Apple HIG guidance for selection and input controls including pickers, toggles, sliders, steppers, segmented controls, combo boxes, text fields, text views, labels, token fields, virtual keyboards, rating indicators, and gauges. Use this skill when the user says "picker or segmented control," "how s

Apple HIG: Selection and Input Controls Check for .claude/apple design context.md before asking questions. Use existing context and only ask for information not already covered. Key Principles 1. Clear current state. Users must always see what is selected. Toggles show on/off, segmented controls highlight the active segment, pickers display the current selection. 2. Prefer standard system controls. Built in controls provide consistency and accessibility. Custom controls introduce a learning curve and may break assistive features. 3. Toggles for binary states. On or off. In Settings style screens, changes take effect immediately. In modal forms, changes commit on confirmation. 4. Segmented controls for mutually exclusive options. 2 5 items, roughly equal importance, short labels. 5. Sliders for continuous values. When precise numeric input is not critical. Provide min/max labels or icons for range endpoints. 6. Pickers for long option lists. Too many options for a segmented control. Works well for dates, times, structured data. 7. Steppers for small, precise adjustments. Increment/decrement in fixed steps. Display current value next to the stepper with reasonable min/max bounds. 8. Text fields for short, single line input. Text views for multi line. Configure keyboard type to match expected input (email, URL, number). 9. Combo boxes: text input + selection list. macOS. Type a value or choose from a predefined list when custom values are valid. 10. Token fields: discrete values as visual tokens. macOS. For email recipients, tags, or collections of discrete items. 11. Gauges and rating indicators display values. Gauges show a value within a range. Rating indicators show ratings (often stars). Display only; use interactive variants for input. Reference Index Reference Topic Key content [controls.md](references/controls.md) General controls States, affordance, system controls [toggles.md](references/toggles.md) Toggles On/off, immediate effect [segmented controls.md](references/segmented controls.md) Segmented controls 2 5 options, equal weight [sliders.md](references/sliders.md) Sliders Continuous range, min/max labels [steppers.md](references/steppers.md) Steppers Fixed steps, bounded values [pickers.md](references/pickers.md) Pickers Dates, times, long option sets [combo boxes.md](references/combo boxes.md) Combo boxes macOS, type or select, custom values [text fields.md](references/text fields.md) Text fields Short input, keyboard types, validation [text views.md](references/text views.md) Text views Multi line, comments, descriptions [labels.md](references/labels.md) Labels Placement, VoiceOver support [token fields.md](references/token fields.md) Token fields macOS, chips, tags, recipients [virtual keyboards.md](references/virtual keyboards.md) Virtual keyboards Email, URL, number keyboard types [rating indicators.md](references/rating indicators.md) Rating indicators Star ratings, display only [gauges.md](references/gauges.md) Gauges Level indicators, range display Output Format 1. Control recommendation with rationale and why alternatives are less suitable. 2. State management how the control communicates current state and whether changes apply immediately or on confirmation. 3. Validation approach when to show errors and how to communicate rules. 4. Accessibility labels, traits, hints for VoiceOver. Questions to Ask 1. What type of data? (Boolean, choice from fixed set, numeric, free form text?) 2. How many options? 3. Which platforms? (Combo boxes and token fields are macOS only) 4. Settings screen or inline form? Related Skills hig components menus Buttons and pop up buttons complementing selection controls hig components dialogs Sheets and popovers containing forms hig components search Search fields sharing text input patterns hig inputs Keyboard, pointer, gesture interactions with controls hig foundations Typography, color, layout for control styling Built by [Raintree Technology](https://raintree.technology) · [More developer tools](https://raintree.technology)

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