Given the choice between "These icons look a bit garish in a subjective sense" and "what abstract art piece describes the Pages app" I'd rather have the one that's still useful. One benefit of skeuomorphism was the level of detail, that's fully been abandoned along with the affordances that brought.

I've honestly never had an issue with using flat design. Or if I have, it hasn't been enough of an issue to remember. I don't mean this in a judgemental way, just that I legitimately don't understand why people care.

That's fair, it's not like this is completely breaking usability. But I have to ask, do you think the most recent pages icon is really the most accessible and useful version for this app? The logical end of the flat design and minimalism trend got us here and I think it's grossly over done.

That's hard to answer because clearly my opinion is disconnected from most people. If this thread didn't exist I wouldn't give it more than a second though "that's the new icon ok"

Because it is literally the best way to design and everyone else is wrong. Look at actual HCI studies. There's exactly zero arguments for any kind of flat or minimalistic design outside of art, or if you want to make a statement.

The only reason it's used that it's cheaper and faster to make, is perfectly soulless not to make anyone upset, and it's trendy.

> There's exactly zero arguments for any kind of flat or minimalistic design outside of art, or if you want to make a statement.

If that were true, road signage would look a lot different than it does.

Minimalistic design clearly has advantages when quickly grasping intent is key.

Road signage has a lot of constraints that don't apply to computer UIs.

You’re kinda proving the parent’s point.

>There's exactly zero arguments for any kind of flat or minimalistic design outside of art

Here’s one: helping the interface stay out of the way, removing clutter so the actual content of the app takes focus instead.

I can tell you it works because with the new Glass stuff everything is begging for attention again, and I hate it.

And just to be clear, I’m not voting for design overflattened to the point one can’t tell icons apart. For me, around 4 in the diagram is the ideal middle point.

What’s he’s saying (behind too many opinions) is that actual HCI studies collected in something resembling a scientific manner show very clearly that skeuomorphic work better, for many clearly defined metrics of better.

> helping the interface stay out of the way, removing clutter so the actual content of the app takes focus instead.

Yeah, like when I need to guess what is clickable and what isn't...

>You’re kinda proving the parent’s point.

Exactly, I agree with the parent! They're right, it only happens that their strawman is actually true :)

thank you for providing an exemplar

In the skeuomorphic era, people said, "This $object looks dumb."

In the post-skeuomorphic era, people said, "I have no idea what this is, what it does, or what it means."

Which is a better way to fail?