Apple, give us the colors back (please)

[blow45]

Originally Posted by InuNacho

Heres a good one of Tiger. Colors and pretty big icons.

Tiger looks absolutely lovely and alive. What a misguided idea to say content is highlighted via the grey hell that is os x currently... Ui elements are part of the content because that's what you use to manipulate the content. In some cases they are the content, because when one uses the finder the content is precisely the folders on the side bar. In any case if people want no colour getting in the way of viewing the content (as if anyone has ever complained btw...) why not hide the sidebars or menu bars and/or go full screen.

If greyed out buttons are the way forward, if it's so great about content that os x should look like apple lisa in it's interface (btw the black and white with few shades of grey gfx in lisa made for more clear looking icons than the greyed out hues of os x currently, ironically), and they are so great in highlighting content, how come the recently released ibooks author doesn't have a greyed out tool bar? Isn't ibooks author about content too? Why not grey it out to so one can't tell apart the tool bar?

The answer is simple, it's not about usability, it's about os x branding to make it look like ios, taking ui cues from ios to help apple sell more, it's a marketing and not a ui decision, which is utterly sad. Because ibooks author isn't a staple of os x and not many people will look at it, it can get away with it. Funnily enough, mail on the ipad, has colour cues: inbox (white and blue) sent (white), trash (metallic), and arhive (brown), looking more like something vidid and joyful to use like something out of tiger... on the other hand os x mail doesn't have colour cues!!!!!! If that isn't a sign that some people in os x ui design are in dire confusion, I don't know what is...

In any case, a 67 over 51 vote here is ample evidence that colours should be back, as a universal option at least, when more than half of the users want them after such a long time that the os is out.

Take any good idea that apple has brought to os x and take a poll on it, if it's a really good idea, one worth sticking to, one not worth offering an option for as an alternative, then surely the majority won't be voting against it, surely a 30-70 vote in favour of it will be the case. User's will go, yeah that's pretty good, I got used to it, and it's helping. With grey icons most users go: I got used to it and I don't mind it that much. There's a vast difference there.

At the end of the day, a simple system prefs tick or colour or no colour items comes at no cost and both sides will be happy. Why not then?

Sadly, I think we are at a point where the os x team has so much to answer for in lion that the grey icons have become an ego thing for them to stick to, so they can say, hey at least we didn't change that too.

ps. I am having a hard time focusing on my content in os x btw, I am planning to send feedback to apple to grey out the damn dock too, it's too much for me to focus.

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Originally Posted by Mal

I loved the Leopard look. Much more polished than Tiger, but kept the colors. I'm not a fan of the grey look, and I wish they'd give us back the option. I used to have tons of custom icons, but they don't even show in the sidebar if I set them, so I just haven't bothered in a while.

jW

Same here, tons of custom folder icons on the sidebar... used to make going anywhere a breeze, they 've all reverted back to a generic greyed out folder, and now 20 items on my sidebar appear alike and have me reading to get to them.... they couldn't even keep the custom folder but grey it out instead of reverting to the generic folder look?

[andrewpturko]

Although I prefer the grey icons/buttons/etc. over the colored, at least give users an option to choose which they prefer in something like the general menu's appearance drop-down:

[TSE]

I've used Mac OS X since Panther and I really liked Tiger's UI best, but Snow Leopard isn't that much different. Tiger's icons and color scheme had much more character to it.

I don't see myself upgrading to Lion or Mountain Lion anytime soon from Snow Leopard, one of the many reasons is I cannot stand the grey. It's so boring.

[newagemac]

Like many others, I prefer the grey rather than the colors. I prefer the colors and focus to be on my content. The picture I am viewing, the website I am developing, the painting I'm drawing, the webpage I'm reading, and etc. The user interface should disappear and not demand attention away from what the user is actually using the computer for.

I really do like the "content first" direction Apple took Lion. Instead of putting the focus on Apple and their OS, they putting the focus on your own content and documents. The Lion OS itself just fades into the background as it should.

[tkermit]

Originally Posted by newagemac

The user interface should disappear and not demand attention away from what the user is actually using the computer for.

I really do like the "content first" direction Apple took Lion. Instead of putting the focus on Apple and their OS, they putting the focus on your own content and documents. The Lion OS itself just fades into the background as it should.

