FM grey GUI [WAS: Windows 7 - Snap]

[Frank Stearns]

On Thu, 3 Feb 2011, Syed Zaeem Hosain (Syed.Hosain at aeris.net) wrote:

> Totally, TOTALLY agreed!
>
> I live with it, but detest it. :(


I agree as well; but these days it's easy to get seduced -- it's one 
downside of 16 million+ color, 1920x1280 displays. Another downside 
includes the well-intentioned GUI designers and marketeers who have 
never "lived" the task at hand. They might think they understand the 
task from their outside view, but they've never actually *worked* the 
task from the inside to any depth of time or experience.

I was doing some design work on another SW product (non-Frame related 
database product, sorry!) and was thinking, "ooooh, this looks 
'nice,'" and I appreciated the way "themes" and "color schemes" could 
be managed during development.

But once past initial graphical design phase and the more I started 
working with actual data in this environment, the more I started to 
dislike the graphical component because somehow, the presentation of 
data was losing something.

I have since chucked most of the "pretty" and "cool" in favor of data 
"intelligibility".

To paraphrase Stuart, the GUI should fit the application and content; 
it should never, ever distract from the task at hand.

YMMV.

Frank

Frank Stearns Associates | makers of IXgen(tm) for FrameMaker(r)
franks at fsatools.com <mailto:franks at fsatools.com>
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> -----Original Message-----
> From: framers-bounces at lists.frameusers.com [mailto:framers-bounces at lists.frameusers.com] On Behalf Of Stuart Rogers
> Sent: Thursday, February 03, 2011 7:57 AM
> To: framers at lists.frameusers.com; kverma at adobe.com
> Subject: FM grey GUI [WAS: Windows 7 - Snap]
>
> On 03/02/2011 10:04 AM, mkopen wrote:
>
>  the new grey Stalin gothic, I mean, Adobe GUI
>
> <rant>
>
> Bang on, Mike.  I'm also addressing this message to Kapil Verma, who was recently introduced as FM's product manager.  The low-contrast, monochrome GUI in FM 9 is not just butt-ugly, it's HARD TO USE.  It GETS IN THE WAY. It PREVENTS ME FROM EASILY ACHIEVING MY GOALS.
>
> There may be a valid argument for low-contrast grey interfaces in programs like Illustrator and Photoshop, where the user's perception of colours in the working document could be adversely influenced by colours and contrasts in the GUI.  But FM is NOT a graphics design program.  The precaution of eliminating colour and contrast in the GUI, if that's what it is, is misplaced, unjustified, and highly counterproductive.
>
> Or if it's a marketing decision, originating in the "imperative" that Adobe products must all look the same to protect "the brand," remember that Henry Ford's user-defying mantra, "Any customer can have a car painted any color that he wants so long as it is black" has been discredited as a marketing strategy for an awfully long time.
>
> I strongly recommend, Kapil, that you call together the graphic designers (and marketing "branders") who have obviously had overwhelming influence on this GUI, thank them for their efforts, and politely show them the door.  Then get some USER INTERACTION experts and USABILITY experts on board and set them to undoing the damage that the artsy/marketsy folks have inflicted.
>
> The world (of technical writing) would be a better place.
>
> </rant>
>
> Thanks,
>
> --
> Stuart Rogers
> Technical Communicator
> Phoenix Geophysics Limited
> 3781 Victoria Park Avenue, Unit 3
> Toronto, ON, Canada  M1W 3K5
> +1 (416) 491-7340 x 325
>
> http://www.phoenix-geophysics.com
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