Re: [libreoffice-design] Screenshots for LibreOffice documentation

And as stated before, while there's nothing wrong with showcasing what
LibreOffice *can *look like in promotional materials or on a website,
consistent themes provide two very important services.  One is branding, as
toki said, and the other is visual consistency (also touched on in the last
mail).  You're familiar with the software and have a general idea of where
the icons are, regardless of what theme you may be using.  But a new user
cannot and should not be expected to be able to identify icons and colored
regions that vary with each and every picture in the documentation --
especially considering it may be distributed grayscale.

I don't see why we should run the risk of user confusion.  Form follows
function in this case, as it were.  If there were a section in documentation
regarding customization of LibreOffice, that would be a fantastic place to
let loose.  It would also let us repurpose some of the screenshots that have
already been taken as examples.  But the main documentation does need
consistency.

On Fri, Jul 8, 2011 at 2:46 PM, toki <toki.kantoor@gmail.com> wrote:

> On 07/07/2011 04:59 AM, David Nelson wrote:
>
> > I somehow *feel* that Microsoft would be much less likely to succeed in
> such hypothetical action in European courts.
>
> It doesn't matter if Microsoft wins or loses the judicial decision.
> What matters is if the defendants have the cash to pay for their legal
> fees.  Legal fees that could have been avoided by not using Microsoft's
> alleged intellectual property in the first place.
>
> > feeling that it is not especially beneficial to ensure that all
> screenshots look identical (in terms of the theme used).
>
> I'm going to argue that consistency of theme is important. Especially
> for a new user.
>
> A change in colouration is usually interpreted as being a change of
> data. When the colouration changes simply as a result of a change of
> theme, that simply introduces noise into the content.
>
> In a similar vein, the same window manager, and set of utilities should
> be used. At the best of times, people can be tripped up by the simplest,
> most trivial differences between what they see on their screen, and what
> screenshots show. Throw in a mixture of window managers, and you are
> begging for them to be tripped up.
>
> Consider the difference in function and appearance of the default file
> manager for Xfce(Thunar) and KDE (Konquer). Compare both of those with
> Windows (Explorer).
>
> > Nor do I personally feel it's particularly beneficial to ensure that
> all screenshots be taken using a theme based on colors from the
> LibreOffice Design/Marketing pallet.
>
> That is called branding. Something that helps establish, and identify
> the product.  Something that needs to be consistently adhered to, even
> when one can't understand the requirement for doing so.
>
> jonathon
> --
> If Bing copied Google, there wouldn't be anything new worth requesting.
>
> If Bing did not copy Google, there wouldn't be anything relevant worth
> requesting.
>
>                              DaveJakeman 20110207 Groklaw.
>
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