Hello everyone, I'm still quite new to this project, so I apologize ahead of time if this email is just crazy talk. It seems to me that the theme of this project is to empower users to change simple paper resources into powerful office documents with ease. While this is perhaps oversimplifying it, it would seem that maybe the theme of this project should symbolize that.
For example, the paper icon should appear once and only on the outside of the design. Otherwise, it appears that there is several smaller pieces of paper on top, which looks odd (sorry for the lack of specificity). A good example of this is Nik's rough draft: http://wiki.documentfoundation.org/File:Onecorner.jpg (which is awesome). Also, it might be helpful to decide on a mascot (sorry if my ignorance is showing) and an overarching color scheme for the suite, not individual programs. I notice that green seems to be a predominant color for the website, but it also seems to be the main color of the spreadsheet program; furthermore, the color of main screen icon is blue (in the windows version at least) when that seems to be the color for the writer program. I guess what I'm getting at is that any banner or suite specific design/marketing device should have a consistent look that doesn't match any specific program within the suite. For example, (and I'm sorry in advance to invoke a Microsoft example) Office 2010 has a suite color scheme of yellow while its individual parts have their own colors, Access has red and Excel has green. I'd be quick to point out that this is not a Microsoft specific phenomenon, so I would ask that this not be made into a we should mimic Microsoft idea. -Daniel Merker ________________________________________ From: Tobias Bernard [berto...@gmail.com] Sent: Saturday, February 19, 2011 3:35 PM To: design@libreoffice.org Subject: Re: [libreoffice-design] They need graphic material, WE NEED A MOTIF! i love the website-design proposal!! it doesn't just look AWESOME but could also make the website more usable, as you said. Am Sonntag, den 20.02.2011, 01:40 +1100 schrieb Nik: > Hullo Design! > (whoa, once again, LOOOOONG Email, sorry, but these issues were > "circumnavigated", they really need to be brought up). > > This will seem counter-productive to say but I REALLY don't want to slow > us down! Especially now in this time of urgency. > *(I even have a very quick and stringent timeline/plan for execution of > these suggestions at the bottom of this long email)* > But I've been putting this off for some time already and the situation > will get worse if we do much more without considering it; > > There are many *many* things that need to be designed RIGHT NOW: > banners, cd covers, collateral, ads, website graphics, flyers. > The Community cannot wait any more. > Because we are unable to provide all of this right now, the community > will go ahead and make their own (often harmful to our desire for a > professional image). It is already happening. > Right now we are asked to make banners, the point of which is to be seen > by as many people as possible. > I don't think we're ready for that yet to be quite frank. But we have > to, nonetheless, it's for the best cause! > > Since the MIME-type icons have been the only major work so far to go > through rigorous iteration within this community, their design is being > appropriated onto all the formats we are working on; > - The fund-raising banners are using the "pale innerborder + dark > outerborder + clipped corner" treatment from the logo/icons > - The impress templates are using the radial gradient / vignette from > the icons (this is a great project/initiative by the way) > - Paulo has turned the icons into --may I be so rude as to say-- F#©k!n% > GORGEOUS wallpapers! =O > > But there is a problem. These design elements made sense on the icons; > - Coloured outline: a folder lining > - Pale inner border: depth of paper-stack > - Radial gradient: top-lighting of pile > - Clipped corner: from our logo > > But they don't make sense everywhere, and right now they are being > carried over to other formats due to convenience/consensus-status. > *This problem and the other one mentioned above, could be fixed if we > created a Design motif or theme;* > - We could use it (the motif) without mixing metaphors > - The /community/ could use it without having to design from scratch and > undoing our work on brand consistency > > This wasn't a problem in OOo because there was; > - The Seagulls = theme (openness, sky, flying, freedom) > - The wired gulls (as fugly as they were) = motif > > The usual process for this (I know most of you will know this, but bare > with me one sec) is that; > 1. The chief characteristic of the company/org is identified. Specified > as a desirable "image/perception". > 2. A strong logo is created, which allows for; > 3. The extrapolation/derivation of a design motif. (preferably VECTOR > and simple, it will need to be printed on LARGE materials) > 4. They form the basis for a start to the style guide, including Brand > guidelines and colours which reflect the "image/perception" > 5. High quality stock photography is used to support (which is glaringly > absent in LibO) > 6. Templates are made