[Tango-artists] Icons for inclusion

[Nathan Willis]

This one what?

Nate

On 3/13/07, Andreas Nilsson <nisses.mail at home.se> wrote:
>
> Hi Nathan!
> Do you have this one ready so I can take a peek at it somewhere?
> - Andreas
>
> Nathan Willis wrote:
> > See, I think that's the important distinction -- the toolbox is from
> > the "tool" element of the construction metaphor, not the danger/safety
> > element.  Everybody at the construction site wears boots, too, but the
> > image of a boot doesn't communicate what you want.
> >
> > As far as the hammer itself goes, sure not everyone uses one all the
> > time, but then again I'm looking at the Edgy Applications menu right
> > now and the "graphics" category is represented by a paintbrush, the
> > "sound and video" category by a director's clapboard, and the office
> > category by a pen cup.  Does every artist carry a paintbrush?  Do
> > *any* of the "sound* apps incorporate anything analogous to the
> > director's clapboard?  Do we all have pen cups in out offices -- and
> > if so, are they what we do our office work with?  It's not necessary
> > that the tool used in a category icon be universally required for all
> > the tasks in that category -- and a good thing, too, since that would
> > be impossible.  What it does have to do is communicate and be visually
> > recognizable.  My point was that the hard hat does neither of those
> > things.
> >
> > I personally don't think that hammers or toolboxes intrinsically
> > relate to programming at all; we may have gotten used to seeing the
> > construction site metaphor associated with programming tools, but it's
> > only because of repetition.  I'd like to see some better metaphor
> > altogether; it's a task without a physical-world equivalent, but who
> > knows how much we could come up with if we actually pounded at it
> > intentionally.  But I do think that of the construction items we've
> > brought up thus far, at least (claw) hammers have a distinctive visual
> > outline, and that's an improvement.
> >
> > Nate
> >
> > On 3/10/07, *Rodney Dawes* <dobey at novell.com
> > <mailto:dobey at novell.com>> wrote:
> >
> >     Perhaps it could use some touch-ups, sure. But I think the
> >     metaphor does
> >     in fact make sense. It is a category icon, not an tool, process, or
> >     product icon. All persons on a construction site, must wear hard
> hats.
> >     They don't all have to carry or use hammers, nails, screwdrivers,
> >     fishing wire, or many of the other things used in the construction
> >     of a
> >     building.
> >
> >     Perhaps a toolbox would be a somewhat better metaphor though.
> >     Given that
> >     it contains tools for building software.
> >
> >     -- dobey
> >
> >
> >     On Fri, 2007-03-09 at 13:47 -0600, Nathan Willis wrote:
> >     > As long as we're talking about coding metaphors, I have to give my
> >     > thumbs-down to the yellow hard hat metaphor -- it, too, is
> entirely
> >     > indistinct at small sizes, and even at larger sizes it lacks the
> >     > "distinct shape" Rodney mentioned, as well as detail and
> >     contrast.  Is
> >     > it a lemon? A tennis ball?  A gumdrop?  And even if it is
> >     recognized
> >     > eventually as a hard hat, it doesn't communicate.  Hard hats are
> >     > safety gear, not tools, not process, not product.  At the very
> >     least,
> >     > if you are going with the "construction work" metaphor, a hammer
> is
> >     > more visually distinctive and more appropriate.
> >     >
> >     > Just wanted to get that off my chest.
> >     >
> >     > Nate
> >
> >
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-- 
nathan.p.willis
nwillis at glyphography.com
aim/ym/gtalk:n8willis
blog.glyphography.com
flickr.com/photos/willis
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