Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!rpi!zaphod.mps.ohio-state.edu!caen!spool.mu.edu!munnari.oz.au!goanna!minyos.xx.rmit.oz.au!godzilla!smt From: smt@ (Stephen Taylor) Newsgroups: comp.human-factors Subject: Re: Thing ICON Keywords: wanted - graphical representation for generic objects Message-ID: Date: 26 Jun 91 01:18:05 GMT Article-I.D.: godzilla.smt.677899085 References: <1991Jun18.181536.14156@ux1.cso.uiuc.edu> <1991Jun23.062835.13369@syd.dit.CSIRO.AU> Sender: usenet@minyos.xx.rmit.oz.au (Njuiz noveles nova newes) Organization: RMIT Computer Centre, Melbourne Australia. Lines: 15 WHY I DONT TRUST ICONS ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ My first encounter with an Atari ST confused me completely - I put the disk in, and saw the pointer turn into some kind of insect. I assumed we had a disk error and this was a"bug" icon. So did the guy I was doing this with - another professional programmer. On reading the manual (always the last resort :) ) we found that this was the "busy bee" icon, and that we should just wait. I've always felt that with the exception of the different drawing tools in drawing programs, most icons could profitably be replaced by words. Less cuteness, more comprehensibility. Steve Taylor smt@godzilla.cgl.rmit.oz.au