Re: [Gimp-user] Dark Theme for GIMP?

[Jehan Pagès <jehan marmottard gmail com>]

Hi,

On Sat, May 11, 2013 at 10:14 AM, Øyvind Kolås <pippin gimp org> wrote:
> On Sat, May 11, 2013 at 2:52 AM, Jehan Pagès <jehan marmottard gmail com>
> wrote:
> > Hi,
> >
> > on various websites, you can see screenshots of GIMP with dark themes.
> > Also I remember during LGM, it was said that GIMP at some point
> > (2.10?) would be released with a dark theme as a default.
>
>
> GIMP 3.0 when GIMP moves to GTK3. GTK3 comes with default both dark and
> bright themes. The GTK3 branch might be good a place to look..

Ok I see. I'll have a look.

> > Second question: the logics behind dark themes is apparently that they
> > would be less a disturbance than a bright theme when you are working,
> > if I remember LGM speech. Is that it? Is it better for the eyes too? I
> > always thought that black on white was basically better for the eyes.
> > Are there any actual studies explaining that dark UI are better for
> > users, which would explain our switch to a darker default theme? Or is
> > it all based on a feeling that dark themes are better?
>
>
> A dark theme will sink further into the background, allowing the canvas and
> image to take a more prominent position. For GTK3 (and GNOME 3 apps) the
> choice of which theme will be appropriate is whether it is application
> focusing primarily on consuming or authoring visual content (image browser,
> editor, video player..) or not.
>
> For visual content centric applications color appearance is important, by
> making the context of the work be subdued and dark - negative impact of
> simultaneous contrast in the human visual system will be reduced.
>
> For text, the more paper like black on white might be preferable - though
> this would also depend on display technologies.. and viewing context.

Ok. I remembered for instance years ago, when everybody started to
make their personal website with broken html, most were dark because
it seemed cooler. Then it was told that dark websites are harder to
use/read and finally are not that good for the eyes. And indeed now
nearly all big websites use light colors. You don't see often website
with a dark bakckground anymore, except those who are still on the
"cool" design side rather than useful side for long-reading.

This is why I am wondering about this passage to dark themes for
software UI now. Even though you work on visual content, you still
have menu/tool texts, icons, information texts and boxes, etc. And if
you stay on this UI for hours every day, I really wonder about the
good or bad of light on dark background. Or else are all the web UI
thoughts about not overusing dark backgrounds wrong?

Jehan

> /Ø
> --
> «The future is already here. It's just not very evenly distributed»
>                                                  -- William Gibson
> http://pippin.gimp.org/                            http://ffii.org/