I think Windows is the opposite of flat. Windows screams out "LOOK AT ME!" The Mac has always been more subtle. It stays out of the way so I can pay attention to my content.
I think Windows is the opposite of flat. Windows screams out "LOOK AT ME!" The Mac has always been more subtle. It stays out of the way so I can pay attention to my content.
Windows Vista and 7, sure. Windows XP, debatable. Windows before XP doesn't scream out anything. It yawns.
Clearly Lion is miles away from Sys7. Personally I like the look of Lion and I agree with mstone above - the color is better served up by the apps rather than the system. One day the gray minimalism will seem outdated and something else will take its place and all aqua lovers will rejoice.
I think Windows is the opposite of flat. Windows screams out "LOOK AT ME!" The Mac has always been more subtle. It stays out of the way so I can pay attention to my content.
IMO, OS X peaked aesthetically with Panther and Tiger. It's been getting progressively drabber and dingier ever since. That's just my preference, though?I'm sure they're losing sleep over what I think.
Functionally, I don't like the idea of the scroll bars being hidden. This from a guy who has his dock hidden on the right! I'm nothing if not inconsistent.
So how does one scroll with no scroll bar in fontbook?
It appears when you mouse over the region.
You can also use the touchpad, magic mouse, et al to scroll.
Quote:
Originally Posted by O and A
I'm not liking the new look. I think it makes my screen look a little flat and boring without color
Filling your screen with color is the job of your wallpaper, and, first and foremost, your content.
Why should the peripheral widgets take precedence with their flashy colors from: a) what I'm writing in Pages, b) What I'm working in Photoshop, c) What I'm editing in FCP, d) What I'm reading online, etc?
I still think Aqua was gorgeous at the time. Now, I love the refinement in Lion, it's true Lion make the content stand out beautifully (Preview app for example), but I miss some colors, for example, the purple help button was great : it was not possible to miss it.
in fact, Apple shouldn't be afraid to use colors in specific place, to communicate meanings.
It looks so dull and utilitarian now. Like Windows 2000.
Overstated much? I like the look. I think too much aqua is dated. Also, I always felt the round buttons looked ironically clunky. I like the rounded corners much better.
So far, the plain gray is seeming so bland that it loses the visual color cues that helped to identify what to click or grab or slide.
At first glance, I think this is a bad change.
Though, given how Apple changed all the special folder icons in SnowLeo to be dark blue on light blue, throwing away the colors, I guess plain is the new "IN" thing.
The one plus is allowing screen snapshot grabs to include both the drop-down panel and the window it belongs to.
That is how I always grab the screen shots anyway, pressing shift to get it to be crosshair selection then outlining both.
Now I will be able to let it get both without having to draw the box around it myself.
Is this worth going to gray to get....... umm, maybe not.
Recent Apple designs have always been about the extra chrome.
Buttons are glossy, 3D and often depicted as sitting on a glass tablet (I see this every time I turn on my iPhone or iPad).
Notes are displayed in a faux leather binder,
Game Center comes complete with woodgrain and felt...
iBooks is a bookshelf and each book looks like a book.
Ditching the 3D gloss effect isn't like Apple at all, it's actually moving more toward Microsoft's Metro design.
I hope they don't continue too far with this. I kind of like the idea of finally having different platforms using multiple unique designs instead of them all looking somewhat the same.
Just look at the different phone email clients. One is distinctly Apple, the other is distinctly Microsoft. I think having them look different is better for both companies.
This looks very...Dull. Windows-ish. Seems like change for changes sake. I guess square buttons might have some teeny tiny bit of increased functionality, but ones that look so drab the blend in to the rest of the screen? Doesn't make sense.
And look at the window function buttons, they look so much more bland as well.
I guess they have to do something to keep the graphic designers busy. Change for change sake. Steve problem threw them a bone.. "hey for working all those long hours on the icons for the iPad, I'll let you come up with a few new buttons and sliders for Lion." If it is part of a movement to standardize interfaces between OSX and iOS it could be good. But maybe the time would be better spent coming up with something better to manage your whole digital world than iTunes?
