Round Rects Are Everywhere
Rounded corners in user interfaces, popularized by early Macintosh graphics work, are revisited here as both a technical achievement and a lasting design choice. Commenters recount how efficient algorithms for drawing “round rects” made them feasible on limited hardware, and how Steve Jobs’ insistence on such details shaped Apple’s aesthetic. The thread then widens to compare eras of UI design, from square Windows buttons to modern squircles, touching on accessibility, hardware constraints, and why soft edges often feel better in both software and physical products.
Work style and the original anecdote
- Commenters note that the engineer in the story partly worked from home to avoid interruptions, seeing it as an early “healthy split” remote/on-site model.
- The narrative is praised as charming and motivating: a boss demanding “better” and a developer rising to the challenge instead of sulking.
How rounded rectangles were implemented
- Several ask for more technical depth than the original story provides.
- Linked resources suggest QuickDraw used an algorithm akin to the midpoint circle algorithm, drawing arc octants and stitching them to straight edges, likely integrated with existing region/fill logic.
- Others speculate that for common cases, precomputed corner masks may have been used for speed.
Design, aesthetics, and usability
- Many praise rounded corners as making interfaces look modern, cheerful, and more approachable.
- Some argue they are more than fashion: rounded borders help visually group elements and convey hierarchy (gestalt, accessibility).
- Others see corner styles as cyclical fads, pointing to repeated shifts between rounded and sharp UI in operating systems and browsers.
Squircles and geometric nuance
- Discussion covers squircles and superellipses in modern UI, including quintic superellipses with smooth tangency (C2 continuity).
- Some argue these curves matter for 3D product highlights but are visually subtle for icons.
- There is debate over whether Apple-style rectangular elements are true superellipses or mainly standard rounded rectangles.
Hardware vs software corner rounding
- Some claim laptop and phone screen corner rounding is purely software (black pixels).
- Others counter with examples of panels physically manufactured with rounded masks or cutouts, implying no pixels exist there.
Broader reflections: leadership, culture, and history
- Commenters revisit the co-founder’s design taste and “liberal arts + technology” mantra, contrasting genuine product vision with later imitators.
- There is debate over whether their behavior was visionary leadership or narcissistic toxicity, with acknowledgment of harsh treatment of employees.
- Nostalgia threads compare older OS UIs (with clear 3D affordances, tighter spacing) to today’s flatter, more spacious, often less responsive designs.