Submission details
Computer icon is facing the wrong direction
Notice that the computer icon is actually facing away from the user. Its like that is doesn't want to greet the user! In Windows XP this icon was facing the right way. I believe that this is not consistant with the User Interface Design guidelines set by Microsoft itself!
Use a fancy icon (Vista icon is good) but it should face the right direction, and welcome the user! Its these small things that accumulate and make Microsoft's name and Vista's name bad
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Discussion (13 comments)
But it looks ok in the start menu hovering "PC" item.
its fine. doesnt matter where its facing. its a icon. go outside and get some air
@.Chris: I see, you aren't a designer ;P Here's the "original" concept. Much much better IMO: http://www.istartedsomething.com/20070502/iconfactory-vista-icons/
Is there seriously some psychology behind this? I really can't see what would change if the icon was mirrored :D
My computer is to the right of me, so the icon is facing the right way. Please don't change this otherwise I'll have to move my PC.
Microsofts icon design guides for Vista are available here:
http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/aa511280.aspx
I couldn't find anything that explicitly states which 'side' 3D icons should be seen from, but all the examples presented are seen from a point of slightly above and to the right of the 3D object. In that respect the Computer icon is correct. To change one would necessitate changing them all otherwise it wouldn't look correct.
@Slugsie: Look at the original concept. MS has just flipped some icons. Don't know why.
@Sir Khan: Yes, there is a lot of psychology behind it but it is difficult because it depends on the cultural background of the user.
thanks tino. you certainly get my point
@Slugise and Sir Khan
yes there is a psychology concept behind this. imagine this. you are talking to a friend and would you want him to face away from you or would you want him to face you? in Windows Vista (and all the other Windows for this matter), icons are arranged in the left side of the monitor/scree by default. and thats where this issue comes.
its these kind of small things in Vista that has accumulated to give it a bad name. just look at the posts in this database. all of them can be minor issues, but when you all these small problems into account, it really does give Vista a negative image.
hehe.. nicely said Turge. I tried that, but in order that to work, I had to put the "Computer" icon on the left side of the screen (right side, from the view of the user sitting in front of the screen), but now I have to put the "Documents" icon on the other side. Sometimes now I have to run from left to right of the screen.
I wonder if people vote this down because they just don't care. In that case, don't vote. There may actually be some legitimate psychology behind this. Of course, there may be some psychology behind why they've been turned around in the first place, only Microsoft knows.
I'm a mediadesigner and we learned many rules about designing. One of these rules is, that something that looks to the left means "leaving" in a negative way and when something looks to the right it means "going forward" in a positiv way. This rule is only right in countries, where people read text from left to right. In countries where they read text from right to left, the Vista icons are right. But in USA, Europe, etc. they are wrong!
Actually in vista betas all icons faced in the opposite direction ;)
In Longhorn the PC indeed "greets" you when I remember correctly
tino wrote on June 8, 2008, 12:23pm
Didn't had Long an article about the new Vista icons where we could see that the original version of this icon had the "right" direction?! It's interesting because even from a psychological point of view it looks better, if the lines and elements are going "up" from left to right (western reading direction). Thats why this icons looks "depressing" :(