According to CORE-10643 , we want to choose a default icon for exe files that has no icon.
Windows XP uses this one [ external image ] (if you don't know what you are voting for )
I like 2. It's similar to the one in XP, but has a little gear which implies it's an executable. But it's not in your face about it like 3 is. IMO, XP's icon was always too vague for me, which is why I can't vote for 1. 4 is a good contender too, but I'm too used to seeing that in Ubuntu, I think ReactOS needs it's own icon. And 5 just looks like the desktop, that's really confusing.
Number 5 looks like an MDI dialog, which is pretty typical of Windows, I think that still makes sense given the context.
Unlike the other icons it follows the Tango guidelines while staying pretty distinguishable and visually appealing, instead of straightly cloning the original icon's shape.
I also like number 4, but for COM files, which are a bit more archaic. That diamond shaped icon looks a bit retro and fits the executable format for DOS apps.
External patch contributor for ux/user-mode/l10n/winapi. Sometimes I fix a bit of everything everywhere.
I encounter more and more programs that use a gear to mean "options". Firefox is one such program. When I see the gear I expect a Control Panel applet.
I agree with Konata that Microsoft Windows XP's icon for .exe programs "was always too vague". The concept of executable-ness is vague. Some .exe programs run on the desktop, some start a Command Prompt windows in order to run. If one icon has to serve them both then by necessity that icon must be vague, I suppose.
2 could be an issue with gear becoming unrecognizable in 16x16 (think Quicklaunch)
3 As middings I fear a gear is easy to be misunderstood as "options". And that one is too much "into your face"
4 Icon 4 has an interesting advantage compared to the others: it's very easy with it to spot an exe within explorer in a folder full of different files (think system32). I kind of liked that.
5 - I would never associate an exe with that icon, sorry...
Well, if the icon of gears is associated with options, 4 (tango) should then be discarded, do not believe?.
In addition most of the icons proposed (except 1 and 5) use a gear, I think that we should choose automatically the number 1 then.
Last edited by manuel on Tue Dec 22, 2015 12:14 am, edited 1 time in total.
Come on, only "strange" people would think that e.g. icon 2 would mean it means "option for a window" (especially when being placed in all the exes) ^^
My personal preference is one or four, but I voted for #1 for familiarity. 2 and 3 look like they would be some kind of configuration tool, and 5 looks like a task or desktop switcher.