Hi :)
+1
but i think i can understand what Alistair was driving at now and i
didn't quite understand at first. While stumbling around the wiki
looking for some artwork i found
http://wiki.documentfoundation.org/Marketing/Ideas#Develop_a_.22LibO.22_mascot
which might be something you would like to get involved with.
Dvd Covers and Wallpapers often show several of the modified logos for
individual apps/modules
http://wiki.documentfoundation.org/Marketing/Wallpapers
http://wiki.documentfoundation.org/Marketing/LibOOnDVD
I like Paulo José's wallpapers.
I think a lot of us thought the same thing as Alistair at first but
the strength of the current logo grows on you as you see it being used
and it gets used a lot. Some of the prettier logos and icons used by
other companies are a bit unclear at some of the sizes they get used.
The LO logo is so clear, even after being adapted for the different
apps/modules, that it even gets used in the tiny buttons under the menus.
http://wiki.documentfoundation.org/Design/LibreOffice_Initial_Icons#Present_State_of_the_Icon_Design
In an artistic sense, imo, the logo is not 'just' blank empty space.
For me it is a contained area that stretches like a tunnel into
different dimensions and into the future. It begs to be filled with
whatever you need to write down. The borders are not weak lines but
are strong, determined lines that look like you could reach in and
grab hold of them. It looks solid and dependable, like a rock (or a
high-rise office-block) against a storm. The fold hints at something
beyond, makes me want to flip the page to see what is on the other
side. The adventure unfolds.
Regards from
Tom :)
------------------------------------------------------------------------
*From:* webmaster-Kracked_P_P <webmaster@krackedpress.com>
*To:* marketing@global.libreoffice.org
*Sent:* Thursday, 1 November 2012, 9:58
*Subject:* Re: [libreoffice-marketing] Re: LibreOffice Icon
Kingswells:
Yes, the main icon for LibreOffice is a "blank paper" looking icon.
But, the icons for Writer and Calc look somewhat like what they
are used for.
Yes, it is nice to have a standout icon like Firefox and
Thunderbird, but those images are of a "fox" and a "bird" that are
a "sort of mascot" images.
What type of icon would/should LibreOffice have, as a office
application? Something that tells people that this is a package
that is serious about helping you with your office suite needs.
"Cute" icons or mascots are good for some applications, and for
some markets, but would it be a good idea to have such an icon in
a "business environment".
Yes, it would be nice to have an "eye catching" icon, but that may
make it look like it was for some other application than a serious
office package.
We need to keep LibreOffice's icon to reflect what it does, and
not give it an "eye catching" look that does not look like it
would be an office suite.
Thunderbird - has a bird "holding" a letter.
Evolution - has an opened letter.
Firefox - seems to be "holding" a globe.
Calibre - looks like a set of books on a shelf.
Artha - looks like a reference book.
Calculator - looks like a calculator
Xpad - looks like a sticky note.
All of these package icons have one thing in common, they have a
look that you can make out their function by the image of the
icon. Some are easier to deduce than others, but that is what I
am talking about.
What can the artists among our users do to the main "sheet of
paper" looking icon that would better represent the appearance of
a serious office suite?
Also, the icon must be different from any other icon out there. We
do not want our business looking icon to be anything like the
other office package. To be honest, look how simple the MS Office
icons are. They are not a "cute" and "eye catching" icon, but a
simple thing that seems to say "we are serious about what we do".
I like the current icons that the designers have given us. Maybe
the "blank paper" icon could have something added to it, but the
simple look of it does seem to state that LibreOffice is a serious
package that does not need a "cute" mascot.
On 10/31/2012 08:46 PM, Kingswells Computercraft wrote:
> Hello Florian,
>
> It is the main LO icon I'm talking about; it's not so much
what's wrong with it, so much as what it lacks - as I stated in my
original message:
>
> > I am writing to you today to plead with you to change the main
program
> > icon currently in use for LibreOffice as I believe it is seriously
> > underwhelming!
> > As an icon for the Document Foundation it says it all to me -
clear, > simple, document. However, considering it as the "flag" or
> > "packaging" for LibreOffice, it is (IMHO) far too bland:
> >
> > • It is not easy to pick out among hordes of other icons
> > • It lacks colour and warmth, is not striking or eye-catching
> > • It says nothing about the elegance and sophistication of
LibreOffice
> > • It doesn't inspire confidence.
>
> I must admit I am only used to seeing it on Windows systems -
even the "blank" default icon in Windows (any version) has more
character to it than the current LibreOffice icon!
