Apple's Designers Clashing Over 'Tacky' Software Skeuomorphisms

[MacFly123]

I think its the little things that set Apple apart.

The best example is the volume slider in iOS6, as you change the direction you hold the phone - the reflection changes on the button.

While not having little things like that wouldnt hurt, it would toss them into the pile of simple and lazy like ui design everyone else.

The Podcast app suffers from this too. Bleh.

See iCal's one of my favourites. Reminders? Can't figure out what that's meant to be.

As someone who sells Apple products though? Customers reactions tend to be 'Ooooohhhh' rather than 'Ewwwwwww'

I love/ hate these looks too. I think it goes to show apple has great graphic designers on hand, but then again, it's not very creative or original. iOS and OS X don't have that the modern and creative UI that WP8 and Windows 8 have.

iCal is the only one that is outright ugly. I can't think of any other Apple app that looks particularly bad.

What drives me nuts is changing from month to month in iCal. If forces me to wait for the page to turn. Really annoying when trying to go three months down the road quickly.

So maybe I'm just old, but the elements work well for me. I can't figure out how to do anything in Windows 8 so I'm not terribly interested in what the designers responsible for that have to say.

Making things on the screen work like they do in the "real world" has always been an Apple trademark. Why all the fuss about something that helps people connect more naturally and intutively?

Is visual masturbation a bad thing?

There's always been lots of talk about this in the forums, good to see an article on it.

I've often felt Garage Band was an excellent example of these so called "skeumorphisms" done well.

It is all about BALANCE!

I like modern clean digital design, but the little cultural enrichments can also be nice and creative. The dificult part is not overdoing it, and implementing them in a way that does not inhibit functionality.

I like a lot of the design that Mattias is doing in Android now and I never thought I'd say that lol.

I also like (Formerly known as) "Metro" on the XBOX dashboard with the white gradient background. However, on Windows 8 I think it looks hideous like some preschool play toy!

BALANCE!

I think Apple does need to scale back a bit though on the skeuomorphism. But Apple does do a ton of very amazing, beautiful, fun, and creative design!

 

[faroZ06]

stop putting launchpad on computers that are not touch based. you got microsoft to copy it now the joke is over.

Just don't use it if you don't want it? It serves the same purpose as either putting all of your apps on the Dock or making a folder on the Dock your Applications folder; plus, you get notification badges. Since I'm at Snow Leopard, I just put all of my apps on the Dock.

 

[fpsBeaTt]

Wow 17 pages already on this article? Quite a surprise

It involves the word 'masturbation'; I expected this.

 

[Renzatic]

Thanks for the laugh… to both your comments.

Actually, I don't mind a bit of transparency if restrained and appropriate. But there was nothing restrained or appropriate, or even mildly congruous about Aero in my opinion. It looks like it was designed by a room full of executives who each wanted something different—and all got what they wanted!

Yeah, it was a little overboard in Vista/7. MS having to apply a "frost" effect to the text just so it could be seen while overlaid against a glazed transparent backdrop should've been a clue that they went a little too far with the bling effects.

Aero in and of itself wasn't a bad idea. The whole idea that the content of a window should be focus rather than the chrome could be considered a pretty basic UI truism. Shame they went a little too crazy with it.

 

[Lark.Landon]

It involves the word 'masturbation'; I expected this.

Ah that would explain it. It *really* didn't occur to me.

 

[D.T.]

A "Remind Me" date and a due date are slightly different.

Hmm, OK, that's interesting, I'll have to experiment ... the new Reminders + iOS + iCloud has been pretty solid for me, but I'm just using it for casual reminders (more hard due dates [especially business related] I schedule in Calendar, or Producteev, etc.)

 

[Rychy]

I think it's an absolutely horrible look ... glad to hear there's internal strife over it, I've been hoping for a cleaner more consistent look across apps.

 

[wikus]

Again, design egos clash. These so called designers need to take a chill pill. Apple doesn't do their designs in a tacky way, they do it right. That's why it's visually different from all other competitors like Samesong's nature bs on top of Android OS.

It's always ex-designers too. They're ex for a reason.

Apple is not gonna go in direction that Microsoft and Google (identically) follow. They use very similar colors, styles and layouts.

I'm sorry, but youre wrong. You may have been right if the discussion were about an actually well designed UI, but not here.

I say that as a *current* designer.

 

[ccrandall77]

Hmm, OK, that's interesting, I'll have to experiment ... the new Reminders + iOS + iCloud has been pretty solid for me, but I'm just using it for casual reminders (more hard due dates [especially business related] I schedule in Calendar, or Producteev, etc.)

It's weird... I would think the way it's done in iCloud (set a due date and an alert... actually 2 alerts... separately) is better. But that's just me.

My main point, though, is that I wish Apple would nail the basics and then focus on the aesthetics. I think both are important, but if an app looks great but has poor functionality, it is worthless.

I do prefer the theme that apps like Safari use instead of what Apple is doing with Calendar, Reminders, etc. Apparently others disagree with me, but I believe it was Ars Technica that made a good point that in trying to mimic real-life objects it potentially limits the functionality of the application. I think it would be far preferable for keep the UI consistent and functional, but others want something different. That's cool.. perhaps something like TinkerTool would allow someone to choose between a more traditional theme and the new skeuomorphic themes?

