[Qt-creator] Qt Creator flat style UI design + new Light theme

[Ariel Molina]

I know it is difficult to move over UI styles, what worked in the past
seems more safe that what's trendy. Some remarks are very valid and true,
for example: "interactive UI elements should hint they are interactive", I
would say it is a MUST, more than a should.

But I think flat is just another cosmetic trend that will come and stay for
a long time, just as those glossy round buttons Aqua-style brought back
then. They looked modern and cool by the time, ironically replacing those
mostly flat buttons.

Now we have beautiful screens with rich colors representation and
microscopic pixels, almost like paper. So going back to  beautiful
Typography and simple iconography seems possible.

I still vote in favor, move on, or we will still be using gradients and
look antique in 2020, but please do not forget that a flat UI still must
preserve interaction hints, a way to tint it in order to display
deactivated states and alerts, a way to enhance hyperlinks on text and to
make things easy to remember and to visualize. Flat is a hard thing to do
right, and specially at the first shot.

OTOH, there are dozens if not hundreds of hurting usability bugs still in
QtC (ironically on the UI parts, like QtC Designer), and replacing the UI
will add some more and some discomfort in the user base. I know it is cool
to be working on new stuff, but making old stuff work as it should is even
better.


On Sun, Feb 15, 2015 at 8:47 AM, Jason H <jhihn at gmx.com> wrote:

> I abhore all flat style.
>
> It kills the UI paradigm. Things should hint that they are interactive
> elements. Flat style, at best, gives a shadow. The previous generation has
> a 3d gloss and shading to hint at a interactive element. You don't percieve
> flat with shadow as easily as gloss and shading.
>
> For simple mobile apps with only a few interactive UI elements this is
> tolerable. For something like Creator, there is a ton of UI, and if
> flattened usability will suffer. Also What about group boxes? Impossibe to
> do in flat style.
>
> The only sin of curved buttons was they got too glossy at times. Or too
> many too-glossy elements per view.
>
> I don't expect this Flat style to exist for long. It's go the way of the
> hamburger menu which is already on the way out.
>
> Flat Style is just that. A style decision, not a usability one. Who is
> pushing Flat? Microsoft. Why? It was the Windows Phone style, a style to
> differentiate itself from iOS and Android. It's not made it off usability.
> Who buys WP devices? Nobody.
>
> Android's Material Design philosophy isn't any better. The main difference
> is MD wants layered flat. So background backlayer below a card, with a UI
> per card, which is then layered itself. It's a minor improvement to flat.
>
> My vote is no.
>
>
>
>
>
> --
> Sent from my Android phone with GMX Mail. Please excuse my brevity.
>
> de Sousa Diana <diana.desousa at theqtcompany.com> wrote:
>>
>>  Hi,
>>
>>  What do you think about the idea of updating the Qt Creator GUI with a
>> more contemporary flat style design, simplifying and unifying all UI icons?
>> And adding a Light theme in addition to the current Default and Dark
>> themes?
>>
>>  I have published to Qt Blog examples of what these new designs could
>> look like. They are an early stage concept, so it would be great to get
>> useful feedback from the community to take this forward! Please take a look
>> at them at:
>>
>>
>> http://blog.qt.io/blog/2015/02/09/qt-creator-flat-style-ui-design-new-light-theme/
>>
>>  Cheers,
>>  Diana
>>
>>      --
>> Diana de Sousa
>> Senior Graphic Designer - The Qt Company
>>      _______________________________________________ Qt-creator mailing
>> list Qt-creator at qt-project.org
>> http://lists.qt-project.org/mailman/listinfo/qt-creator
>
>
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>


-- 
Ariel Molina R.

Oficina: +52 (222) 3723196
Movil: +521 2226 758874
http://edis.mx
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