Aqua: A Review and Retrospective
We at MacThemes love to shapeshift our computers with innovative designs and beautiful themes, but sometimes we just need to return to our interface roots. Mac OS X Leopard, released on the 26th to eager Mac users everywhere, looks to be the greatest version of Mac OS X released yet, with a brand new Aqua sitting on top of 300+ innovations. For a five year-old theme, Aqua has been given a significant facelift, and the myriad of revisions will leave the majority of Aqua aficionados very satisfied.
History of Aqua
Aqua was introduced in January of 2000, at the Macworld San Francisco Conference. Based around the idea of water, it was one of the core selling points of the then-upcoming Mac OS X, and introduced usability innovations such as window sheets, Quartz font rendering, and the Dock.
But of course, aesthetics played a huge role in this new interface as well. For those who remember the days of the classic Mac OS (specifically, Mac OS 8 and 9), the Platinum appearance ruled the Mac’s windows, buttons, and application styles; up until Aqua was introduced, the Mac UI looked like a sterile copy of Windows 95. Aqua’s pinstripe windows, marvelously photorealistic icons, and pulsating controls and widgets helped modernize an aging user interface, and wowed the audience with its transluency, special effects, and candy-like appearance.
Aqua slowly evolved throughout each revision of OS X, starting with 10.0 and stopping (for now) at 10.5. “Cheetah”, 10.0’s internal codename, was an Aqua wildchild, with strong drop shadows under text, heavy blue saturation on controls, and glowing buttons, checkboxes, and scrollbars galore. It was bright, graphically-intense, and, for the time being, it was Aqua. 10.1 (”Puma”) came along and helped settle down the menu bar shadows, and 10.2 “Jaguar”, released just a year and a half after 10.0, finally subdued Aqua’s lickable push buttons, checkboxes, and other system controls, as well as dampening the distinct pinstripes. During this time, Apple also quietly introduced the brushed metal appearance, which would remain unchanged for the next five years.
The following year, version 10.3 “Panther” provided the groundwork for Tiger’s aesthetics, subduing the already-faint pinstripes, establishing the inset titlebar buttons, and cleaning up whatever resources were left unchanged from the initial release of OS X, such as segment tabs. Brushed metal began to see a more frequent use in applications (and often broke the Human Interface Guidelines), and by the time we arrived at Tiger, we had our familiar Aqua paired with four different window styles (Aqua, Unified Light, Unified Dark, and Brushed Metal).
Aqua Now: Aesthetics
So here we are, at version 10.5. While Tiger left most of the core Aqua resources alone, it was a period Apple used to experiment with various application styles; finally Apple put to rest the notorious brushed metal, using the unified metal as the standard across all applications. If you’ve updated your iLife or iTunes in the past two years, you’ll know exactly what it looks like, and it generally makes apps feel cleaner and sleeker. Best yet, Aqua windows, now pinstripe-less, also adopt this metal color, meaning a consistent window style has come to Aqua for the first time since 10.1.
But we can’t forget the core Aqua resources. Across the entire interface you’ll find a new tint of Aqua making its way into controls, as well as improving the texture and stroke of many of the widgets. Push buttons and tabs seem more “fluid” and not nearly as glassy; Aqua inset tabs have been done away with altogether in favor of iTunes-style ones; though scroll bars retain their familiar appearance. These changes aren’t all for the better; for instance, the titlebar buttons are too saturated, and the progress bars, unchanged since 10.0, are heavy and dated, leaving plenty of room for improvement for Aqua tweakers and themers.
Arguably the most widely-discussed part of Leopard has been the updated glassy Dock, whose updated aesthetics have been written off as superfluous and has been criticized for its perspective problems. The design itself is fine - I don’t mind the auto-generated reflections, but I have a major problem with the top drop shadows. They’re just plain silly, and the two light sources idea doesn’t make any sense anyway (but the side dock is beautiful in contrast, making use of a bezel-like base and getting rid of the extra drop shadows and reflections.)
