Paul Thurrot and Rafael Rivera have some good shots of the new theme for classic applications in windows 8. Looking pretty good – too bad Microsoft didn’t come up with a new icon set as well. Still, white window borders with a white taskbar and these new widgets and flat appearance… Nice.
Way too… bright and white. Can you say “migraine inducer,” Microsoft?
I’m no fan of Aero’s stupid rounded edges and translucency, but at least the darker colors are easier on the eyes.
And that is to say nothing of the fact that it’s every bit as ugly and bland as it is an eyesore…
Edited 2012-06-14 23:31 UTC
One of the more common complaints of GNUStep is that its so flat and gray:
http://www.roard.com/screenshots/gnustep-desktop.png
http://www.gnustep.org/images/full-screenshot1.png
Maybe they were (are) ahead of their time?
I’m all for minimalism and consistency (like Haiku or to an extent GNUStep or an un-buggered Gnome3 with the default settings nuked), but this Windows 8 looks kind of jarring with all those disjointed colors. Windows 7 is not bad, the window borders are way too thick though. I don’t think I really care for this new Windows 8 look, hopefully they have some more customization options than what is shown.
Once again, Small & Limp proves once again they just do not get it. They think simplicity means stupidity, and their customers are devoid of any aesthetics.
*Sigh*. 8 tries, 8 misses.
I guess there’s always Windows 9 to look forward to.
Well…. MS could never use gradients and transparency properly, so it did detract from clarity and usability when they implemented it. They tended to go too transparent on transparency, too garish on the gradients, and too pillowy on embosses.
And now they have went right on past sanity and ended up equally as far away in the opposite direction. There were some nicer looking concept mockups floating around a few months ago, that showed how nice a metro desktop could have looked. Too bad they did not copy that.
Aero was much better, Windows 8 look is hard on the eyes and looks horrible. I guess I’m sticking with Win 7.
I’ve been trying to push my company into Linux for some time now, with Windows 8 on the Presidents spare computer, the decision was made and now I get to deploy Mint or Suse. As I mentioned one other time 200K licenses that will not be renewed.
Liar
It looks like that crappy high contrast theme for old monitors.
People like Aero and the Start Menu. What kind of idiot thinks taking away what the customers like is a good strategy? Especially when they can be optional? Freakin Sinofsky, hurry up and release this piece of crap so the rest of the world can see what an idiot you are.
Edited 2012-06-15 03:47 UTC
I agree, thought the same when I first saw it. I have to be from some other planet, because I just can’t seem to understand why some people like it, but it seems they do. Well, weirder things have happened.
I agree.
I think they have confused minimalism with blandness.
It also hurts my eyes, looking into a bright white lightbulb is not my idea of a good time.
Indeed. It is certainly possible to create minimalistic, clean themes while still retaining clarity and visual attractiveness, it just requires some basic understanding of interface design and visual acuity. Also, removing *all* depth from the theme is leaping tens of years backwards in interface design; subtle shadows, gradients and 3D-depth is used to signal e.g. importance of elements or interactivity of such.
Since I’m much more used to GTK+/GNOME I’ll provide a few links to themes that are quite simple yet which I personally really like a lot: http://gnome-look.org/content/show.php/GrayRevenge?content=137790 , http://gnome-look.org/content/show.php/Elements?content=145920 and http://gnome-look.org/content/show.php/Zukitwo?content=140562
I am certain there are good examples of simple, clean and pleasing themes in the KDE-camp, too, I just haven’t used KDE much and thus I haven’t been perusing the selection of such yet.
As for Win8’s theme: it is not likely Microsoft will alter the theme in a positive direction any more, there is a clear desire to draw people to use Metro and thereby Windows Store and thus creating an attractive theme for the traditional desktop runs counter to that desire. One can only hope that it can be customized with e.g. Stardock Windowblinds.
The screenshot is of a COLOR CHOOSER for Window borders ergo you can CHANGE the color.
Letting a user see an Aero desktop right next to a Metro desktop would make Metro look too stark and bland. So, It seems the whole point of these new designs is to cause people to not want to be in Classic Desktop. This would 1. Cause people to demand more Metro apps 2. MS can say they are removing it due to public dislike.
It’s funny how they jump blindly from one theming concept to another. It’s no longer an evolution, it’s revolution with every new release of Windows.
First it was classic, then Vista, 7 + Aero, and now it looks like “a plain Jane” again. Actually, it reminds me some Fluxbox + simple gtk2/3 fallback themes – simple, yet quite ugly at the same time.
The only thing I support here is the “flat factor”. I really preer flat themes better than “3D” ones. I always like it this way. 3D is just a waste of CPU/GPU/RAM, whatever, and it doesn’t look realistic too, as it tries to MIMIC outside world with its 3d-ness.
Edited 2012-06-15 08:43 UTC
Flat themes went out of style in the early 90s. It’s better UX to have 3D, as we discovered then.
That was true until user input get physicial intuitive feedback recently.
