different OS GUI pics/websites?
I'm looking for any websites with info and screenshots of OSes and/or GUIs other than Windows and Mac. For example; OS/2, KDE, Rhapsody, BeOS, Lisa, Gnome, Copland etc. In other words anything somewhat off the beaten track. I'm just interested in different ways of designing an OS besides the traditional Windows and Mac styles. Thanks.
Comments
Time for a Paradigm Shift?
<a href="http://www.sensomatic.com/chz/gui/index.html"; target="_blank">http://www.sensomatic.com/chz/gui/index.html</a>;
The GUI Gallery.
<a href="http://toastytech.com/guis/index.html"; target="_blank">http://toastytech.com/guis/index.html</a>;
Intro to NEXTSTEP
<a href="http://www120.pair.com/mccarthy/nextstep/intro.htmld/"; target="_blank">http://www120.pair.com/mccarthy/nextstep/intro.htmld/</a>;
See GNOME in action
<a href="http://www.gnome.org/seegnome.html"; target="_blank">http://www.gnome.org/seegnome.html</a>;
That should be enough for a start.
[ 08-01-2002: Message edited by: Brad ]</p>
thanx starflee... ah... brad for some great info on gui's.
Chas
<strong>Speaking of GUIs, whatever happend to the greatest interface designer, Kai Krause?</strong><hr></blockquote>Last I heard, Kai left MetaCreations back in early 99 and didn't really cite any future plans. I have no idea what he's done recently.
I thought his interfaces were... um... interesting. They were pretty, but I just didn't like them. Sometimes it looked like he was trying too hard to make the screen elements into real-world 3D objects; at other times they seemed like fantasy-like objects that mimicked the behavior of real-world objects. As interface experts have pointed out in the past, most real-world objects fail in 2D computer space because the form no longer fits functionality in an optimal manner.
Kai's tools worked "okay" for me, but they seemed to lack a feel for precision. Also, I found the inability to work with other applications simultaneously very restricting. Of course, Kai's work also brings up the debate on how much a user notices a GUI -- that it should be a tool available at all times, but not overly distracting.
If you look at OSX you start to see some 3D creaping in. does it make it more usable? Probably not a whole lot but it does make things interesting (you've got to look at this stuff 8 hours a day it might as well be pleasing to look at!).
I've heard some discussion around here about Quartz Extreme's abiltiy (or future ability) to take the Gui to the next level, rotating, skewing things and maybe even a true 3d workspace. Personally I think that would be a big mistake. Apple once came out with a demo 3D app for cruising the Internet. I don't remember what it was called (this was back in '95-96) or so. I thought it sucked - too much info to filter through in a useful way. It's much easier to click on a folder/triangle to see what's in it. I've also seen some prototypes for data mining that were cool but when it came down to it, the average user didn't have a clue how to use it. They have trouble with our normal 2D interfaces, you should have seen them trying to navigate in a very complex 3D world! (the example that I saw was for tracking stocks)
Anyway, I didn't use his stuff much artistically (my line of work didn't call for it very often) but it sure was cool to play with it.
Chas
<strong>Apple once came out with a demo 3D app for cruising the Internet. I don't remember what it was called (this was back in '95-96) or so.</strong><hr></blockquote>Hotsauce (aka. Project X)
Yeah, it sucked. Most 3D-in-2D interfaces do. Mac OS X brings us a bit of 2.5D space, though, with the window layering and shadows. I'll be very interested to see if Apple expands on this idea or makes transitions even more fluid.
<a href="http://screenshots.haque.net/"; target="_blank">http://screenshots.haque.net/</a>;
Made it really easy to learn.