Now for the controversial menu bar. Early screenshots of Leopard a few months back sparked long debates over the bar’s aesthetics and usability; however, it’s actually quite pleasing, incorporating a subtle gradient that helps hide the wallpaper behind it. It seems to work well on high-contrast backgrounds too, leaving the menu bar text quite readable (see below for screenshot).
And there you have it, folks: with a consistent window appearance and brand-new controls lying on top, Apple has very much delivered to make Aqua sweet again. Indeed, it may not succeed very unique Aqua themes- Vitae comes to mind- but for those who were waiting to see Aqua cleaned and spruced, Apple has delivered nicely.
Usability
Few words need to be said about Aqua’s usability, because Apple has always excelled at balancing beauty and function in wonderful strides. Has anything changed in that category? Not a bit. Little detail changes may affect aesthetics at worst - but have actually made Aqua more usable at best. The unified window appearance keeps windows interesting and provides a nice amount of contrast against Aqua’s plain-gray windows, and controls have become more subdued and subtle, which help ease Aqua’s brightness and usability over long periods of time.
Extras
For the first time in years, Apple has completely redone Aqua’s folder design, ditching the original perspective, pinstripes and symbols for a front-facing perspective and solid-color glyphs. While I was concerned about the readability of the symbols at small sizes, that’s not a problem at all, and though I would have rather seen full-color versions of the glyphs like Tiger, this won’t pose a problem for most users. However, I’m not a fan of the texture used on the design: it makes the folders seem cheap and dated, opposed to the comparably-futuristic, semi-transparent originals.
From an application perspective, Apple has updated everything to fit cozily with the new, tinted Aqua, and most applications that haven’t even been updated for Leopard won’t feel too dated. The standard OS X app icons have been given 512×512 versions and scale well, and though some are fairly basic (I’m not a fan of the Spaces icon), upcoming versions of CandyBar and Pixadex should be able to solve that problem nicely.
Desktops and screensavers-wise? We’re all familiar with the space time travel desktop, but I still prefer the original Aqua patterns; and new screensavers like Arabesque, Falling Photos, and Security are decent additions to a fun lineup.
But what amazes me the most about these extras is to see just how many changes have gone into the tiniest details: for example, take the System Preferences icons. Certainly something to represent Spaces was needed for 10.5, but even old standbys like Keyboard & Mouse, Displays, and Dock- and some not updated since, dare I say, Jaguar- feel fresh and up-to-date now. It’s little details like this themers might pick out in an instant, and will make any user feel like they’re using something truly modern aesthetically- even if they can’t see it at first.
Conclusion
Aqua has been an integral component of our Macs ever since its introduction in 2000. Through many years of development and refinement, Aqua has become even more pleasant and usable with each passing year, and Apple has done a good job of making minor changes to keep the design from stagnating.
This latest revision is nothing but minor: it’s a facelift, and a solid one at that. Not only does it sport brand-new controls and a consistent window style, but Apple managed to retain its world-class usability and throw in some fun new extras at the same time. Sure, it’s not going to leave the crowds of Aqua themers out of a job (Aqua refinement themes such as Vitae will live on), but until we see our favorite themes leap into 10.5, you’ll be just fine with Apple’s latest treatment.
Also, my thanks to GUIdebook for the screenshots of Mac OS 9, Mac OS X 10.0, 10.1, and 10.3.
October 28th, 2007 at 7:47 pm
It’s very instructive to look at pre 10.0 releases of Aqua (especially Developer Preview 3). Things like the Apple decoration (not menu) in the center of the menubar and heavy overuse of gelcap buttons in apps like Calculator make it clear Aqua was going through a heavy process of trial and error.
