7 Replies Latest reply on Jun 20, 2014 4:40 PM by Jamil Snead

    SolidWorks icons survey

    Jamil Snead
    Jamil Snead Jun 18, 2014 2:49 PM

      Did anyone here get the survey about new SolidWorks icons? I am curious what other people thought of the new icon set they are considering.

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        • Re: SolidWorks icons survey
          Dwight Livingston
          Dwight Livingston Jun 18, 2014 4:40 PM (in response to Jamil Snead)

          Jamil

           

          Usually product development ideas are shared in confidence. Was that part of the agreement for this survey? Anyway, I would be careful not to reveal anything that was presented unless you know it is okay, or if you don't care about being asked to review such things in the future.

           

          Dwight

            • Re: SolidWorks icons survey
              Jamil Snead
              Jamil Snead Jun 18, 2014 4:46 PM (in response to Dwight Livingston)

              Thanks for the heads up Dwight. I wasn't planning on sharing anything from it, I was just curious about people's responses.

                • Re: SolidWorks icons survey
                  Jerry Steiger
                  Jerry Steiger Jun 19, 2014 4:05 PM (in response to Jamil Snead)

                  Jamil,

                   

                  I never got to the icons. I started the survey, got distracted by work, and by the time I had time to look at it again, I had an email saying that they had gotten all the responses they needed and the survey was closed!

                   

                  Jerry S.

                  • Re: SolidWorks icons survey
                    Dwight Livingston
                    Dwight Livingston Jun 20, 2014 4:05 PM (in response to Jamil Snead)

                    It's a tough job they have. You want to look fresh and modern, but it is seems a waste to make people spend time relearning what the icons mean. For icon design, you want to look good but also be clear. Styling can get too subtle. Reminds me of Lennon's line: got to be good looking 'cause he's so hard to see.

                     

                    Google maps is an example. Showing back roads in medium grey on a light grey background is quite stylish and impossible to use. I'm back to my old paper map books.

                     

                    Dwight

                      • Re: SolidWorks icons survey
                        Jamil Snead
                        Jamil Snead Jun 20, 2014 4:40 PM (in response to Dwight Livingston)

                        It certainly is a tough job, especially because everybody has a different opinion about what looks good. The particular icon set they were presenting wasn't anything drastic, mainly just a different color scheme. But even if certain things require re-learning there will be people who complain about it initially but will get used to it eventually. As long as they don't keep changing things as soon as the users get used to the old style then I'm ok with it.

                         

                        On the other hand I still hate the new Office interface (specifically Excel), even after years of using it. I still can't find the command I am looking for half the time.

                  • Re: SolidWorks icons survey
                    Andrew Brown
                    Andrew Brown Jun 20, 2014 2:46 PM (in response to Jamil Snead)

                    I just hope they don't completely tweak the UI to match the horrible new UI that MS Office uses.  I've seen newer versions of other CAD packages that use it.