Poll: New icon set for the next major release of ReactOS

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New icon set for the next major release of ReactOS

Poll ended at Sat Oct 27, 2012 1:16 am

Crystal Icons (Crystal Project)
5
14%
Crystal Clear
2
6%
Aeon Icon set
3
9%
Nuvola Icon set
10
29%
"One Piece"
8
23%
"Non-mainstream"
7
20%
 
Total votes: 35

hbelusca
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Poll: New icon set for the next major release of ReactOS

Post by hbelusca »

This is a poll for choosing a new icon set for the next major release of ReactOS, dropping out of the old Tango icon set we are currently using for some time now, to another one.
Some candidates have been proposed on this Forum, but no concrete effort has happened so far. This lead us to propose you this poll.
ReactOS now supports 32-bit colors (with Alpha channel), that would allow using transparency for the icons.

We have been guided by the following criteria :
The icon-set must :
  • resemble a modern OS icon theme,
  • look pleasant,
  • be complete (full icon-set),
  • be released under a free license.


Here are the links :
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Black_Fox
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Re: Poll: New icon set for the next major release of ReactOS

Post by Black_Fox »

I'm very skeptic about this change. My reason:
- The icons need to scale nicely at sizes 32x32 and below as well, ReactOS is meant also for old computers AND small computer screens
- ReactOS may still be running at 16-bit color depth on purpose for someone, then there is a need for non-transparent icons as well

The above one I think is a very reasonable requirement, the rest I give out as my opinion only
- If there is a need to drop default GNOME icon set, it is redundant to propose default KDE icon set as a new option. That drops the first two.
- "Non-Mainstream" and especially "One Piece" have very few icons - they are not complete by a long shot
- Aeon is too shiny for my taste
- Nuvola has quite a number of icons, they are schematic, contrasting and seem readable even at smaller sizes, it's the only one I'd give my vote to - but I still have to see it compared to GNOME icons in real -world scenarios :P

Can you show some screenshots of ReactOS, e.g. the Control Panel, to show how the different icon sets fare against each other?

EDIT: Tango iconset for reference: http://tango.freedesktop.org/Tango_Icon_Library#Install
Last edited by Black_Fox on Thu Sep 27, 2012 9:49 am, edited 1 time in total.
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gonzoMD
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Re: Poll: New icon set for the next major release of ReactOS

Post by gonzoMD »

I like crystal clear and Aeon, they look shiny and modern, but I think that Nuvola is better for ReactOS, because of the reasons Black_Fox mentioned before. But all of them look better than the actual Tango Iconset.
Pisarz
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Re: Poll: New icon set for the next major release of ReactOS

Post by Pisarz »

I actually don't think any of these icon sets should replace Tango right now. I think we should consider such change later. It would be great if there was an icon set deisgned specially for ReactOS itself, for example to suit Lautus visual style.
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Re: Poll: New icon set for the next major release of ReactOS

Post by fulea.stefan »

Another call for changing Tango was made a while ago and just like then, (although I've casted a vote for an existing pool option,) I'm still suggesting to make a call for designing a new icon set for (the next major release of) ReactOS. I'm glad Pisarz is now supporting the idea, it wasn't clear before.

...as for requirements, I think you left out the most important "must" for an icon - to be expressive. That's the problem with the most icons presented, less for Nuvola but very much for the rest. Those are a little bit more entertaining than should be (in my book at least). Because of that "modern" touch of simulating reflections and other kind of "interesting details", icons become cluttered and ambiguous which is exactly how a directing sign should NOT be. For designers: icons incidentally, are playing the role of directing/helping one through, not to entertain. Do yourself an exercise and imagine reading a book with all letters having the details of an "initial" (very ornamented) one. It will be a tiring experience, especially if the ornaments overlap with the distinctive traits of other letters, because you'll have to pay a lot more attention to each one of them to read it correctly. The same thing is valid with the road signs as for another example. Imagine the road sighs being made more "modern"! Computer icons fall in the same categories as aforementioned examples, both in regard to their function and in their inferential issues. Keep them simple to read.
manuel
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Re: Poll: New icon set for the next major release of ReactOS

Post by manuel »

i like nuvuola :mrgreen:
milon
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Re: Poll: New icon set for the next major release of ReactOS

Post by milon »

The "One Piece" and "Non-Mainstream" icon sets were my favorite, although as Black_Fox pointed out, they're not complete. Black_Fox also made a good point that the new sets aren't friendly to lower color depths. Would it be much work to create non-transparent images for whatever icons are chosen?
Z98
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Re: Poll: New icon set for the next major release of ReactOS

Post by Z98 »

If people want a custom icon set from scratch, someone has to be willing and able to do it. Otherwise it's not an option.
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Black_Fox
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Re: Poll: New icon set for the next major release of ReactOS

Post by Black_Fox »

Hermés, congratulations to reaching the dev state and getting the commit access! :-)
fulea.stefan
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Re: Poll: New icon set for the next major release of ReactOS

Post by fulea.stefan »