While I tend to generally agree with that (and am mostly fine with the grey icons), folders are arguably "your content" as well. And, to quote John Siracusa, the fact that custom icons for folders revert to generic folder icons when you put them in the sidebar

seems a little tyrannical, even for Apple.

[Sdreed91]

Originally Posted by newagemac

Like many others, I prefer the grey rather than the colors. I prefer the colors and focus to be on my content. The picture I am viewing, the website I am developing, the painting I'm drawing, the webpage I'm reading, and etc. The user interface should disappear and not demand attention away from what the user is actually using the computer for.

I really do like the "content first" direction Apple took Lion. Instead of putting the focus on Apple and their OS, they putting the focus on your own content and documents. The Lion OS itself just fades into the background as it should.

I agree. For me personally the look of Tiger just has to much going on. But that's just my own feeling. It just honestly for me feels a bit overwhelming. To much color pulling my eyesight all over. The grey is fine by me.

[lesterj5]

Originally Posted by InuNacho

I remember having the Aqua appearance set up in OS 9 because it was at the time the coolest thing ever. It reached it's peak at Tiger (which coincidentally is the best Mac OS ever) and has gone progressively downhill from there.

Give me an option to have color and you have my $30.

please ,please bring back the color ...I human and humans love color ..
It is the human thing to do .. I am not a machine ................

[blow45]

Close to 60% want the colours back...

For not even offering an option to customize this has got to be the single most misguided decision in ui design ever...

I am back on sl leopard on one of my macs, and I AM LOVING EVERY COLORFUL SECOND OF IT, AQUA SCROLL BARS INCLUDED.

Apple bring the damn colours back.

[David085]

I prefer the grey ones, Don't really care for the old style color ones.

[Mr. Retrofire]

Originally Posted by InuNacho

Give me an option to have color and you have my $30.

$19.99, not $30.



.

[blow45]

Originally Posted by Mr. Retrofire

$19.99, not $30.



.

$49.98 in total, $29.99 for the os and $19.99 for the service pack.

[klaxamazoo]

I finally gave in and bought Pathfinder mainly for the color icons. It is significantly easier to navigate around now.

Personally, Lion was a pretty expensive OS X upgrade.
$30 for Lion
$50 for BusyCal to replace lost functionality that iCal used to have
$40 for PathFinder to bring back color icons (and gain tab browsing, finally)
$12 for TotalSpaces to bring back Spaces and Expose.

Total cost: $132

[blow45]

plus $15-20 for ntfs compatibility broken in lion.

[hamis92]

Originally Posted by newagemac

Like many others, I prefer the grey rather than the colors. I prefer the colors and focus to be on my content. The picture I am viewing, the website I am developing, the painting I'm drawing, the webpage I'm reading, and etc. The user interface should disappear and not demand attention away from what the user is actually using the computer for.

I really do like the "content first" direction Apple took Lion. Instead of putting the focus on Apple and their OS, they putting the focus on your own content and documents. The Lion OS itself just fades into the background as it should.

Perhaps I just don't get it but how is dressing iCal into faux leather or making Address Book look like its real-world counterpart putting "content first"? Same with upcoming Notes app as well as Game Center. If that isn't emphasizing chrome over content I don't know what is.

As much as I agree with you that this "content first" ideology is a great thing, I fail to see how Apple is going into that direction when they are turning their apps into an inconsistent, overly skeuomorphic mess.

[Over The Hill]

Originally Posted by roadbloc

Best OS X ever. In fact, best OS ever.

Quite a ridiculous statement to make.

[Ddyracer]

Originally Posted by klaxamazoo

I finally gave in and bought Pathfinder mainly for the color icons. It is significantly easier to navigate around now.

Personally, Lion was a pretty expensive OS X upgrade.
$30 for Lion
$50 for BusyCal to replace lost functionality that iCal used to have
$40 for PathFinder to bring back color icons (and gain tab browsing, finally)
$12 for TotalSpaces to bring back Spaces and Expose.

Total cost: $132

You could have saved 22$ and got Totalfinder: http://totalfinder.binaryage.com. Then to get color install this http://www.macupdate.com/app/mac/43078/sideeffects/.

[roadbloc]

Originally Posted by Over The Hill

Quite a ridiculous statement to make.

Why? It is the OS I have enjoyed the most out of all the OSs I've used over the years. How is it a ridiculous statement exactly?

