Looking at Motion... to predict 10.4 UI directions.
Apple's latest software often points the way for elements that filter into the OS X UI. Of course, Motion is "pro" software, so I wouldn't expect everything to filter directly, but rather obliquely...
In any case, at the very least it's interesting to note Apple's UI evolution for its professional audience.
Some interesting tidbits:
Dashboards -- semi-transparent floating palettes, containing contextually based toolsets.
Gestures - AFAIK, first time an Apple app has employed these.
Not sure if gestures are ready for a consumer OS, but I can immediately think of a bunch of useful applications for the dashboard UI -- esp.in the realm of notification...
Anyone notice anything else?
In any case, at the very least it's interesting to note Apple's UI evolution for its professional audience.
Some interesting tidbits:
Dashboards -- semi-transparent floating palettes, containing contextually based toolsets.
Gestures - AFAIK, first time an Apple app has employed these.
Not sure if gestures are ready for a consumer OS, but I can immediately think of a bunch of useful applications for the dashboard UI -- esp.in the realm of notification...
Anyone notice anything else?
Comments
Several people clamored that 10.3 would have the blue-grey smooth interface of the new DVDSP, SoundTrack, and Compressor, but none of it made it into the OS.
Originally posted by Brad
Several people clamored that 10.3 would have the blue-grey smooth interface of the new DVDSP, SoundTrack, and Compressor, but none of it made it into the OS.
It would immediately scare thousands of potential Mac users away. The word UNIX plus this Solaris looking interface screams 'Hard to use!'.
I would, however, like to see the Pro theme as an OPTION in 10.4, in lieu of the Graphite.
However, I do believe there's some interesting lines of connection between Apple's applications (both iApps and Pro apps) and the OS X UI. Ideas and interface elements occasionally get "tested out" in those spaces before being absorbed into the OS.
Some examples: the rounded search field (first featured in iTunes, included fully into the OS as a API in Panther), white plastic buttons (first featured in Safari, included for all metal apps in Panther)... It's even possible that the toning down of the pinstripes and graying of the UI in Panther may have influenced to some degree by the positive reception to Apple's alternative "Pro" UI.
Motion in particular seems to be trying some new ideas that I haven't yet seen in Apple application before...
ghi
Originally posted by johnq
Well the white Aqua windows are extremely bright in dimly lit rooms, which many studios are. I far prefer a nice medium/dark gray instead of white glaring back at me. As an option anyway.
It's certainly the primary reason behind such UI designs. On the other hand, nearly black and white UI of Motion is too dark and gloomy for the rest of us.
Edit: Gestures are cool, especially if they find a way into some other Apple's apps.
SideTrack supports some programming of zones for trackpad,
but Motion seems much closer to the Paintbox/Harry/Henry suite gestural moves.
perhaps there's a little newton/graffiti heritage... anybody recognize the (somewhat intuitive) moves listed?
Originally posted by ghiangelo
the question i have concerns the fact that the Pro applications possess such different interfaces in the first place. they all override Aqua. i'm not sure how this defines or impacts the Aqua interface? are we to assume that the blue grey interfaces are used because they provide a more 'ergonomic' user experience? or are they different for the purpose of providing the Pro apps with a distinguishing universal look, sort of like how Kai's Power tools and Poser does?
ghi
I think it is a couple things. Certainly ergonomics, but also with the fact that several of the Pro applications (Shake, Logic, FCP??) were purchased by Apple rather than being built from the ground up.
LiveType, Motion, FCP, and DVDSP are all striving for a uniform look which I think is supposed to indicate that they all belong to a suite of tools rather than just on their own.
Originally posted by JLL
FCP didn't hint at 10.2 or 10.3 UI directions, and I don't think that motion hints at 10.4 directions.
Just look at how long it took the brushed metal to make it from QuicktTime 4 player to the Finder (5 years?). The "pro look" might one day come as an option, but this is some years down the road.
If you see Ives reviving the 80's black HiFi-look, you know the UI will be changing to the dark look
Originally posted by buckeye
also with the fact that several of the Pro applications (Shake, Logic, FCP??) were purchased by Apple rather than being built from the ground up.
I don't know about Motion, but the others are certainly mostly made up from acquired technology.
Shake is from Nothing Real, who Apple purchased in February 2002, I believe. Little changed about it; they introduced Qmaster, which obviously has Apple's influence (Rendezvous), and they made the design a little more Apple-alike (anyone noticed the awesome icon set of the Pro apps? http://www.apple.com/software/pro/ ) - other than that, it's still a seperate product and there's nothing wrong with it. Oh and they made the price for the Mac OS X version half of that for the IRIX version, and got rid of the Windows NT one(?).
