On Fri, Jun 16, 2006 at 10:07:07AM +0200, Erik Moeller wrote:
As MediaWiki 2.0 is slowly moving closer, I think we
should consider
replacing the current logo. The problems I have with it (and I say
that as its co-designer) are that the colors feel washed out, the
flower is asymmetrical, and the square brackets look just a tad bit
too square and ordinary.
Wow, a topic I actually feel competent to expound on. :-)
I found a very nice flower photograph on Commons, and
decided to
experiment with it a bit. The result can be found at:
http://scireview.de/wiki/logos/
I rather like that, Erik. I think I'd choose a typeface for the square
brackets with a slightly tighter radius, so it remains clear they're
supposed to be *square*.
The flower used here looks more like something
airbrushed than a
straight crop of a photo (even though it is the latter), which I think
is an advantage for a logo. I do like the notion of using a complex
flower rather than a purely stylized one; I think that this is
allowable in the context of an entirely web-based product.
I personally think it looks fine.
I think the colors/brightness and the brackets could
use some
tweaking. I'm also not sure if I prefer the version with a shadow
behind the flower or the one without (the two people who have sent me
feedback so far prefer the one with, I have a slight preference for
without). If you want to play with it, there's an XCF link for editing
in the GIMP; all the elements of the picture are represented there as
layers.
I concur on the drop shadow, as long as it's implmented as an
alpha-channel PNG: it will eventually end up on things with non-white
backgrounds. I actually quite like the color balance as it is.
You might need to bold up the tagline just a touch, for small sizes,
though it's fine at the larger size. Or darken it. It should still
stay noticeably lighter than the mainline.
For favicon size, we probably want to draw something
from scratch
rather than resizing the logo. In the "Powered by" button size, it
could use some tweaking (perhaps some pre-processing before scaling
down).
I see that you've taken the brackets off of the favicon; did you try
rendering it with (at least one set of) them?
I'd appreciate your comments on these experiments.
Perhaps we should
start an open logo process when MediaWiki 2.0 comes within grasp.
Perhaps.
And the project tagline, as a separate thing.
Perhaps someone should put a page at meta soliciting suggestions, and
making the case for a CC license, and publicize?
Cheers,
-- jra
--
Jay R. Ashworth jra(a)baylink.com
Designer Baylink RFC 2100
Ashworth & Associates The Things I Think '87 e24
St Petersburg FL USA
http://baylink.pitas.com +1 727 647 1274
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