available to all, to make it easier to adhere to > this consistent "image/perception" > > I think it has (wisely) been decided that our LibO design /theme/ is: > "paper". To build on user familiarity with a paper office. Good, "check". > I'll skip my reservations about the logo and deciding colours without a > "theme" for now. > If anyone has a D90+ / 450D+ or other higher quality DSLR, please > consider taking some stock photography we can use (the potential subject > matter would need to be discussed in another thread). > > Right now the closest thing we have to a motif is the clipped corner, > which is promising, BUT... > At the moment *all* things are inheriting a "bordered box and corner" > which creates many "cornered boxes" on one page, this isn't a great move. > It reduces the effectiveness of the corner design if it is in too many > places, being used like a layout element rather than as a branding element. > For example, it is present on the LibO homepage in 6 places right now, > with no rhythm or alignment. > One very prominent clipped corner on the page should be enough. This > isn't to say it shouldn't reappear elsewhere, but the dark grey > "floating" corner element should NOT appear elsewhere in the layout. > Repetition isn't always a sign of consistency, sometimes it's a great > sign of limitations. > For example, I've uploaded a (nasty and rough) example of how I would > imagine 1 corner would suffice and make a bigger impact; > http://wiki.documentfoundation.org/File:Onecorner.jpg > It could also serve some important purpose: download button / > back-to-top button / or if LibO is feeling adventurous and moves the > Logo to the top-right, it could serve as the home button. > > But this is all branding-speak. What I want to say, loud and clear; > *WE NEED A DESIGN-MOTIF. URGENTLY.* > > I propose the following timeline because it is necessary and because I > have heard a few people (Johannes? Paulo? Jaron?) suggest they may be > available soon. > - *2 or 3 days* to discuss on this list ideas about what the motif > should be. What the "perception" should be. > - *1 or 2 days* to design a vector composition > - *1 day* when Bernhard+Christoph+Ivan (as the most-active and senior > members of the Design list) decide on 1 motif > - *1 day* to refine as per feedback. > So this could be all done in a week if we are agile. > > I know it isn't ideal, but the current logo was made in the same > circumstance. And we cannot go on treating the logo/icons as > Design:formatting elements!!! > As soon as we have a Design motif, in a couple of variations, it will be > easier to make everything look professional and clean (assuming the > motif itself looks this way). > > In the mean time, I strongly recommend that the fund-raising banners be > made *IN AS SIMPLE A WAY AS POSSIBLE!* > So that they do not hint at a Design/style that we will not adhere to > long-term, or create a perception of a Design direction which has not > already been decided. > They should be as /neutral/ and /occasion/-specific as possible and bare > no strong /stylistic/ elements whatsoever. Otherwise people will come to > think of them as the LibO "style" and we will have to honour it. > Right now too many > different/incomplete/disparate/unintentional/inconsistent design items > are making their way to the public and our ability to intelligently > "master" a design style or direction for LibO is slipping out of our > hands. The more this continues, the more LibO will be a haphazard > collection of randomly made design elements. > It'll be like OOo all over again. > > I would really appreciate if some of the Design leadership (Bernhard, > Christoph, Ivan) commented on whether they thought this plan is > feasible. Or updated it with times that are more appropriate. > > > On 2/19/2011 9:28 AM, Christoph Noack wrote: > > @ Paulo, Nik: If you have some time, could you please dive into working > > on the missing graphics? It would be great if you could coordinate this > > on this list, to avoid doubled effort. If you miss the time, I'll jump > > in tomorrow ... but I'd like to work on other less visible funding > > stuff :-\ > > > > The missing items are listed here: > > http://wiki.documentfoundation.org/Design/FoundationChallenge#Required_Items > Hi Paulo and Christoph, > I will work on some Community banners seeing as how they are urgent. > I think Paulo can work on the same thing without "doubling" our efforts > seeing as how multiple banners are needed. > Whaddaya reckon? > > > > > you know, some people do also miss normal web banners. > > > Yes. Most of them are called "Marketing executives" ;) > But they invented Google-ads to satisfy /that/ crowd. > > ... > > IVAN!!! > I know you're immensely busy old chap, but I'd be super-interested to > know what you think about all this. > > -Nik > > -- Unsubscribe instructions: E-mail to design+h...@libreoffice.org List archive: http://listarchives.libreoffice.org/www/design/ *** All posts to this list are publicly archived for eternity *** -- Unsubscribe instructions: E-mail to design+h...@libreoffice.org List archive: http://listarchives.libreoffice.org/www/design/ *** All posts to this list are publicly archived for eternity ***
