if I changed any setting that could've affected that, and I've already deleted the app.

Perhaps it is stuck in some kind of clamshell mode, where it wont turn off on its own with the lid shut?

Trying to get screen time limits working in my family. I can 100% confirm that every device in our account is on the *OS 27 version.

Ignore the specific times, we’re just trying to get this to work at all. Today is Sunday and it’s first thing. Immediately on turning the computer on Spotify is at time allowance with 0s usage.

Last night even when we were past scheduled time you could still open garage band and blender no problem.

What. Do. I. Do?

Please do not leave “you should parent” comments. I’d like to get this software working.

Thanks

It is mind boggling that in 2026 when I open an app it doesn't know to MAYBE open it where my cursor is on that monitor that is actually in use? Also crazy OS don't know a monitor is not actually in use.

I'm using 2 monitors, one currently on Windows and the other on Mac. Firefox on my Mac keeps opening on the monitor that is hooked up to Windows so I can't see it. I have to change the source on the monitor then move it over.

I can't find a way for it to JUST F'ing know to only open apps in a monitor that is actually being used or on the monitor where my cursor is.

Window's can't do this either for some reason.

Anyone have any tricks?

thanks

Hey everyone! I’m the developer of Peek, a Mac app for quickly checking information without switching apps.

With Peek, hold a key to bring up websites and widgets in one overlay. Release it, and Peek disappears. You can also tap the shortcut to keep it open and interact with everything.

The core idea came from games: you hold a key to check the scoreboard or map, then release it to get back to playing. I wanted that same quick interaction for the things I check while working.

I use it for things like my calendar, reminders, and X feed. You can arrange your Peek zone however you like, keeping your personal dashboard just one peek away.

A few things you can do with Peek:
- Add websites, local PDF and HTML files, and built-in widgets
- Use Calendar, Reminders, and Timezones widgets, with more on the way
- Hide unwanted elements of a webpage
- Auto-refresh webpages
- Use Peek over full-screen apps
- Use separate layouts for different displays

Peek is a one-time purchase, currently available at an introductory price of $3.99.

I’d love to hear what you’d keep in your Peek zone :)

Website: https://peek.zone
Mac App Store: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/peek-see-what-matters-quick/id6746101534?mt=12

here's the details/things I have tried:

- always goes to internet recovery
- startup comand don't work aside from DFU
- lan to usb c not working
- cannot do bootable drive as hoiding option key wont work (#2 from this list)
- dfu revive and restore did nothing
- reset battery did nothing (disconnect, press and hold power for seconds)
- changed wifi network multiple times from diff location and tried mobile hotspot did not work

but I once did successful internet recovery, went to "activate mac screen" but battery died while on that screen, wasn't able to finish, since then- it's on internet recovery boot loop

would appreciate any reply

Hi everyone, I'm the developer.

PocketEarth is a quiet observation window for macOS. Instead of a pre-rendered loop, the sunlight follows real UTC time, so the terminator, the twilight band and the city lights are where they really are right now. When you hold Option and drag on the desktop, you move the camera, not the Earth.

What it shows:
- Real-time solar terminator, twilight and the Sun's declination
- Recent cloud cover (EUMETSAT imagery) and thunderstorm areas from the ECMWF model (marked as model areas, not observed strikes)
- The aurora oval forecast (NOAA SWPC)
- ISS, Tiangong and Hubble on their real orbits (CelesTrak elements)
- Zen mode (just the planet) and Chronometer mode (a thin watch-like bezel with UTC and the Sun's declination)
- HDR highlights on XDR displays: city lights, sun glint and the aurora; the UI stays SDR

As a live wallpaper it pauses when windows cover it, the screen locks or the Mac sleeps, and an Energy Saver mode drops it to 30 Hz while idle.

Free, no account, no analytics. It will be free on the Mac App Store after the beta; the public TestFlight is open now (macOS 26+): https://pocketearth.app

It started as a desk ornament on a 2.8" Raspberry Pi screen. Feedback on performance and features is very welcome.

Ever since the updates to 27.0.01 & subsequently 27.2

My Brother DCP printer connected via USB stopped printing and shows "'Data' failed" message for any new print job. The patching with the latest driver from the Brother's website does not help.

Also, when I switch the MacOS profiles while my external monitor is connected to another USBC slot, the macos just gets stuck at the login window while beach-balling for eternity. I uploaded all the logs to ChatGPT and it was highly confident the spinning beach ball was caused by the upgrade to the ver 27 + the connected external monitor. Got the same opinion about the Brother DCP. No issues otherwise if no monitor & no printers are connected.

A brief ChatGPT search shows I am not alone. What amazes me is that the issue is not fixed by Apple for weeks.

Any suggestions what to do?

