Sidebar Sidebar
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

Unified Icons

J

johndoe123abc

macrumors member
Original poster
Jul 10, 2012
64
0
Is anyone else bothered by the discontinuity between dock icons? Some are round and bordered by a white circle, while others are more "traditional".

Personally I like the circular icons and would prefer them all to be like this.

Thoughts?
 
johndoe123abc said:
Is anyone else bothered by the discontinuity between dock icons? Some are round and bordered by a white circle, while others are more "traditional".

Personally I like the circular icons and would prefer them all to be like this.

Thoughts?
Click to expand...

Two words: design consistency (NOT). It bugs me as well. What really bugs me, though, is the System Preferences icon.
 
Eww

I agree, there could be more consistency, but OMFG making all the app icons circular with a white border looks awful! As john mentioned above, there are a bunch of people on DA who seem to think this looks good. I don't get it. TETO, I guess.
 
There is actually a video from WWDC that discusses this.

In it they mention how over the years Apple icons have gained different angles and perspectives, an how with this release they redesigned them all to be same angle, same perspective, and how all the circle apps match -- the images inside the circle have the same shadow, etc.

Admitingly it would be nice if they picked one or the other, but at least there is a bit more consistency now.
 
I don't know. Personally I think that it look "weird" when OS X icons are all the same shape (either round or rounded square like in iOS). (tried it once with a custom set of icons)
 
*****inthewor1d said:
Icons are not final.. Some may be but not all of them. This is only DP1. Long way till public release
Click to expand...

Really? Because when iOS 7 DP1 was out, people were saying "the icons aren't final, it's only DP1" and the icons have only slightly changed the shade of some of the colors.
 
53kyle said:
Really? Because when iOS 7 DP1 was out, people were saying "the icons aren't final, it's only DP1" and the icons have only slightly changed the shade of some of the colors.
Click to expand...

That doesn't mean anything. That was iOS and each release its different. They have also changed icons in other releases dramatically between DPs and public release
 
There's 3 types of redesigned app icons now:
- the circular ones (App Store, Launchpad etc.)
- The slanted "physical ones" (Mail, Calendar, Reminders, Preview etc.)
- rectangles with rounded corners (Finder, Terminal)

I guess they go with whichever one suits the app.

----------
53kyle said:
Really? Because when iOS 7 DP1 was out, people were saying "the icons aren't final, it's only DP1" and the icons have only slightly changed the shade of some of the colors.
Click to expand...

Yeah, I can't see the new icons change. Hopefully the old ones will get updated.
 
/V\acpower said:
I don't know. Personally I think that it look "weird" when OS X icons are all the same shape (either round or rounded square like in iOS). (tried it once with a custom set of icons)
Click to expand...

Interesting, I prefer the symmetry / consistency. My current dock resembles iOS icons and for me is much "cleaner":

Screen Shot 2014-06-08 at 09.14.57 AM.png
 
n8cousins said:
I agree, there could be more consistency, but OMFG making all the app icons circular with a white border looks awful! As john mentioned above, there are a bunch of people on DA who seem to think this looks good. I don't get it. TETO, I guess.
Click to expand...

Agree. The white borders look cheap and nasty. Circles - ok, but they would look better without the borders..
 
I quite like the variety. Personally, I find the different shapes make it easier to instantly identify an icon, as icons are usually smaller on OS X (e.g. in a list view and a longer viewing distance) than on iOS, so it actually helps to know a white square with red is Calendar, a blue circle is App Store etc.
 
cambookpro said:
I quite like the variety. Personally, I find the different shapes make it easier to instantly identify an icon, as icons are usually smaller on OS X (e.g. in a list view and a longer viewing distance) than on iOS, so it actually helps to know a white square with red is Calendar, a blue circle is App Store etc.
Click to expand...
Exactly! The variety is that part what makes Mac OS X even more beautiful IMO.
 
cambookpro said:
I quite like the variety. Personally, I find the different shapes make it easier to instantly identify an icon, as icons are usually smaller on OS X (e.g. in a list view and a longer viewing distance) than on iOS, so it actually helps to know a white square with red is Calendar, a blue circle is App Store etc.
Click to expand...

Agree. If all the icons are circular it will be boring AND confusing (at a glance).
 
I think that different shapes are important, what bothers me more is the overuse of colour; I'd much rather the icons were duotone, or at least mostly duotone with a focus on looking distinct. I currently have Creative Suite 6 and I don't like the icons for these, as the colour is the main differentiating factor, as the use of letters isn't iconic enough (you have to read them).
So yeah, my biggest feature wish for Yosemite is a second icon definition in app packages that specifies a duotone icon so we can switch.

But yeah, I think having the differing shapes is a good thing, provided we can maintain consistency. This is where we have the big problem; app developers will come along and not know what the rules are because Apple doesn't seem to want to say. Really what Apple needs to do is provide an icon builder tool that makes it easy to create your own round or square icon, and give clear descriptions of what each is intended for.
 
stiligFox said:
There is actually a video from WWDC that discusses this.

In it they mention how over the years Apple icons have gained different angles and perspectives, an how with this release they redesigned them all to be same angle, same perspective, and how all the circle apps match -- the images inside the circle have the same shadow, etc.

Admitingly it would be nice if they picked one or the other, but at least there is a bit more consistency now.
Click to expand...

What's the name of this video?
 
stiligFox said:
Adapting Your App to the New UI of OS X Yosemite
Click to expand...

Thanks, I just watched the first part about the design, pretty cool.

-------

As for consistency, I think peoples' critique of the lack of consistency is not very well thought out. Icons need to look like they belong with each other, but they also need to be distinct from each other. I think in Yosemite and in iOS, this is achieved. Worrying about why some icons are tilted rectangles and some are circles misses the point. I think it looks really bad when all the icons are the same shape on OS X.
 
Awww please no. I like have the ability to shape icons at our free will in OS X.

What they could do to fix it is actually to remove what appears to be consistency, because indeed there is no consistency there. I like when they start with a very simple shape at first and then they add something that goes out of the boundaries of this shape. I'm thinking of the hammer in Xcode, or the separators in Contacts. However, it's not always a good solution, like the 3D compass in Maps and the loupe in Preview.
 
I actually like the variety too, include system preferences. The only one that looks out of place to me is iTunes (totally different lighting), and I expect that'll be getting an update.

Interestingly, the only icons on my dock not made by apple (TextMate and Steam) both blend in perfectly, without having been redesigned :) Would be nice if TextMate's had something to do with the app, mind you - I often forget which one it is.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.
Top Bottom
Back