I had a new respect for him as a designer because he was able to articulate a rationale for his decision. That would be more encouraging if Apple under Tim Coo

I had a new respect for him as a designer because he was able to articulate a rationale for his decision. That would be more encouraging if Apple under Tim Cook didn't suffer from bad UX that sounds good when put into words. Tim Cook and the other c-suite Apple execs have bad taste. If they had better taste, they never would have approved text layout that automatically applies inconsistent kerning to squish long menu items into narrow spaces. It's a tasteless idea that sounds great when put into words. Flat UI probably sounded brilliant as a spoken sales pitch: "We'll make the GUI honest, direct, elegant: the clarity of highway signage". In practice, the Scott Forstall era was both easier to understand, and prettier. 'Liquid Glass' probably sounded fantastic when put into words. Unfortunately, there are some implementations of a 'lickable' GUI that are tasteless. Hope springs eternal for some people. I personally gave up on Apple shortly after SJ died.