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comment by mk
mk  ·  4328 days ago  ·  link  ·    ·  parent  ·  post: Minimalist Design - What Microsoft Could've Been

I was just looking over this yesterday. His MS project kicks ass. They made a smart move.

His 'slate' crushes the window.





dublinben  ·  4328 days ago  ·  link  ·  

I think the slate is stupid and meaningless. If this were an actual redesign, it would soundly mocked by the tech and design communities.

mk  ·  4328 days ago  ·  link  ·  

    I think the slate is stupid and meaningless.

How so? You could say the same thing about the Nike swoosh, but why? To me it has the essense of a window, but isn't so literal, and is more energetic and versatile.

    If this were an actual redesign, it would soundly mocked by the tech and design communities.

It got him hired by XBox.

dublinben  ·  4328 days ago  ·  link  ·  

I think any "essence" of a window is too subtle if it must be explained. If you have to explain a logo, it's a failure.

I never said that Microsoft knew what they were doing. They're clearly disorganized. Hiring this designer just comes across as desperate.

mk  ·  4328 days ago  ·  link  ·  

    If you have to explain a logo, it's a failure.

I disagree. The Coca-cola logo doesn't need explaining, neither does Adidas, or Apple, Twitter, or Nike. These logos don't explain anything about their product. Yet they exist as effective icons. MS's current window is lacking. The slate might not be the ultimate MS icon, but it's IMO it's more visually effective than what they've had.

I do agree about MS. I think they are desperate, and if they were serious about improving their situation, they would fire Balmer ASAP.

AlderaanDuran  ·  4328 days ago  ·  link  ·  

>If you have to explain a logo, it's a failure.

That couldn't be further from the truth. I can think of more logos that don't explain what the company does, than logos that do. In fact, I'm having trouble thinking of a single logo that "explains" what the company does.