Haptic feedback when clicking on a touch screen area is better than simulate a fake 3D “press” move which can seems real only visually, if any.
The vibration is actual, which make a better feedback mecanism, lowering the 3D UI interest beside showing 3D objects…
Funny, I don’t get haptic feedback from my mouse (and I don’t expect I will soon, either). Why is it, again, that a PC OS mainly used in non-touch scenarios is adopting this as the new default?
Actually, computer mice provide quite a bit of haptic feedback when you use them. The shape helps you put your hand on top of the buttons, the buttons are designed to click noticeable when you press them, good wheels have a “rough” feeling that let you know precisely how much you have scrolled…
One of my main gripes against current-gen touchscreens is that they are usability disasters. No way to know that you are “hovering” something, your fingers either hide what’s happening or moves on large distances constantely, and what they call “haptic feedback” is just an agressive vibration that occurs *after* you have messed up instead of a subtle feedback before and after clicking.
That haptic feedback works only *after* you’ve pressed on something. It does not provide any sort of cue of interactivity *before* you’ve interacted with the element, ergo you’re comparing apples and oranges.
Actually, quite opposite was the case. First UIs tried to MIMIC 3D WORLD, and that’s why we have a DESKTOP, FOLDERS, NOTES, CALENDAR, etc. It was then flat only because technology didn’t allow it to be 3D. Then – when the appropiate technologies came in place – it was finally possible to create 3D-like looking UIs.
But now Microsoft – thankfully – getting the whole UI thing. UI is not a physical desk, etc. It ought to be flat.
You’re looking at it backwards. There’s the metaphor, which came first, then the 3D bevel, which came much later. The metaphor no longer of any use, as far as I can see, but the 3D bevel still improves UX as much today as it did two decades ago. It’s a simple visual indicator of differentness and it works quite, quite well.
I’m all for getting rid of the metaphor, but that doesn’t mean the appearance of depth is useless. These things are not intrinsically related.
Edited 2012-06-15 16:48 UTC
and it looked better:
http://switch2mac.blog.zive.cz/files/2011/08/macintosh-system-753-s…
Yea that is actually easier on the eyes.
Maybe Windows 9 will have a retro look after Sinofsky decides that eye-bleeding high contrast themes are no longer ‘modern’. Maybe he will decide that ‘modernism’ is a rotating anus in the background (that can’t be removed). Just kidding, Sinofsky will be gone after this piece of crap falls.
Vain/trend-obsessed thinkers like him have no sense of timeless design. I’ve never heard anyone suggest tearing down the Neuschwanstein Castle because it doesn’t fit some idiot’s definition of modernism. The guy in charge of Windows is like a 16 year old girl with clothes. Actually I take that back, a 16 year old girl has better taste. I would much rather have a random 16 year old girl in charge of Windows right now.
Edited 2012-06-15 15:18 UTC
I think you have a man crush on Sinofsky. You name drop him in every comment.
I still like the Mac OS 7-9 (classic) look, actually, I liked the looks of it a LOT better than any version of OSX.
Programming classic applications using the various tool box APIs was a nightmare however, almost as nasty as Windows MFC.
Even the relatively eye-candy free GUIs of NeXTSTEP and Mac System 7 used some subtle 3D effects.
Windows 8’s theme reminds me more of the completely flat, single colour window decoration in early versions of RISC OS, before they went all fancy with textures and 3D in the mid 90s: http://www.guidebookgallery.org/screenshots/riscos311
With Windows 8’s grey inactive window borders, I’d just have to set the active colour to RISC OS’s pale yellow and it’d really stir up some 80s nostalgia.
If only the biggest problem with Windows 8 was its aesthetics…
Edited 2012-06-15 14:23 UTC
Sure, I wouldn’t say that it’s a great look, but I don’t think it’s as terrible as people are making it out to be. I even kinda like it when it’s all-white; reminds me of the Zune software a bit.
I’d agree that Aero looks better, and some shadows would help, but this might be something that needs to be seen in motion to be appreciated.
(Full disclosure: I’m using Openbox right now, having purposely chosen a dull ‘utilitarian’ theme.)
You’ve already convinced me to skip Windows 8. There’s really no need to try so hard.
Yay, it’s Windows 2.x all over again
No Sh!t, it does look like Windows 2.x, same color theme even:
http://netdna.webdesignerdepot.com/uploads/2009/03/windows-2.gif
you guys have the brainpower to create your own “desktop environment” one would believe.
Then, why so dependent on these corporate rats?
I found my “nerdvana” using:
OS – linux
vim – texteditor
rxvt-unicode – terminal emulator
awesomewm – window manager
dvorak for keyboard layout
bash terminal – filemanager
etc etc
stable as a rock, free, and extremely powerful.
I can use same setup on a new i7 or on a old 900 celeron laptop.
I just transfer my conf files between installs, and I got the same awesome setup wherevere i need.
Simple: the software I use does not run at all or does only run with issues under Linux. Or any of the other OSes.