October 28th, 2007 at 7:47 pm
To bad they removed the rounded corners from the Menubar
October 28th, 2007 at 8:28 pm
I was hoping Leopard would get the complete iTunes 7 treatment (scrollbars, etc.), so I’m a little bit disappointed with its UI. Especially that, as you’ve said, some elements haven’t been updated since Aqua’s debut. Still, it’s the best-looking version of OS X ever released, so I’m not completely dissatisfied. There are plenty of great things about Leopard’s UI and I’ll just have to learn to ignore the bad ones.
October 28th, 2007 at 9:51 pm
“Indeed, it may not succeed very unique Aqua takes-”
That sentence does not make any sense whatsoever.
October 28th, 2007 at 9:59 pm
icons need help here
October 28th, 2007 at 11:04 pm
Good review… don’t have leopard, so I can’t argue on any points, but still, what you’ve written above, is about the same thoughts I’ve made after looking at screenshots and videos..
October 29th, 2007 at 9:10 am
To describe this review as sycophantic would be a bit of an understatement, I mean, you even managed to throw in a preposterously cheap shot against Platinum (which, aside from looking great and being functional, also did a way better job updating System 7’s GUI than 10.5 did for older versions of Aqua. Let’s not even mention the theme support Apple added in 8.5’s Appearance Manager)!
While the Aqua in 10.0-10.2 was really pretty decent, I feel that Apple went way overboard toying with it later, getting just about everything wrong with later versions of Aqua they possibly could have: About eight different themes simultaneously shipping in 1st-party software (including three themes in the OS itself!)? Check. Randomly making tiny changes to all of these themes “Because it looks cool” in every single upgrade? Check. No proper rules or guidelines (or, god forbid, scientific justifications of WHY you chose to build things the way you did) to developers (including your own) about which to use? Check. Refusing to build in a mechanism for 3rd-party themes and then bad-mouthing Unsanity when they do so? Double check!
Apple has allowed their dabbling in private environments like the iPod, iPhone and AppleTV to go to their heads, and now they seem to feel they can just piss all over everyone else whenever they fancy it. The beauty of OS ?9’s GUI wasn’t just that it was good at what it did and looked good doing it, it’s that it was a piece of timeless design with a lot of research and work poured into it, a design that users and developers could rely on as consistent and standardized rather than some fleeting fashion statement that needs to be “updated” for cosmetic reasons every fall season like a t-shirt slogan. THAT is what things like Kaleidoscope and Shapeshifter are for, and should not be the purview of an OS’s default GUI.
Eric,
October 29th, 2007 at 1:39 pm
Eric, I’ve deleted the extra copies of your comments because of the error.
October 29th, 2007 at 3:54 pm
Thanks.
November 1st, 2007 at 9:55 am
10 for usability!?
The transparent “aero” menu is awaful! Some wallpapers can seriously impair readability of it and menu has even lost its crisp subpixel anti-aliasing!
It’s difficult to see launched applications on glossy dock (you don’t know if it’s just star reflecting or is it apps’s “LED”)
Folder icons have lost their color and contrast.
This looks has 10 for “glitter”, but unfortunaltely it’s at cost of usability :((((
November 1st, 2007 at 3:50 pm
kL, though I rejected the new menubar as being at all usable in the first builds of Leopard, I believe now Apple has worked out those issues and has made it quite usable, helped out by the increased opacity in the final builds. I also do not believe it’s difficult to see launched applications on the glossy dock.
Folders are an interesting issue. They certainly don’t fit into OS X’s color scheme, which I knocked off points for in “Extras”, but I still believe they are readable at small sizes. The problem with reviewing usability is that you can’t speak for everyone, so I rated it by how usable they would be for the average consumer, also keeping in mind of my personal thoughts.
November 2nd, 2007 at 1:57 pm
I just installed Leopard and my first reactions are YIKES! The menu bars and menus are hard to read with a variety of desktop pictures, so is the dock, so are many of the system’s folders which are all the same color with a change in the little picture on the folder icon (which has horrible contrast issues), Safari’s black text on a dark gray bookmarks bar is too low a contrast, the text and icons in the Finder sidebar are too small. These are dysfunctional changes.