 

[bobhammer]

I actually love the design, what's wrong with it???...Dont understand why people are so oppose of it!

 

[coachingguy]

Yea, they've gone over the top with the "visual masturbation", I'm getting older, I can only go 10,12 times a day...

I dropped iCal for BusyCal for both how it looks, but mostly because it "just works".

Coachingguy

 

[terrapinjess]

Floppy Shredder

How many iPhone users have ever actually seen a paper shredder in real life? Is it necessary? Or just visual masturbation? "To me, it's lipstick on a pig," says the source intimately familiar with Apple's design process.

So, you're telling me that the Floppy Disk icon for saving in Microsoft Word is any different? Do kids who grew up in the age of after-floppy know what that symbol even is??? Come on now, Apple Basher... Let's open our eyes, shall we?

 

[kalsta]

Yeah, it was a little overboard in Vista/7. MS having to apply a "frost" effect to the text just so it could be seen while overlaid against a glazed transparent backdrop should've been a clue that they went a little too far with the bling effects.

Exactly. And the fact that it looked like dog poo should have been a clue too. Sometimes we overcomplicate these things!

 

[ps45]

What drives me nuts is changing from month to month in iCal. If forces me to wait for the page to turn. Really annoying when trying to go three months down the road quickly.

Agreed. This is an example of the worst culprits. I don't so much mind the visual design throwbacks, but there is no need for a calendar to be one month to a page anymore.

Surely the flexibility that the LCD screen has brought us means that we should be able to smoothly scroll through month after month, free of the phoney barrier between the 31st of one month, and the 1st of the next.

Take visual cues from ye olde technology of yesteryear: fine. But there is no need to mimic the functionality of it where it can be improved upon.

 

[chrmjenkins]

...except for the stupid "1970s leather" look right now on iPad Calendar...

I stand corrected if that's what it looks like on the iPad but Forstall still had nothing to do with the osx app.

 

[Rogifan]

Forstall has no say over OSX graphics, which is shown. He's iOS only. I don't think anything on iOS is egregious like that is.

He worked on OSX before iOS. I can't believe he has zero input on OSX direction.

 

[Cinematic]

Ugliest. Software. Ever.

Get platinum with this:

http://macnix.blogspot.com/2011/07/change-mac-os-x-107-lion-ical-skin-to.html

Never look back.

 

[Rogifan]

If you want Plain Jane graphics, go to Android... or, even worse IMO, Windows mobile. Talk about ugly! Primary colors, square shapes.

One of the greatest strengths of Apple products and operating systems has been the intense attention to graphic detail. I can't believe a company as vast with talent would toss operating capabilities in favor of graphic design - no matter what. Quality in every aspect seems to be the Apple strength. I, for one, hope Apple "stays the course" in its use of creative graphics.

Suggestion: Perhaps a selection of skins for various apps might be appropriate - then everyone could either choose the one they like OR possibly create their own. Or, better yet, open skin design to developers in the App Store.

I wouldn't mind Windows if the colors weren't so gawd awful. I'd love a choice of 'skins' or themes (though I hate that word) so if you like the more skeumorphic designs you can have them and if you like more minimalist you can have that too.

 

[mdriftmeyer]

Book case and the iBooks app look great. iCal feaux look needs to go.

 

[fpsBeaTt]

Ah that would explain it. It *really* didn't occur to me.

Everyone enjoys an ol' chin-wag about masturbation.

 

[theineffablebob]

I find the touches whimsical as well especially since they are done really well. You have to execute the idea with skill or it will come off as tacky.

As for pointing to Windows 8 as something good? Are you kidding me? They ripped off a bunch of websites like United Colors of Benetton and swiss traffic signs.

Their use traffic symbols from Switzerland's highways makes even less sense.

The colours used in Windows 8 make me want to barf.

OS X has a long history of skeuomorphism in the toolbar icons. As long as you design the elements well then I don't see a problem. MSFT is really bad at the concept as witnessed in their Microsoft Bob product.

Yes, they're done well, but they are still very tacky. Apple does it because it makes their applications seem more approachable, but any designer, even Apple's designers, will balk at them.


You're also mindlessly bashing Windows 8. Traffic symbols and colors? lol. Also, I don't even know why you brought up Microsoft Bob. The Microsoft that made Bob is not the same as the Microsoft that's developing Windows 8.

 

[mdriftmeyer]

He worked on OSX before iOS. I can't believe he has zero input on OSX direction.

As a former colleague of Scott's he had no work on Core Graphics or any part of the WindowServer, Kernel, Networking, etc.

Scott's area of expertise involved AppKit APIs.

 

[Rogifan]

As a former colleague of Scott's he had no work on Core Graphics or any part of the WindowServer, Kernel, Networking, etc.

Scott's area of expertise involved AppKit APIs.

Thanks for the clarification.

 

[D.T.]

That's cool.. perhaps something like TinkerTool would allow someone to choose between a more traditional theme and the new skeuomorphic themes?

Yeah, the resources for all the graphic elements are stored right in the package ... in fact, if you right-click and "show package contents", you can look in the resources folder and see all the graphic assets (basically a collection of PNG files).

 

[SchneiderMan]

You obviously haven't seen a pig with lipstick on. Let me tell you, it's magnificent.