End Brushed Metal Appearance

Posted:
in macOS edited January 2014
I for one have always found the brushed metal texture distracting and clunky. Apple seemed to be moving away from it, especially in their iLife applications. However, Safari and the Finder still seem to be using it in the Leopard builds. I was just wondering how many others prefer the platinum look used in Mail, System Preferences or the darker iLife look. Also what do we expect will happen to this old school look?
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Comments

  • Reply 1 of 32
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by MacCrazy


    I for one have always found the brushed metal texture distracting and clunky. Apple seemed to be moving away from it, especially in their iLife applications. However, Safari and the Finder still seem to be using it in the Leopard builds. I was just wondering how many others prefer the platinum look used in Mail, System Preferences or the darker iLife look. Also what do we expect will happen to this old school look?



    Clunky is a good word. It looks unnecessarily "thick" and "heavy".



    But I guess thats par for the course... heavy metal...
  • Reply 2 of 32
    dacloodacloo Posts: 890member
    hmmm I have more problem with the aqua scroll bars. It looks childish, bubblegummy.
  • Reply 3 of 32
    maccrazymaccrazy Posts: 2,658member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by dacloo


    hmmm I have more problem with the aqua scroll bars. It looks childish, bubblegummy.



    That's strange because I really don't mind the Aqua scroll bars. I recently turned my Safari's brushed metal theme off and much prefer it. I suppose the scroll bars would look better if they were clear like the buttons at the end.
  • Reply 4 of 32
    MarvinMarvin Posts: 15,309moderator
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by dacloo


    hmmm I have more problem with the aqua scroll bars. It looks childish, bubblegummy.



    You can change them to graphite which makes them look more mature. This also changes the resize buttons. The thing is, sometimes I feel that the aqua interface is too childish and switch it to graphite for 5 minutes and then just put it back again because the interface elements don't stand out enough.



    I do like the light platinum appearance out of all the themes I've seen and I think it ought to be default.



    However, I think people should have some degree of choice and I really don't see how adding a color picker to let the user decide what colors to use would be such a big problem so a redesign is in order. They could even have color sets to allow users to easily switch for seasons or even the time of day. You could have the theme light platinum at midday and then gradually fade to black at night.
  • Reply 5 of 32
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Marvin


    You can change them to graphite which makes them look more mature. This also changes the resize buttons. The thing is, sometimes I feel that the aqua interface is too childish and switch it to graphite for 5 minutes and then just put it back again because the interface elements don't stand out enough.



    I do like the light platinum appearance out of all the themes I've seen and I think it ought to be default.



    However, I think people should have some degree of choice and I really don't see how adding a color picker to let the user decide what colors to use would be such a big problem so a redesign is in order. They could even have color sets to allow users to easily switch for seasons or even the time of day. You could have the theme light platinum at midday and then gradually fade to black at night.



    I agree with marvin. the light platinum should be the default theme, but people should be given an option of what theme they want. I personally like the light platinum theme, but then again, apple should do what they're doing now: using a variety of themes to keep the system from looking to plain and boring. If you ever look at WinXP, you'll notice that while they do offer multiple themes, each theme is universal; it applies the same look to everything. instead, apple mixes & matches, to give a variety of appearances.



    While I'm at it, apple could get away with offering a glossy black version of the "unified" look- replace the platinum with a shiny black. or go back to the iCandy fad of blueberry, lime, tangerine, orange, and grape.



    On another note, I'm working on a patch that applies the unified theme to the Finder and Safari.
  • Reply 6 of 32
    MarvinMarvin Posts: 15,309moderator
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by John French


    On another note, I'm working on a patch that applies the unified theme to the Finder and Safari.



    Already done:



    http://www.macupdate.com/info.php/id/19384
  • Reply 7 of 32
    I'm of the opinion that the more options the better. There are those above that prefer the platinum look. I dislike everything being gray. Gray it the very definition of boring to me. Why not have a themes section in Preferences that will allow people to make it look the way they want it without having to buy 3rd party apps to make that happen? Some like the Aqua look, some like the brushed metal look, some like the platinum look, and some (like me) would prefer that everything have a darker look like full-screen editing in iPhoto.



    It's obvious that no one-theme will satisfy everyone. It's simply not possible. Options are the best way to make everyone happy. Sad to say it (because I don't like Windows), but I like that new glass theme in Vista. I saw that the other day and thought it looked sharp. I doubt anyone who would prefer the titanium theme (everything gray) would ever like that kind of thing, but I do.



    Being able to freely customize the GUI look is something I think would be a benefit in Leopard.
  • Reply 8 of 32
    maccrazymaccrazy Posts: 2,658member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Brian Green


    Being able to freely customize the GUI look is something I think would be a benefit in Leopard.