I am intrigued about the real functionality added in Leopard, but these visual changes create problems where none existed before. At least when Windows came out with XP you had the option to revert to the “Classic” view. I wish Apple had shown the same consideration for its customers.
November 3rd, 2007 at 11:39 pm
I have to agree with Eric on most counts on this one. “A sterile copy of Windows 95″… wow. Platinum had loads of aesthetic, it was just a different one. It was balancing function and beauty with a preference for function, which I think is pretty appropriate for a computer operating system.
November 5th, 2007 at 3:02 pm
I was wondering where did you find those 2 screen savers you mentioned: Security and Falling Photos? In the GM Build we only have Arabesque.
November 8th, 2007 at 7:07 am
Come on, guys…time for some new articles.
Mac never looked like Win95. OS 7-9 are much more appealing than that. However, OS X 10.0 even blows Vista out of the water, aesthetically speaking.
Leopard is the nicest yet, but as some have pointed out, the scroll bars should be looking more like those in iTunes. It’s not a huge deal, though.
Very glad to see brushed metal go buh-bye, at least in the UI (it seems to be coming out more in the hardware these days).
My only real disappointment with Leopard (and it’s unrelated to UI, I just feel like mentioning it) is Spotlight. It’s a step down. Well, in terms of looks, it’s much better, but functionality is down in some ways — you used to have it all layed out in different types of files, it wouldn’t show you the cache and temp files and junk unless you specifically asked for them. Now it’s just all bunched together unless you go out of your way to sort by kind. That makes me a sad panda…
Anyway, as I said, my new Mail.app RSS reader is feeling lonely, post some more stuffage guys!! This is a cool site but considering Leopard just came out you should be posting at least once a day!
November 9th, 2007 at 5:18 pm
After installing Leopard, I can honestly that the “improvements” are more of a mixed bag than this article describes. For one, the transparent menu bar is absolutely fugly when the background behind it is anything but black, and the squared off corners just don’t cut it visually. I could deal with that, but now the dock takes up twice as much space as before for the same number of icons. Dumb move, Apple. Plus, the gray halo around every icon is far from attractive. And lets not forget the overall darkening of Finder’s theme. Everything is even darker than the last iTunes interface, which frankly reduced the overall ease of use by severely reducing the amount contrast in certain pieces like the tabs in Safari.
In the end, very few of the improvements are all that useful, and the interface look horrific. My firm is going back to Tiger. Leopard’s GUI, while thankfully has ditched brushed metal, is just plain bad.
November 17th, 2007 at 1:59 am
wooow
December 23rd, 2007 at 4:22 am
fwewfew
February 7th, 2008 at 8:38 am
It’s beautiful!!!!!! Congratulation!
February 19th, 2008 at 12:19 pm
abc
March 17th, 2008 at 9:04 pm
i dont know how to donload it
May 26th, 2008 at 1:21 am
For all of you talking about how beautiful the Platinum interface was, I don’t know what you’re looking at, but Platinum is so ugly I can’t bring myself to even use a Mac pre OS X. Platinum was just plain UGLY.
May 27th, 2008 at 8:15 am
Nice article, though sometimes I think the News writers get a little ahead of themselves;
“Few words need to be said about Aqua’s usability, because Apple has always excelled at balancing beauty and function”
- You’ve obviously never used a G3 iMac with a hockey puck mouse on a short legged desk have u? can u say RSI?
I dont hate the Mac or the G3 (in fact I love both) but I cant help but feel that your statement was a somewhat bold claim… even if it was only meant to just refer to GUI.
August 3rd, 2008 at 8:36 pm
Well, being a recent Switcher, I really dont understand all your complaints for Aqua on leopard… As for comparing it with Aero, dude, you gotta be insanely high to compare it with aero… infact, Aero is what made me convert!