>
> I appreciate that the individual programs within LO have more
colourful icons, with embellishments particular to that app, but
when installing on Windows systems the option to have a desktop
icon is only the main icon, the Document Foundation icon. As I
said before, I think this icon is fine for the Document
Foundation, but LO I think needs much more. In terms of
marketing, it is almost as if the wrapper for the product were
blank! Imagine if this were a magazine on a table in a waiting
room - would you pick up a blank sheet of paper, or one of the
more recognisable covers, e.g. National Geographic, Time, or
Reader's Digest?
>
> Take as examples of other programs, Firefox and Thunderbird -
easily recognisable icons to a wide audience, but the organisation
behind it, Mozilla, has a completely different icon, and probably
also much more obscure to most people.
>
> As a mainstream user, and one who wishes only the best for LO, I
am concerned that LO has a difficult uphill struggle ahead of it
in order to gain the recognition from the general public (and
therefore the survivability) that it deserves. It is really
unfortunate that in the split from Oracle, they retained the
recognition (and even kudos) gained over all the previous years of
work on OOo. As I see it, LO has, in the eyes of the general
populous, been "divorced" from its heritage, and to all intents
and purposes (to the uninitiated) looks like a newcomer on the
scene! I believe that LO needs and deserves a beautiful icon for
the main program, which says something about the elegance and
sophistication which lies within. This would also serve to foster
the "brand image" of LO in the eyes of the general public (as
opposed to the brand of the Document Foundation).
>
> I can appreciate too, that to many of you guys and girls within
the Document Foundation community it may be difficult to
understand what I'm getting at; maybe being so close and
intimately involved in the whole project means it is not easy to
step back and see it in the same way an outsider does. I think it
is fair to say that Linux (in many of its flavours) suffers from a
"club members only" sort of image, which has probably done a lot
to stifle its uptake by the general public, and I fear that LO may
slip into a similar category. That would be a great pity indeed. I
hope that perhaps my perspective may be of use to you in this
regard, and give an "outsider" view that you may otherwise find
difficult to attain.
>
>
> Best Regards,
> Alistair Bain
> Kingswells Computercraft
> Aberdeen, Scotland
>
>
> On 31/10/2012 15:06, Florian Monfort wrote:
>> I actually think the logo is pretty good.
>>
>> - The absence of vivid colors makes it easy to adapt to any
platform design
>> standard.
>> - Simple shape makes it easy to recognize.
>>
>> What problem is it that you identify with the current logo ?
>>
>> Cheers
>>
>>
>> On Wed, Oct 31, 2012 at 3:56 PM, Kingswells Computercraft <
>> support@kingswellscomputercraft.co.uk
<mailto:support@kingswellscomputercraft.co.uk>> wrote:
>>
>>> Dear LibreOffice teams,
>>>
>>> My apologies if you have already got my message (below) - I
tried sending
>>> it a few days ago, but only seem to have succeeded in
subscribing to
>>> mailing lists!
>>>
>>> From my message below, you can see I believe it is essential
that the
>>> LibreOffice main icon be replaced by one that aids in the
recognition and
>>> identity of LibreOffice, which I believe the current one icon
fails to do.
>>> From some of the messages I've seen since subscribing (especially
>>> marketing), it now seems to me that it is crucial that the
icon is replaced.
>>> I would suggest that the following are essential requirements
of the main
>>> icon for LibreOffice:
>>>
>>> a) colourful and eye-catching, i.e. an attractive "wrapper".
>>> b) equals (or at least hints at) the sophistication of the
program.
>>> c) something that aids with "brand" recognition.
>>>
>>> I'm sure it is (and will continue to be) an uphill struggle to
achieve the
>>> recognition that Apache OpenOffice has automatically inherited
from its
>>> predecessor. Without an icon that helps to achieve this, I
could see a day
>>> when LibreOffice disappears into obscurity, and that would be
a great pity.
>>> It wouldn't be the first time a great product has failed, not
because it
>>> was unworthy, but it didn't have the recognition (and
therefore the
>>> following) necessary to carry it forward.