I don't think it's "change for change sake". Arguably, Aqua was "eye candy for the sake of eye candy". I can appreciate the aesthetic of the times - the late 90's/early 2000's was all about bright colors, rounded edges, and the like. But it looks very tacky now.
Apple has always been about creativity, but also restraint. I think pulling back on the "glossy bubbles" look is a great idea. I wish the color would come back to iTunes though - that's actually one area where the color was helpful and nice. At the very least, they should make it optional.
This looks very...Dull. Windows-ish. Seems like change for changes sake.
I would be curious to know the amount if code it takes for each style. If the drab takes a third the lines of code for each element then you could have the reason right there.
Recent Apple designs have always been about the extra chrome.
Buttons are glossy, 3D and often depicted as sitting on a glass tablet (I see this every time I turn on my iPhone or iPad).
Notes are displayed in a faux leather binder,
IMG
Game Center comes complete with woodgrain and felt...
IMG
iBooks is a bookshelf and each book looks like a book.
IMG
Ditching the 3D gloss effect isn't like Apple at all, it's actually moving more toward Microsoft's Metro design.
I hope they don't continue too far with this. I kind of like the idea of finally having different platforms using multiple unique designs instead of them all looking somewhat the same.
Just look at the different phone email clients. One is distinctly Apple, the other is distinctly Microsoft. I think having them look different is better for both companies.
Having distinct looks is a good thing, I agree, but faux leather, wood, chrome and felt? Yikes!
As for the game center design - awful as I think it is I wonder if that was about convention and an attempt not to frighten away gamers with 'modern' design. Game visuals generally seems to be stuck somewhere in the middle ages.
Much as I love Apple and modern design I don't think everything Apple designs is great. I really don't like much of the IOS visuals. Your example above illustrates the drab dreariness of that platform well.
Comments
I think Windows is the opposite of flat. Windows screams out "LOOK AT ME!" The Mac has always been more subtle. It stays out of the way so I can pay attention to my content.
Windows Vista and 7, sure. Windows XP, debatable. Windows before XP doesn't scream out anything. It yawns.
Great job, Apple!
System 7.5.3 - 1995-6
Clearly Lion is miles away from Sys7. Personally I like the look of Lion and I agree with mstone above - the color is better served up by the apps rather than the system. One day the gray minimalism will seem outdated and something else will take its place and all aqua lovers will rejoice.
I think Windows is the opposite of flat. Windows screams out "LOOK AT ME!" The Mac has always been more subtle. It stays out of the way so I can pay attention to my content.
I agree.
Functionally, I don't like the idea of the scroll bars being hidden. This from a guy who has his dock hidden on the right! I'm nothing if not inconsistent.
So how does one scroll with no scroll bar in fontbook?
It appears when you mouse over the region.
You can also use the touchpad, magic mouse, et al to scroll.
I'm not liking the new look. I think it makes my screen look a little flat and boring without color
Filling your screen with color is the job of your wallpaper, and, first and foremost, your content.
Why should the peripheral widgets take precedence with their flashy colors from: a) what I'm writing in Pages, b) What I'm working in Photoshop, c) What I'm editing in FCP, d) What I'm reading online, etc?
http://www.aventure-apple.com/logiciels/evolx.html
I still think Aqua was gorgeous at the time. Now, I love the refinement in Lion, it's true Lion make the content stand out beautifully (Preview app for example), but I miss some colors, for example, the purple help button was great : it was not possible to miss it.
in fact, Apple shouldn't be afraid to use colors in specific place, to communicate meanings.
I miss some stripes too.
Aqua and the Dock are the reason I switched from Windows to Mac in the first place.
Then, by all means, switch back...
odd, all the "blue" you mention is graphite on my computer. i must have a special build?
You can choose between blue and graphite in System Preferences appearance pane.
IMO, OS X peaked aesthetically with Panther and Tiger.
You are the kind of guy who also like faux-wood application skins, huh?
how can i apply for appleseed id? i tried but i think i must have invitation by email...