Z98 wrote:If people want a custom icon set from scratch, someone has to be willing and able to do it. Otherwise it's not an option.
How would we know if there is or isn't someone? That's suppose to be one of the call's purposes, among other things. But because the ReactOS team is the one that considers or not to take notice of someone's work in the end, such a call isn't for just anyone to be made.
vicmarcal
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Re: Poll: New icon set for the next major release of ReactOS

Post by vicmarcal »

Designing a new iconset would take about 1-2years.
The needed iconset expands to more than 200icons. Just imagine the Panel Control ones(printers,system,network,languages,etc)
Creating a good coloured icon can take 3 hours.
If anyone is willing to design a new iconset, he should show some concepts before(so the Community and the Team pick the best).As said,it will take 1 or 2 years...so when the work is done we can replace the new iconset that we are now choosing with this hypotethical new one.
Till that momente have to follow the easy-pixie: Using LGPL iconsets out there :)
fulea.stefan
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Re: Poll: New icon set for the next major release of ReactOS

Post by fulea.stefan »

Victor, you're presenting the current circumstances like being inappropriate or something. As I see it, it's not like ReactOS can't afford to make an official call and wait for something to come for free on it's own time, even if it will take 1-2 years (in which case I hope it won't be for the next release). It doesn't cost the ReactOS team any effort or resource! ...but it makes a difference for people to be (officially) invited, knowing that their work is expected and potentially appreciated, than to work by themselves and then to try making a cold call.

P.S.: I find very curious how you as PR-related person see these things.
Z98
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Re: Poll: New icon set for the next major release of ReactOS

Post by Z98 »

There is a tendency within the community to always assume there is "someone" out there willing/able to do work required. We within the project cannot base our decisions on such an assumption if there is not someone immediately present and willing, because when too many of these assumptions fall through, we're the ones that end up with more work to clean things up/compensate. Thus when we plan for things, we seek to reduce the number of dependencies as much as possible.
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Black_Fox
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Re: Poll: New icon set for the next major release of ReactOS

Post by Black_Fox »

fulea.stefan wrote:As I see it, it's not like ReactOS can't afford to make an official call and wait for something to come for free on it's own time, even if it will take 1-2 years
It's 1-2 years of actually designing the icons, not the usual college "not doing anything for a year and then rushing everything in a week" :) Also I believe that there is absolutely nobody that will do _200_ icons and appropriately modify them not how (s)he wants, but how the developers and community say... for free.
vicmarcal
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Re: Poll: New icon set for the next major release of ReactOS

Post by vicmarcal »

fulea.stefan wrote:Victor, you're presenting the current circumstances like being inappropriate or something. As I see it, it's not like ReactOS can't afford to make an official call and wait for something to come for free on it's own time, even if it will take 1-2 years (in which case I hope it won't be for the next release). It doesn't cost the ReactOS team any effort or resource! ...but it makes a difference for people to be (officially) invited, knowing that their work is expected and potentially appreciated, than to work by themselves and then to try making a cold call.

P.S.: I find very curious how you as PR-related person see these things.
Sorry if I seemed too direct, but I was on my mobile phone and I am not a native "Engrish" :)
Basically, I wanted to state one thing: "Both plans aren't exclusive or incompatible at all".
What did I mean?
While creating a new iconset can take 1 or 2 years(I am sure some non-designers won't have realized the lenghtness of this task until now), reworking some iconsets can take just 1 month (or even less with a nice script). So why can't we work in both directions?. Thanks to the rework, we can enjoy a new refurbished ReactOS in just one month while a Designing team begins creating a new iconset. So when the iconset is finished(around 2014) we can begin using the new icons.

The good part of this approach is that reworking an iconset doesnt need "Designing skills" at all, so anyone willing to help, and just following some instructions can transform easily a Linux icon to a Windows proper one (iconFx and scripts will make the trick) replacing the old icons with the new ones is just a matter of renaming.

Also, some years ago some guys tried to create a new-own-ReactOS iconset. Some of these icons are still in our Wiki.Sadly the work is not finished, and we can't reuse them in that state. It shows how big (but not impossible) the Task is. This is the reason of my scepticism. Another reason comes from kde and gnome pages. These pages host several full iconsets, but most of them are abandoned or not-finished. So the % of success is really-really low.

So the approach we are following ensures that at least in one month*(depends on the number of people helping) the face of ReactOS will be "modernized" and keeps open the opportunity for an own iconset if any team or individual is willing to create it.

ReactOS Project is totally opened to consider any creative work. If anyone wants to create an iconset, a new cover, etc, it's pretty easy to contact me or Z98 and tell us about your idea before going on. Why before?. Just to avoid 2 different Teams working in 2 different iconsets(party!!), because sometimes there are limitations that you may don't know(i.e, Reactos wasn't supporting Alpha channeled icons.Now it is), and because knowing what you are working at will help us to coordinate all the needed efforts or, let's be clear too, because we need a minimum level of quality and we have some polite rules not to be broken(i.e: We can't use Politic-Religion-oriented iconset).

As always, my Inbox is opened to anyone (tester,jr developer, designer,translator,etc) who wants to help "actively" in this project. Just drop me a message and I will find a place for him/her.There are tons of small things to be done. You can be sure that anyone who wants to help,in serious mode, has our email and hearth opened for him.

:)
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