    I fully-agree and make it apply to different apps. I like the dark platinum in pro apps like Aperture and Final Cut but I prefer light platinum in Mail, Safari and iLife etc. I think OS X has always needed more customisation beyond what OS 9 offered. I just hope this isn't the major feature Steve has been holding back
  • Reply 9 of 32
    Aqua bubbles and stripes definitely on the way out. Brushed metal, on the way out. It does look "heavy" compared to WinXP and now Vista. Current Leopard screenshots show old UIs (AFAIK) -- the real Leopard resolution-independent GUI will be revealed only closer to launch. Resolution-independence means GUI "templates" and "skins" are vector-based and rendered/cached as needed (not sure how exactly implementation is going to be). Let's just say brushed metal as a vector is impossible, or uneconomical from a processor rendering/graphic design point view.
  • Reply 10 of 32
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Marvin


    Already done:

    http://www.macupdate.com/info.php/id/19384



    This fracking kicks major ass. Sweet. Leopard will go with a slightly darker smooth metal -- will not be "glassy", Leopard UI will make Vista look "pop-ish" and "over-shiny". Researching this at the moment....... 8)
  • Reply 11 of 32
    maccrazymaccrazy Posts: 2,658member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by sunilraman


    This fracking kicks major ass. Sweet. Leopard will go with a slightly darker smooth metal -- will not be "glassy", Leopard UI will make Vista look "pop-ish" and "over-shiny". Researching this at the moment....... 8)



    I've just turned UNO off after a week of use. It's not quite as good as Platinum and has some inconsistencies. I think I'll just use SafariSpeed to turn off brushed metal in Safari.
  • Reply 12 of 32
    wircwirc Posts: 302member
    God I hate fake materials in applications - Brushed Metal and the GarageBand look are bad and worse, respectively. Let's go for a stripped-down simple platinum look with shades marking system windows, consumer/iLife apps, and then pro apps, in darker shades. It makes sense and it looks good over a long time. The metal looked cool when I first bought a Mac, but has started to look overbearing and heavy. Simpler but shiny always looks better over time.
  • Reply 13 of 32
    Here's an idea, how about Apple let us choose the look we like without it being forced down our throats? Some people like the platinum look. I personally think it's bland. I'm not a fan of haxies because they aren't the most stable. I want to customize as I see fit. If I want the "glass look" I ought to be able to have it. If I want the "dark look" like iPhoto in full screen edit mode, then that ought to be my choice. Just as those who seem to prefer the platimun look ought to be able to have it. Not everyone likes gray, and that's what platinum is.
  • Reply 14 of 32
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Brian Green


    ....If I want the "glass look" I ought to be able to have it...



    It's available here: www.microsoft.com/vista
  • Reply 15 of 32
    By the way apparently DirectX10 is NOT required for Vista AeroGlass, at least at this stage looks like DX9 with 128MB VRAM will give you all the cool Aero-ness one needs. A 7900GS 256MB would be hella sweeeeet though...!!! 2GB RAM, nVRAID 2xSATA Drives RAID0, my AMD64 Venice3000+ 1.8ghz OC'ed 2.10jigaahertzz. *sniff* I miss my rig. It's been almost 4 months now... *sniff* :: Anyways Vista Premium:



    A Windows Vista Premium Ready PC includes at least:

    * 1 GHz 32-bit (x86) or 64-bit (x64) processor1.

    * 1 GB of system memory.

    * Support for DirectX 9 graphics with a WDDM driver, 128 MB of graphics memory (minimum)2, Pixel Shader 2.0 and 32 bits per pixel.

    * 40 GB of hard drive capacity with 15 GB free space.

    * DVD-ROM Drive3.

    * Audio output capability.

    * Internet access capability.
  • Reply 16 of 32
    DirectX10 cards can go kiss my a55 until they get their fat lazy bums down to 65nm and decrease their planet-killing power wastage. Also 512mb DDR3/4 VRAM will be nice as standard on these 65nm DX10 cards with high performance-per-watt-per-dollar. Booo YEAH.
  • Reply 17 of 32
    We need some Israelis on the GPU side. To work some of that sweet sweet Core2 magic on the terribly bloated hardware that GPUs have become in the mad race for ever higher FPS. Hmmm.. sounds familiar? The Pentium 4 was rubbish because of the mad race for ever higher GHZ.
  • Reply 18 of 32
    sunilraman, thanks for the point to Vista, but there's not a snowball's chance in hell that I'm going to be using Vista. I see all of these people talking about how much they want a platinum look to everything. I'm not a big fan of that look. I'd enjoy a cooler theme, and I'd prefer to be able to change the look within the OS without 3rd party software to do it. Having the option allows those of us that want to change it to do so, while allowing those who watch Activity Monitor relentlessly, to ensure that their CPU usage isn't being wasted by eyecandy.



    It ought to be a choice.
  • Reply 19 of 32
    mgkwhomgkwho Posts: 167member
    I've used UNO since day one. No more brushed-metal for me!



    Although I wish I could take the iTunes scroll bars and implement them into the rest of the system.



    -=|Mgkwho
  • Reply 20 of 32
    irelandireland Posts: 17,798member
    I now use Shapeshifter... although I will wait to see the new iTunes 7-esque Leopard interface. I'm using a Shapeshifter theme called "7" it was made up to look like iTunes 7, and I'm guessing whoever made it thinks that's where Leopard is heading. I think Safari in the theme is a touch too dark, and the address progress bar is awful, but I like most everything else about the theme. The way Safari looks is enough for me to think not to use it though.
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