If you missed the skeuomorphic design that disappeared in 2013 with macOS Yosemite, this app brings some of that back to the menu bar, and then some.
Called Lickable Menu Bar, you can download the app to free on the Mac App Store, which gives you the ability to transform the menu bar back to how it looked in the previous three versions of macOS. Additionally, you can launch the app once logged in, so the appearance of the menu bar will stay that way without having to ask.
Mavericks gives it a shadow, Catalina allows for a flat style, and Glossy turns the menu bar into a 2004 skeuomorphic look, much like Mac OS X Tiger. For those unfamiliar with Skeuomorphic, this design mimics real-world objects with depth and color in a digital interface and was widely used by Apple before 2013.
Lickable performs a simple task, but it does it well – however, it does make us wonder if macOS Tiger design tropes, such as skeuomorphism, should return in some way.
Something old, something new — iMore’s take
When trying Lickable on my MacBook Pro, it took 30 seconds to change the appearance of my menu bar to one that looks like 10.4 Tiger from 2004. By the way, that was the first version of Mac OS ‘ve never used with my Intel Core Duo iMac. , in 2006 – so I was hit with a wave of nostalgia once Lickable did its job.
I’ve always had a soft spot for skeuomorphism, mostly due to the design quality of my iPhone 4 back in 2010. Sure, the flat design that came with iOS 7 and macOS Yosemite was necessary, but it felt like it was part some charm. left. That real-world look, especially when it came to the Calendar and Notes apps, really came through on a Retina display — even more so when the Retina MacBook Pro arrived in 2012, and all those textures were crystal clear on its 16-inch display. inches. .
Still, having an app like Lickable can help bring some of that back to my Mac, since Apple will probably never bring back that iconic look. It does what it says on the tin – so if you’re curious about bringing some shading to the menu bar, give it a try and see what you think.
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