Hmm...seems they closed it and now only accepting invites.
It looks so dull and utilitarian now. Like Windows 2000.
Overstated much? I like the look. I think too much aqua is dated. Also, I always felt the round buttons looked ironically clunky. I like the rounded corners much better.
At first glance, I think this is a bad change.
Though, given how Apple changed all the special folder icons in SnowLeo to be dark blue on light blue, throwing away the colors, I guess plain is the new "IN" thing.
The one plus is allowing screen snapshot grabs to include both the drop-down panel and the window it belongs to.
That is how I always grab the screen shots anyway, pressing shift to get it to be crosshair selection then outlining both.
Now I will be able to let it get both without having to draw the box around it myself.
Is this worth going to gray to get....... umm, maybe not.
~~~~
Maybe they should try some other color scheme...
Spaceballs:
Barf: "They went to plaid!"
...just kidding (about the plaid scheme) ...
~~~~~~~~~~
P.S.
maybe I'm just in curmudgeon mode... :P
Buttons are glossy, 3D and often depicted as sitting on a glass tablet (I see this every time I turn on my iPhone or iPad).
Notes are displayed in a faux leather binder,
Game Center comes complete with woodgrain and felt...
iBooks is a bookshelf and each book looks like a book.
Ditching the 3D gloss effect isn't like Apple at all, it's actually moving more toward Microsoft's Metro design.
I hope they don't continue too far with this. I kind of like the idea of finally having different platforms using multiple unique designs instead of them all looking somewhat the same.
Just look at the different phone email clients. One is distinctly Apple, the other is distinctly Microsoft. I think having them look different is better for both companies.
This looks very...Dull. Windows-ish. Seems like change for changes sake. I guess square buttons might have some teeny tiny bit of increased functionality, but ones that look so drab the blend in to the rest of the screen? Doesn't make sense.
And look at the window function buttons, they look so much more bland as well.
I guess they have to do something to keep the graphic designers busy. Change for change sake. Steve problem threw them a bone.. "hey for working all those long hours on the icons for the iPad, I'll let you come up with a few new buttons and sliders for Lion." If it is part of a movement to standardize interfaces between OSX and iOS it could be good. But maybe the time would be better spent coming up with something better to manage your whole digital world than iTunes?
I don't think it's "change for change sake". Arguably, Aqua was "eye candy for the sake of eye candy". I can appreciate the aesthetic of the times - the late 90's/early 2000's was all about bright colors, rounded edges, and the like. But it looks very tacky now.
Apple has always been about creativity, but also restraint. I think pulling back on the "glossy bubbles" look is a great idea. I wish the color would come back to iTunes though - that's actually one area where the color was helpful and nice. At the very least, they should make it optional.
This looks very...Dull. Windows-ish. Seems like change for changes sake.
I would be curious to know the amount if code it takes for each style. If the drab takes a third the lines of code for each element then you could have the reason right there.
Recent Apple designs have always been about the extra chrome.
Buttons are glossy, 3D and often depicted as sitting on a glass tablet (I see this every time I turn on my iPhone or iPad).
Notes are displayed in a faux leather binder,
IMG
Game Center comes complete with woodgrain and felt...
IMG
iBooks is a bookshelf and each book looks like a book.
IMG
Ditching the 3D gloss effect isn't like Apple at all, it's actually moving more toward Microsoft's Metro design.
I hope they don't continue too far with this. I kind of like the idea of finally having different platforms using multiple unique designs instead of them all looking somewhat the same.
Just look at the different phone email clients. One is distinctly Apple, the other is distinctly Microsoft. I think having them look different is better for both companies.
Having distinct looks is a good thing, I agree, but faux leather, wood, chrome and felt? Yikes!
As for the game center design - awful as I think it is I wonder if that was about convention and an attempt not to frighten away gamers with 'modern' design. Game visuals generally seems to be stuck somewhere in the middle ages.
Much as I love Apple and modern design I don't think everything Apple designs is great. I really don't like much of the IOS visuals. Your example above illustrates the drab dreariness of that platform well.