>>>
>>> Best regards,
>>> Alistair Bain
>>> Kingswells Computercraft
>>> Aberdeen, Scotland
>>>
>>>
>>> -------- Original Message --------
>>> Subject: Re: LibreOffice Icon
>>> Date: Tue, 23 Oct 2012 13:50:31 +0200
>>> From: Florian Effenberger
<floeff@documentfoundation.org
<mailto:floeff@documentfoundation.org>**>
>>> Organisation: The Document Foundation
>>> To: Kingswells Computercraft
<support@**kingswellscomputercraft.co.uk<support@kingswellscomputercraft.co.uk
<mailto:support@kingswellscomputercraft.co.uk>>
>>>>
>>> CC: info@documentfoundation.org
<mailto:info@documentfoundation.org>
>>>
>>> Hello,
>>>
>>> thank you very much for your feedback and interest in
LibreOffice! The
>>> topic you raise fits very well for our design team, and I strongly
>>> propose you get in touch with them directly.
>>>
>>> All information as well as the official mailing list is
available at
>>>
http://www.libreoffice.org/**get-involved/ux-visual-**designers/<http://www.libreoffice.org/get-involved/ux-visual-designers/>
>>>
>>> Thanks again,
>>> Florian
>>>
>>> Kingswells Computercraft wrote on 2012-10-11 10:41:
>>>
>>>> Dear Document Foundation,
>>>>
>>>> First, thank you so much for LibreOffice! I have been a user
since
>>>> OpenOffice.org version 1.1.2, and I have recommended it to
many friends
>>>> and customers over the years. I recognise LibreOffice to be the
>>>> legitimate successor to the earlier OpenOffice.org, and
believe it to be
>>>> a better suite than the Oracle/Apache's version (I used both
until
>>>> recently).
>>>>
>>>> I am writing to you today to plead with you to change the
main program
>>>> icon currently in use for LibreOffice as I believe it is
seriously
>>>> underwhelming! As an icon for the Document Foundation it
says it all to
>>>> me - clear, simple, document. However, considering it as the
"flag" or
>>>> "packaging" for LibreOffice, it is far too bland:
>>>>
>>>> • It is not easy to pick out among hordes of other icons
>>>> • It lacks colour and warmth, is not striking or eye-catching
>>>> • It says nothing about the elegance and sophistication of
LibreOffice
>>>> • It doesn't inspire confidence.
>>>>
>>>> In my experience I often introduce LibreOffice as an
alternative to
>>>> Microsoft Office to people who have never heard of it
before. To these
>>>> new users, the desktop icon is the "shop window" for the
application,
>>>> and it is frankly uninspiring! I have considered replacing
the desktop
>>>> icon with another (third party) icon, but I am aware that
this breaches
>>>> your guidelines about branding & icon usage, so I don't want
to do that.
>>>>
>>>> Please, please change the icon for something that does the
application
>>>> justice.
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> Best Regards,
>>>> Alistair Bain
>>>> Kingswells Computercraft
>>>> Aberdeen, Scotland
>>>>
>>>
>>> -- Florian Effenberger, Chairman of the Board
(Vorstandsvorsitzender)
>>> Tel: +49 8341 99660880 | Mobile: +49 151 14424108
>>> The Document Foundation, Zimmerstr. 69, 10117 Berlin, Germany
>>> Gemeinnützige rechtsfähige Stiftung des bürgerlichen Rechts
>>> Legal details:
http://www.documentfoundation.**org/imprint<http://www.documentfoundation.org/imprint>
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> -- Unsubscribe instructions: E-mail to marketing+help@global.**
>>> libreoffice.org <marketing%2Bhelp@global.libreoffice.org
<mailto:2Bhelp@global.libreoffice.org>>
>>> Problems?
http://www.libreoffice.org/**get-help/mailing-lists/how-to-**
>>>
unsubscribe/<http://www.libreoffice.org/get-help/mailing-lists/how-to-unsubscribe/>
>>> Posting guidelines + more: http://wiki.**documentfoundation.org/**
>>> Netiquette <http://wiki.documentfoundation.org/Netiquette>
>>> List archive:
http://listarchives.**libreoffice.org/global/**marketing/<http://listarchives.libreoffice.org/global/marketing/>
>>> All messages sent to this list will be publicly archived and
cannot be
>>> deleted
>>>
>>
>>
>>
>
-- Unsubscribe instructions: E-mail to
marketing+help@global.libreoffice.org
<mailto:help@global.libreoffice.org>
Problems?
http://www.libreoffice.org/get-help/mailing-lists/how-to-unsubscribe/
Posting guidelines + more:
http://wiki.documentfoundation.org/Netiquette
List archive: http://listarchives.libreoffice.org/global/marketing/
All messages sent to this list will be publicly archived and
cannot be deleted