unity-design team mailing list archive

[Dylan McCall <dylanmccall@xxxxxxxxx>]

On Thu, Mar 18, 2010 at 6:47 PM, Jim Rorie <jfrorie@xxxxxxxxx> wrote:
> Agreed.  Currently it's not obvious which state it's in on laptops on
> battery.  The green color was better, at least the state had better
> contrast.  But for people with a color deficit, the green isn't obvious.
> The icon needs to change in some way. The no-Wifi indicator with both
> color and the exclamation is a good example to follow.  It doesn't rely
> on color alone and gets the point across.
>
> I'm not sure a typical flasher is a good solution.  I think a subtle
> animation that triggered every 15 seconds or so might be a better match
> for the minimalist approach they are taking. If animations are indeed
> part of the spec.

A while ago I suggested an extension to the indicator system for
badges; an application could define a 2 (maybe 3) digit text sequence
and a colour, and the applet would attach that to its indicator icon
in a consistent fashion. This has become a common metaphor for new
messages and we see it in use on many smartphone platforms and for
Google Chrome's extensions.
It's powerful, especially here, because applications can communicate
the number of new messages (or other useful details) in a consistent,
accessible way without needing to ship sixty different icons.

I'll try to get something working in the next few months, if anyone is
interested in a functioning example.

>
> As for the Indicator session, It's suffering from the same problems.
> Invisible and Available are not easily discernible.  I'm not crazy about
> the lack of color here, just from pure aesthetics.  Just my opinion.
>
> As a whole, I think the new icons are a more professional and less
> cartoonish.  I'm sure they are much easier to design.  But I think they
> swung a bit to far on the minimalist side.


The way the indicator applet looks right now is bothering me, too.
That whole area, actually, is feeling really inconsistent right now.
It's pulling back together and I'm sure it'll be all perfect for the
final release, but it's difficult for me to be sure what's going on.
Here's what I _think_ is happening, and hopefully someone can correct
me, confirm it or point me at the appropriate Wiki page!

 * Simple monochrome icons for things that the user may want to see,
but that aren't demanding attention.
 * When something is disabled, it goes dark.
 * Icons gain colours when they actually want to be noticed. Colours
stand out, then, so they can be used in awesome ways.

Really awesome example of the colour thing in the current desktop:
when an application tries to play sound and the volume is muted (or,
at least, creates an audio stream), the indicator blinks red. That,
and the battery level stuff, of course.

This begs the question: Why on Earth was the coloured wants-attention
icon dropped? Could indicator-messages differentiate the importance of
events and use a different icon accordingly? (For example, coloured
icon for actual messages, just lit up for when contacts log in).
Further, why does the indicator-messages icon go dark (like when
Bluetooth is turned off) just because there aren't messages? It
suggests that there are no messaging apps running.



Thanks,
Dylan