RE: User interface suggestions

[Jörg Rathlev <joerg jrsoftware de>]

It seems I got the "reply-to" wrong another time :-(

UI wishlist += A mail client that recognizes mailing list messages and then
offers an extra command "reply to list".

> > I would like a icon-only menu with an array of icons that i
> could arrange
> > myself. A sort of program palette with a changable size in
> multiplies of the
> > icon size, perhaps. It could be a bit like a drawer, only 2D
> instead of 1D,
> > and with no shrink-wrap effect... (I mean that in order to have
> groups of things
>  > there also has to be distance between them. The drawers don't have
> that.)
>
> Sounds a bit like the Microsoft Office sidebar... which I have to say I
> use all the time on Windows, even though I never actually use Microsoft
> Office!

Or like the Windows "quick start area" in the task bar. This is a great
feature, I use it all the time to start Internet Explorer very quickly and
have some of my other commonly used apps in there. But it wouldn't work
without easily recognizable icons...

If you want to see really good icon design (well, at least I think it's
good), take a look at Microsoft's icons. They're also using "truecolor" now,
but they've kept their basic  design principles. The new icons of Office
2000 are probably the best example - they use only one color (well, two
actually if you count the white background), but have a different color for
each application and a very simple logo inside.

A very good description of why icons work is given in Apple's human
interface guidelines, which have a whole chapter for icons.

Here are some citations from the document, which show why the GNOME icons
currently do *not* work:

"Use a consistent light source"

"Design the large icon first, and then adapt the design to the small icon"

"The algorithm [that creates a small icon from a large one] simply shrinks
the icon and typically creates black areas, creating less pleasing visual
results."

"Use icon elements consistently"

"If there is an existing shape for an icon element, don’t change it."

"Thinking of an object that is representative of the function of your
icon is the key to good conceptual design."

"Start by designing the black-and-white version of the large (32-by-32
pixel) icon."

"You should begin by designing a black-and-white icon. In general, you
should use an outline of one black pixel to create the icon border."
Note that the idea of starting with black and white is repeated several
times in the document.

"Coloring or graying the icon’s outline makes the icon appear less distinct
on the desktop. Remember that the user can change the background color of
the desktop as well as its pattern, so your icon may not be displayed
against the background on which you designed it."


Jörg