Logic is from Emagic, who Apple purchased beginning of July 2002. Again, the name is unchanged (although recently transformed into Apple's style - instead of "Platinum" and "Gold" editions and the likes, we now have "Express" and "Pro", like with Final Cut), most of the product feature set and GUI are unchanged. It is less integrated than the other pro apps, as Emagic continues to exist as a seperate entity (like FileMaker).
Final Cut is from Macromedia. Here's a comment at Slashdot about its early history: http://apple.slashdot.org/comments.p...69&cid=8900869 . The base work was done when Apple bought it, but they were the ones giving it an extremely well-done UI design and the proper marketing that even scared Adobe away.
The DVD Studio Pro feature set, UI, branding, etc. is all Apple's, but the core is mostly technology purchased from Astarte, a German company that used to offer CD, DVD, MPEG, etc. tools. They now do web content management systems or something. Astarte did software like "M.Pack", an MPEG compressor, back in the 90s. Astarte also brought us Toast CD-ROM Pro, btw. - which was later Adaptec Toast and now Roxio Toast.
Lots of other companies' assets were bought by Apple in the recent years, including such little-known names like Zayante.
So, yes, the Pro line of Apple software is a long-term strategy to combine others' technology and turn it into something that fits together neatly.
One final comment: when DVD Studio Pro 2 was presented (there's a QuickTime stream of it, NAB 2003 - alongside FinalCut Pro 4 and Shake 3), they made a remark on "someone else" barely catching up with version 1.5 of it. It's very true; Adobe Encore DVD IMHO does not even come close to what DVDSP2 can do. Horrible UI, hardly helpfully designed dialog boxes, a workflow that took me a while to understand - and with DVDSP3, the gap gets even worse. It boils down to this: you want low-budget DVD production; you better get a Mac.
I'm glad Apple is experimenting with stuff like gestures (though I'd prefer pie menus ) and I'm sure the result will trickle into the main interface.
I hope they are using these opportunities to actually trial things i.e. some things will fail and not make it. People get obsessed with Usability == consistency but you can't be consistent and improve and evolve at the same time. There needs to be balance.
Like when apple included a "grey" low color "theme" for professionals who dont want all the glitz and glam of Aqua. (Prefernces > Appearance > Choose "Graphite").
Why not include a "Pro" look?
Yeah, I do agree that its just a waste of time and the the actual UI is fine... and anyway.... a Pro has the apps always in front, not the Finder, etc...
So, to come back to the original, I don't see any interface changes.
OS X UI has to be consumer friendly first, but powerful enough for the pros...
This wasn't intended to be (yet another) discussion on whether Aqua should be more gray-blue, and darker. The idea was talk about some of the new UI elements in Motion.
For example, dashboards seem to me --on a graphic level -- like a possible solution for systemwide notification.
Here's how OS 9 did it:
Here's how Longhorn plans to do it:
Apple's current notification system -- icons bouncing frenetically in the Dock -- work well for some things, like apps needing YOUR ATTENTION RIGHT NOW, but less well for others. If future versions of OS X allow users to perform automated tasks that run in the background, Aqua will need expanded (and rather more subtle) ways to notify users of events. I could see a white, semi-transparent window, Dashboard-style, that pops up to hold contextual information and update users...
Originally posted by stupider...likeafox
I'm glad Apple is experimenting with stuff like gestures (though I'd prefer pie menus ) and I'm sure the result will trickle into the main interface.
Pie menus are definitely interesting. Still too a bit way-out for Aqua, I think.
The Dashboard UI seems to use a number of different diagrams to supplement -- or even replace -- traditional sliders and buttons, e.g.:
More Dashboard interfaces here.
I hope they are using these opportunities to actually trial things i.e. some things will fail and not make it. People get obsessed with Usability == consistency but you can't be consistent and improve and evolve at the same time. There needs to be balance.
Agree completely. Consistency is important, but not at the expense of innovation. Wasn't it Emerson who said, "A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds..."?
Originally posted by dviant
Regarding pie menus... is that what is used in Neverwinter Nights?
Yup.
Circular contextual menus are used increasingly in a quite a few games. The Sims uses pie menus too, to good effect.
I don't think it really makes sense, though, unless the menu actions in question can represented by very simple, almost self-explanatory icons. Not sure if this approach fits Aqua... yet.
I'm rather surprised that pie menus haven't caught on in Asian systems more.