Using inkscape I have started making some pictograms to experiment with the program. Then, I realised that some pictograms looked like they could symbolise some of Colemak's advantages. So I made some more that should cover most of Colemak's basic advantages.
The pictograms symbolise the following advantages respectively (most are from colemak.com:
-Ergonomic
-Easy
-Fast
-Multilingual
-Free
-Cross-platform
I'll explain how I came to make the symbols the way I did, later.
Wow, those look really snazzy!
I'm looking forward to hearing the rationale. I'm very interested in symbols, but don't know much about what's used on the net now (digg and suchlike) - did you use any such formalisms?
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I still need to refine the symbols, especially the 'mulitilingual' and 'free' ones. The 'easy' and 'free' ones need improvement colourwise, the 'ergonomic' one too, perhaps.
Thanks Drey, I was expecting some harsh critique from you! ;)
Just kidding, but I'd still love you to suggest ways of improving the pictograms. I just came up with the symbols myself, I don't frequent such sites as digg... Here are some explanations though:
Ergonomic: this one looks a bit like the yin and yang symbol. Well, colemak unites features fromt the 'evil', QWERTY, and from the 'good', ie ergonomic layouts to create a good and comfortable balance.
Easy: this is a very simple symbol, showing an easy transition. It's not too convincing though... Ideas for improvement?
Fast: this one is an easy one: this is just a turbine or the wheel rim of a damn fast car. ;)
Multilingual: this is supposed to look a bit like a globe. I have an idea for improvement already, but ideas are always welcome. It could also be a hamburger, which has come to be a multilingual word (originally comes from german!).
Free: this is supposed to imitate the ubuntu logo. I couldn't think of anything better at the time. Any other ideas?
Cross-platform: this is simply a pun on the word cross-platform.
Ah, I see. Interesting ideas. I'll throw out some thoughts since you asked for them - just random musings.
http://www.symbols.com/
This has been my source of ideograms in the past. Not sure if it'll help you, but it's interesting anyway!
-Ergonomic
I'm thinking ergo=work. A hand? The yin-yang is pretty, but it may be lost on many. As an alternative interpretation, the wave you made may also look like flowing water which again could work well with the concept of ergonomy.
-Easy
You're onto something. Obviously, it has to be a simple design. An arrow forward ("just go for it")? Simply a dot in the middle of the circle?
-Fast
This and the cross were the ones I intuitively understood from just looking at your designs. Maybe one less "turbine blade" for clarity?
-Multilingual
Should not use a hamburger - they're bad for you! ;) I think it looks good, but please also tell us about your other idea. I'm thinking about whether any simple icon says "language" but can't come up with anything other than a Chinese word character which is silly (and Colemak doesn't work with Chinese!).
-Free
Tricky. I'd use a crossed-out dollar sign because everyone in the world must be familiar with the $=money thing. Just think about the eyeballs of cartoon characters turning into dollar signs for instance. The ¤ symbol actually means "currency" but I think many people don't know that although it sits around on a lot of keyboards. The Ubuntu logo wasn't familiar to me, and at any rate I think it becomes too complex for an effective ideogram.
-Cross-platform
Good one. The diagonal cross may seem negative ("crossed out"), so I'd consider using the "sun cross" instead. It's been a while since anyone used that for anything bad and were listened to, so I'd think it's safe to use now. And at any rate, such a simple symbol must be available for all. And the Sun is nice. :)
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Ah, thanks for the interesting link, Drey!
Maybe I should use the easy symbol for ergonomic, and do that arrow idea of yours for easy, I think it's very straight forward.. ;)
I'll try one less 'blade' for the fast symbol, could work out actually.
Did you see my revised multilingual icon yet? It's in the post directly before yours. It's supposed to look like a globe, but apparently it looks like a bobber, as someone said to me... Ah well, it is kinda true though. I'll try extending the 'south pole' into the globe and see how that looks.
I didn't really want to use the dollar sign, but I guess I should so that people will understand it.. Anyone else got any ideas how to symbolise 'freeness'? ;)
Wait, do you mean the swastika? Nah, I'm not really into that one, especially as a german.. ;) I'll try tilting the cross by 15 to 30 degrees, maybe that looks better. (Where are the degree and euro symbols by the way?)
Thanks for the nice ideas, Drey.
Keep posting, everyone!
Ah - that WAS the revised multilingual icon! Silly me. Yes, the revised one is better and it doesn't look like a bobber. You may feel free to call that someone a fishing nerd if you want to tease. ;)
Not the swastika, heavens no! The vast majority in the world are not yet ready to reclaim that one. I'm thinking of the Sun Cross: http://www.symbols.com/encyclopedia/29/291.html - another good old and strong symbol, yet universal and simple. It's also a symbol of the Earth. In Norway at least, the Nazis used both this sun cross and one swastika/suncross sign similar to the Odal rune (http://www.symbols.com/encyclopedia/39/3922.html) but with upturned arms added at the bottom (iirc). But Norway is past that and the rest of the world may hardly have noticed.
The only other ideas I have about freeness would be a crossed-out bill (essentially a rectangle, recognized by its oblong shape) or something with a zero in it. Maybe "= 0"? Or just the zero symbol (http://www.symbols.com/encyclopedia/26/265.html) inside a circle?
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Hmm I haven't had a go at improving the 'free' (fith one) symbol yet, but this is how the symbols currently are:
The 'ergonomic' (first one) and 'fast' (third one) are still the same, I haven't gotten round to chaningig these either.
Did the 'free' icon from scratch, but i'm not totally satisfied. And I'm not yet happy with the colours either.
A bit difficult to see the 'free' one at all with the low white-to-yellow contrast and the high glow. Maybe you should turn it slightly towards peach, make it a little darker and possibly as a result have to use another colour for the 'cross-platform' one? And iconically speaking it's not easy to say how to get it best. Aside from a simple circle-with-a-hatch or maybe an ellipse-with-a-dot to signify a zero price I'm still stunted.
Dotted and slashed zeros from the old computer days
The arrow gives mixed associations, come to think of it. In some situations I've seen a simple smiley face used to mean "simple", but I don't know how most people would associate.
I think you should re-introduce the cross you had in the first 'cross-platform' one, but turn it 45 degrees or close to it. It'd even look like a plus sign that way (or a yummy pizza?), which has to be... positive! :)
They're still oo so pretty, and watching them makes me serene and blissful. Especially the Wave and the World. Oooooommmm...
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