[Over The Hill]

Originally Posted by roadbloc

Why? It is the OS I have enjoyed the most out of all the OSs I've used over the years. How is it a ridiculous statement exactly?

I didn’t see „in my opinion“ anywhere.

[netdog]

Apple rarely makes what users say they want and it has worked out okay so far.

[klaxamazoo]

Originally Posted by Ddyracer

You could have saved 22$ and got Totalfinder: http://totalfinder.binaryage.com. Then to get color install this http://www.macupdate.com/app/mac/43078/sideeffects/.

I tried TotalFinder but there is too much lag on my Macbook Air running Lion. It seems to have a problem with the new drag-n-drop animation.

Side Effects stopped working correctly with 10.7.4. However, I did just reinstall it and followed the new 10.7.4 instructions at the bottom of the Installation Summary detailing how to manually changed the icons back to the color ones supplied by Side Effects. So that is a lot better.

[roadbloc]

Originally Posted by Over The Hill

I didn’t see „in my opinion“ anywhere.

Oh, I'm sorry, I didn't realize people don't have the ability to tell when a statement is an opinion or fact. I will be sure to make sure I confirm it in bold font in future.

[hamis92]

Originally Posted by netdog

Apple rarely makes what users say they want and it has worked out okay so far.

True - people slowly stop complaining when they see Apple won't grant their wishes

[charlieegan3]

While I prefere the grey ones I think it would be nice to have the option.

[blow45]

Originally Posted by netdog

Apple rarely makes what users say they want and it has worked out okay so far.

This is one of the folklore about apple that it's oft repeated and it's of course downright wrong. It's misinterpreting what Job's thought, and Job's didn't think the apple user base was made up of clueless idiots who didn't know what they wanted when using their devices, he thought that the average user didn't have a vision about the future of technology. And he was right of course. As evidenced by 80% of this forum saying what the hell is an ipad for, for months before its launch.

But apple's user base, esp. its dev, scientific, pro and creative user base, not soccer moms and chinese trophy wives (their current focus) has not only known damn well what they want, the 've actually made apple what it is today via their suggestions. Apple has either listened to their requests, or even appropriated ideas floating around to be what it is today. And more than they 'd like to admit of course they've done backflips. They've withdrawn products their user base didn't want and they 've restored options that they initially took away (matte on the mbp 15", orientation lock on the ipad, expose now in ml, etc. etc.) because their users wanted them back.

It's also a matter of whose judgment within apple at any point in apple's history they've been listening to. It certainly didn't turn out alright for apple on the brink of bankruptcy to listen to people within the organization before SJ's return. SJ brought in a lot of very talented people, who's judgment on a lot of choices was right. But several of them have left either before or after his passing, ui talent has left, programmers have gone... It's one thing to listen to the judgment of Bertrand Serlet instead of some user request, and it's another thing to listen to the current os x team. When Jon Ive distances himself on record from their ui design, when he even looks displeased about certain of their choices, that's saying something. And it's not saying something particularly flattering about the os x team. Almost no one who's got an iota of understanding is saying anything really flattering for example about the new look of contacts and calendar, some might not mind so much. This apparently isn't alarming anyone from their os x ui team.

It's one thing when you can say redmond start your photocopiers and rightfully brag about how ms has stolen even the colour scheme of your ical app, it's quite another when people either don't like at all or merely tolerate, and certainly no one's getting excited about your ical ui choices. Apple didn't get to where it is today by having users tolerate their choices, they got their by getting people excited and appreciative of their way of doing things which was much better and more elegant than the competition's. Right now we go oh here's ical looking like the ipad app, ho hum, that's it. They should question their judgment when people go ho hum, and lately they 've going like that for a lot, a lot of their decisions.

And here we are, to focus again on the topic here, talking about color cues, color sidebars and ui elements. A LOT of people have again, and again and again explained why it's a ui crime to take away color cues. At best it will be immaterial to apple, but they are not really going to gain any more users who ll gone go, oh, love the grey circa 1980s sidebar I ll suggest macs to friends.

Why then are they not offering an option?

[numbersyx]

Originally Posted by maflynn

Agreed, it was less bloated fast and feature complete imo.

Definitely far more stable. No spinning wheel for me then. I actually have no problems with the grey icons...