出自UXGuide.net

Application Icons

目录 1 User Application Icons 2 Viewer, Player, and Accessory Icons 3 Utility Icons

Application icons are the most visible to users. Since they are seen in the Finder and the Dock even when your application is not running, they form a significant part of a user’s first impressions.

User Application Icons

Mac OS X user application icons should be vibrant and inviting, and should immediately convey the application’s purpose. The TextEdit icon, for example, indicates clearly that this application is for creating text documents.

Figure 11-4 The TextEdit application icon makes it obvious what this application is for

If the primary function of your application is creating or handling media, its icon should display the media the application creates or views. If appropriate, the icon should also contain a tool that communicates the type of task the application allows the user to accomplish. The Preview icon, for example, uses a magnification tool to help convey that the application can be used to view pictures. If you include a supportive tool element, it should closely relate to the base object that it rests upon.

Figure 11-5 The Preview application icon: An example of a tool element

In the Stickies application icon, however, the yellow rectangles are easily identifiable as sticky notes; the icon doesn’t include a tool because it isn’t necessary to tell the icon’s story.

Figure 11-6 The Stickies application icon: Effective without the addition of a tool

Notice that the text in the Stickies icon is actual text, not simply wavy lines representing text. If you want to “greek” text in an icon, use actual text and make it unreadable by shrinking it or doubling the layers.

Generally, Mac OS X user application icons are designed to appear as if they’re sitting on a desk in front of you. They have a slightly diminishing perspective (they are wider at the bottom). For more information, see “Icon Perspectives and Materials.”

Viewer, Player, and Accessory Icons

Some applications that represent objects or well known products, such as Calculator and QuickTime Player, are most easily recognized by the symbols or objects themselves. When creating icons for such applications, it’s more aesthetically pleasing to create a simplified, idealized representation of the object or symbol, instead of using an actual screen shot of the software. Re-creating the object is particularly important when users could confuse the icon with the actual interface.

Figure 11-7 The icons for QuickTime Player, DVD Player, and Calculator

These icons, many of which are a precursor of what you’ll see when you open the application, use a straight-on perspective (rather than the “on a desktop” user application style). You never see the Calculator onscreen in three dimensions, for example, so its icon doesn’t depict it that way.

Utility Icons

Icons for utility applications—which are used less often and not simply for fun or creative activities— convey a more serious tone than those for user applications. Color in these icons is desaturated, predominantly gray, and added only when necessary to clearly communicate what the applications do.

Figure 11-8 Discriminating use of color in the Activity Monitor and System Profiler icons

Because utility applications are normally focused on a narrow set of tasks, it’s best to keep the number of elements in the icon to a minimum. The focus should be a single object that represents what the utility does. The perspective of utility icons is straight-on, as if they are on a shelf in front of you. For more information, see “Icon Perspectives and Materials.”