Notch Overlay UI Patterns

NSPanel Configuration

1. Use NSPanel with .nonactivatingPanel style. This prevents the overlay from stealing focus from Zoom/Meet. The user can keep typing in their meeting app while the overlay is visible.

2. Critical window properties:

   swift
   1panel.level = .screenSaver          // Above everything, including fullscreen
   2panel.sharingType = .none           // INVISIBLE to screen sharing
   3panel.collectionBehavior = [
   4    .canJoinAllSpaces,              // Visible on all desktops
   5    .fullScreenAuxiliary,           // Visible alongside fullscreen apps
   6    .stationary                     // Doesn't move with Space switching
   7]
   8panel.isOpaque = false
   9panel.backgroundColor = .clear
   10panel.hasShadow = false

3. sharingType = .none is the key feature. This makes the window completely invisible to ScreenCaptureKit-based screen sharing (Zoom, Google Meet, Teams). The interviewer cannot see the overlay.

Positioning

4. Detect notch vs non-notch displays:

   swift
   1let menuBarHeight = screenFrame.maxY - visibleFrame.maxY
   2let hasNotch = menuBarHeight > 24  // Notch displays have taller menu bars

5. Center horizontally, position below notch/menu bar. The overlay should sit just below where the notch ends, centered on screen.

6. Handle display changes. Observe NSApplication.didChangeScreenParametersNotification to reposition when:

   • External monitor connected/disconnected
   • Display arrangement changes
   • Screen resolution changes

7. Guard against duplicate panels. Check panel?.isVisible == true before creating a new one in show().

SwiftUI Overlay View

8. Use .ultraThinMaterial with dark color scheme for the glassmorphism background. This gives a translucent dark overlay that adapts to the desktop wallpaper.

9. Use .clipShape(RoundedRectangle(...)) instead of deprecated .cornerRadius(). The cornerRadius modifier is deprecated in recent SwiftUI.

10. Answer text must scroll. Wrap answer text in ScrollView(.vertical) with a max height. Long answers (detailed mode) will overflow the overlay without this.

11. Animations on state transitions:

    • Question appearing: .move(edge: .top).combined(with: .opacity)
    • Answer appearing: .opacity
    • Hover state: subtle opacity change (0.85 → 1.0)
    • Keep durations short (0.15-0.2s) — this is a utility UI, not a showcase

12. Use foregroundStyle instead of deprecated foregroundColor. Modern SwiftUI preference.

13. Font hierarchy for readability at small sizes:

    • Status bar: 9pt monospaced
    • Question label: 9pt monospaced bold (yellow)
    • Question text: 12pt rounded medium
    • Answer text: 13pt rounded regular
    • Mode indicators: 8pt monospaced

14. Audio level indicator: 5 bars of increasing height, filled green based on the normalized audio level. Provides visual feedback that the system is hearing audio.

Content Hosting

15. Set panel.contentView = hostingView directly instead of adding as a subview. This avoids autoresizing mask issues and is the recommended pattern for NSHostingView in NSPanel.