ios-design-guidelines

Design

MacMagazine design reference — theme tokens, card selection, typography, touch targets, accessibility, dark mode. Use when creating or restyling UI, choosing which card view renders content, picking colors or fonts, or when the user mentions "design", "theme", "card", "dark mode", or "accessibility".

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iOS Design Guidelines for MacMagazine

Theme System

MacMagazine uses a custom ThemeColor system injected via environment:

@Environment(\.theme) private var theme: ThemeColor

Theme Tokens

Token	Access	Purpose
`theme.main.background`	Primary background	ZStack background
`theme.main.navigation`	Nav bar	Navigation chrome
`theme.main.tint`	Tint color	Accent color
`theme.secondary.background`	Secondary bg	Cards, sections
`theme.text.primary`	Primary text	Titles, body
`theme.text.secondary`	Secondary text	Subtitles, metadata
`theme.button.primary`	Primary button	Action buttons
`theme.button.destructive`	Destructive	Delete actions

Standard Background Pattern

var body: some View {
    ZStack(alignment: .top) {
        (theme.main.background.color ?? Color.secondary).ignoresSafeArea()
        content
    }
}

Card System

When to Use Which Card

Content	Card	Style Resolution
News article	`NewsCard`	`categories.mostRelevant.style` auto-dispatches
Podcast (local)	`AdaptivePodcastCardView`	Smart: glass (normal text) or card (large text)
Podcast (remote)	`GlassCardView`	`.podcast(duration:)` type
Video	`GlassCardView`	`.video(views:likes:duration:)` type
Highlight	`GlassCardView`	`.highlight` style

CardStyle Reference

Style	View	Used When
`.leadingImage`	`LeadingImageCard`	Default news
`.topImage`	`TopImageCard`	Accessibility fallback
`.bottomImage`	`BottomImageCard`	Alternate layout
`.highlight` / `.glass`	`GlassCardView`	Highlights, podcasts, videos
`.simple`	`SimpleCard`	Text-only

Typography

Use system text styles (auto-scales with Dynamic Type):

// Correct
Text("Title").font(.headline)
Text("Body").font(.body)

// Wrong — doesn't scale
Text("Title").font(.system(size: 17))

Touch Targets

Element	Minimum	Recommended
Buttons	44x44pt	48x48pt
List rows	44pt height	48-60pt

Accessibility

All interactive elements need accessibility labels
Group related elements with .accessibilityElement(children: .combine)
Don't rely on color alone — use icons + color
Test with Dynamic Type at largest sizes

Dark Mode

Use theme tokens, never hardcoded colors
Colors resolve automatically via String.color → Color(name, bundle: .module)
Materials (.ultraThinMaterial, .thinMaterial) adapt automatically
Test both modes before committing

Last Updated: 2026-03-06