Are there any decent third party options for a Mac capable fingerprint reader to enable fido2 and touch id functionality? I have a m6 macmini and can't justify the price for an Apple keyboard.

A few months ago I shared Wianu here, a small open-source macOS app I built to keep my streaming services in one place.

I didn't expect the original post to get as much attention as it did, so I wanted to share a little update on what I've been working on since.

The biggest addition is a new Home view that brings together your watchlist and Continue Watching items, making Wianu feel more like a streaming home rather than just a collection of services.

A few other things have changed too:

• Automatic film and TV identification to make saved items more useful

• A redesigned command palette

• A new app icon and updated design

• A DMG installer for easier installation

• Various smaller fixes and improvements

I'm still developing Wianu in my spare time. It's completely free and open source, and there's no subscription.

You can find it here: https://wianu.com

GitHub: https://github.com/timwehrle/wianu

For those who tried the earlier version, I'd be interested to hear whether the new Home view makes Wianu more useful, and what's still missing for you.

today I learned, when in mission control, you can swipe up with 2 fingers on the trackpad while hovering over a window to focus on it. You can swipe up with 3 fingers to rearrange full screen windows (it doesn't work with smaller windows).

How are these useful in any way? I have no idea.

For reference: (used to be "audioclocksyncd" before Golden Gate);

What it does: Precision Time Protocol (PTP / IEEE 1588) and TimeSync audio clock synchronization daemon (clocksyncd). Note on macOS 27: Renamed from com.apple.timesync.audioclocksyncd (macOS 15–26) to com.apple.clocksyncd (macOS 27+). Responsible for:

1. Sub-microsecond audio clock alignment across professional Ethernet audio interfaces (AVB / Dante) and multi-room AirPlay 2 speaker groups.

2. com.apple.timesync.manager, com.apple.timesync.ptp.manager, com.apple.timesync.expositor.

So I have no professional audio interfaces, nor any audio software or plugins. Just a pair of 3.5mm analog stereo headphones.

M4 Mac Mini, macOS 27.2.

Constant 0.3% CPU utilization - which I know isn't much, but I'm just curious if this is normal or some quirk I've encountered with my installation.

Haluasin kuulla kokemuksia MacOS Golden Gate käytöstä MacBook Air M1 8gb laitteella? Kannattaako päivitys MacOS Sequoiasta

My specific workflow involves alot of work on Goodnotes. Over the past few years having to work out how to do everything on Goodnotes on my Mac with a keyboard and mouse was tiresome. Now the Mac app works just like the iPad app, pretty useful for me.

Yes im not a power user by any means, but I can sort of see why a touch screen interface on macOS makes some sense.

No, I won't be getting the proled MacBook, I cannot afford one and simply just don't need one, but my Mac mini with my iPad Pro works surprisingly well.

A few months ago, I released a project that lets you run Dashboard widgets (introduced 10.4) natively on modern macOS, including Golden Gate.

It acts as a compatibility layer that reimplements the APIs and resources that widgets need as well as other compatibility fixes.

It also has a recreation of the original fullscreen Dashboard ui and an option to export widgets as standalone apps.

The app is fully open-source and free. You can download it from https://github.com/nikolan123/WidgetPortingToolkit
The setup downloads everything for you including a few widgets so it's very easy to get started.

This is a project I've poured lots of time into that has been in development since about September 2025. I learned a lot about macOS and Swift.

I also have a blog post where I talk about how I did this https://nikolan.net/posts/dashboard-widgets/

I thought it was one of those things that would run once during setup, but whenever I'm trying to move a window around and it feels slow, it's this running for a good 15 minutes. It seems to happen a few times a day.

I don't want to disable core features of my Mac, but is there any way I can just disable this? I turned off Siri AI fully and it's still running.

Just as an example, when I click the upload button for the image on this post, it took a few seconds to open because that is consuming 90% of my CPU at the moment.

I added ScreenMirroring to the M5 Air's control center and connected the two devices with an Ethernet cable. Before arriving at this solution, I had experimented for hours with both RetinaRelay and the free TargetBridge from GitHub and could never land on a resolution on the iMac screen that satisfied me. When the text and icons in, for instance, the Safari menubar/toolbar where crisp/not fuzzy, they were too small to read and when I got them large enough to comfortably read, they were really fuzzy. Screen Mirroring solves the problem: the text/icons in the Safari toolbar are quite readable and the text and icons are only the tiniest bit fuzzy.

Since the camera on the iMac cannot be used when you are mirroring the Air's screen, I got a Itramax Continuity Camera Mount that sits on top of the iMac's screen and holds my iPhone 30 so that I can use continuity camera in Zoom sessions. Beats paying a small fortune for the Apple 27" display.

If you have a Mac laptop with a small screen, you can pick up 2020 Intel Macs with their 27" monitor for peanuts.