Source: Apple Inc. Canonical content at https://developer.apple.com/design/human-interface-guidelines/apple-pencil-and-scribble. This file is a structured index of that content, snapshot 2025-02-02. Apple HIG text and imagery are © Apple Inc.; this repository provides organization and cross-referencing for AI agent consumption only.
Apple Pencil and Scribble
Best practices
Support behaviors people intuitively expect when using a marking instrument.
Let people choose when to switch between Apple Pencil and finger input.
Help people express themselves by responding to the way they use Apple Pencil.
Provide visual feedback to indicate a direct connection with content.
Design a great left- and right-handed experience.
Hover
Use hover to help people predict what will happen when Apple Pencil touches the screen.
Avoid using hover to initiate an action.
Prefer showing a preview value that’s near the middle in a range of dynamic values.
Consider using hover to support relevant interactions close to where people are marking.
Prefer showing hover previews for Apple Pencil, not for a pointing device.
Double tap
Respect people’s settings for the double-tap gesture when they make sense in your app.
Give people a way to specify custom double-tap behavior if necessary.
Avoid using the double-tap gesture to perform an action that modifies content.
Squeeze
Treat squeeze as a single, quick gesture that performs a discrete — not continuous — action.
If you use squeeze to reveal app UI, like a contextual menu, display it close to Apple Pencil Pro.
Define squeeze actions that are nondestructive and easy to undo.
Barrel roll
Use barrel roll only to modify marking behavior, not to enable navigation or display other controls.
Scribble
Make text entry feel fluid and effortless.
Make Scribble available everywhere people might want to enter text.
Avoid distracting people while they write.
While people are writing in a text field, make sure it remains stationary.
Prevent autoscrolling text while people are writing and editing in a text field.
Give people enough space to write.
Custom drawing
Help people draw on top of existing content.
Consider displaying custom undo and redo buttons when your app runs in a compact environment.
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For the complete guidance, including worked examples and illustrations, see the canonical page: https://developer.apple.com/design/human-interface-guidelines/apple-pencil-and-scribble