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List:       kde-look
Subject:    Re: Icon improvements.
From:       Sean Pecor <sean () digitalspinner ! com>
Date:       2001-03-08 22:14:07
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On Thursday 08 March 2001 16:25, Sergej Malinovski wrote:
> Puuuh-leeez! :) The word "intuitive" gets on my nerves these days. Use it
> with caution. Not much in this big, big World is intuitive. 

I disagree. I think most things are intuitive. Your use of association is 
correct, but it is the precursor to intuition. As a child you learn that door 
handles open doors. Therefore, as an adult, you immediately recognize a door 
handle for what it is. This is intuition. 

Something that is immediately recognized is Intuitive. If I never look at an 
icon of two small pages and think COPY then the icon is not intuitive for me. 
If I have to click on an icon in order to find out what it does, then it 
isn't intuitive because I use deductive reasoning to find out what it does. 
Furthermore, if the icon is too similar to other icons, it never becomes 
intuitive because I never immediately recognize it for what it is. So I 
continually fall back to deductive reasoning. So therefore my use of the word 
intuitive is quite relevant.

> It's communication without thinking. You don't stare and examine the 
> icon/button -- you just press it ones you know what it does and
> where it is. 

Yes. You are describing something that is intuitive ("The act or faculty of 
knowing or sensing without the use of rational processes; immediate 
cognition"). 

> An elephant icon could denote the cut function, and you won't
> care, as long as other functions don't use elephants as well. 

An elephant would be better than the COPY icon, which is two small pieces of 
paper. Paper is used in many, many icons and using it as the primary metaphor 
in an icon is not helpful. 

If I turn a door handle and the door hands me a cup of coffee, does that make 
it intuitive? Grin.

Sean.

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