Except, unlike art, icons need to be functional. It’s not primarily about pretty or unique or smart, the real question is: do they support the user in as easily and quickly as possible finding and selecting the correct item they are looking for. This is far from a fashion problem so I find the comparison with art a distraction.
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To be clear, my comment was about the criticism of Apple’s app icons compared with the criticism of early modern art, not to mention the quip that looking in reverse it looks like an icon designer getting better over time - not the icons and their functionality themselves.
That said: I continue to be untroubled by Apple’s new icons.
You’re suggesting that impoverished Apple needs another revenue stream in order to fix bugs? My opinion is that we need new management to “think different” and care about quality rather than spending time on Apple Invites.
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It’s hard to disagree with Mr Gruber’s article. Over the past decade Apple seems to have become far more detached from user’s requirements than in the past. The over-emphasis on content to the exclusion of the app controls is particularly mystifying.
On the Creator Studio, the key argument I have is with his (and other people’s) descriptions of Photomator as a Lightroom alternative. It is light years from being an alternative to Lightroom. As someone who used Aperture (professionally) every day for its entire life cycle, and was on the Beta program for Lightroom way back when, there is simply no universe where they’re comparable to Photomator.
It’s not to say Photomator is bad, it’s not (and I’ve played with it quite a bit), but it lacks the sophistication and functionality of a professional grade DAM and RAW editor. Apple may well turn it into something grandiose, but it can’t just be the existing version with a new icon - that would be a massive fail.
I don’t mind the new icons, generally speaking, I suppose it gives work to icon designers.
What is disappointing is new icons that don’t add value or have meaning. As I expressed above with maybe the neon style indicates AI or subscriptionware in which case, yeah, ok. If it’s just neon and very abstract because they can be, that’s well, I guess it’s up to Apple if they do that but I am used to an Apple that designs it UI with science, reason, logic, fun in mind.
Back to the OP, it is an interesting software development and perhaps worth the money for those who need the features. I am just worried it means beginning of the end for the free iWork triad.
Aye, there’s the rub. And tooltips, one of the worst UX conceits ever invented as you have to hover and wait and wait and hope that there’s something there, don’t count as a text caption.
I was thinking mostly about the iPad versions when I mentioned text labels. On the Mac, most of my use of apps like this would be a search from Spotlight, or a double-click on a saved file in Finder.
One of the most telling quotes from the Daring Fireball article is this:
It’s not (just) about new features having bad designs. It’s about existing, decades-old features being made so obviously worse. I know a lot of talented UI designers and a lot of insightful UI critics. All of them agree that MacOS’s UI has gotten drastically worse over the last 10 years, in ways that seem so obviously worse that it boggles the mind how it happened.
This eloquently describes my feelings exactly. The Human Interface Guidelines — which were the ‘gospel of Steve’ for decades — have been (seemingly) shelved for the whims of the design team who spend more time self aggrandising their latest whack-a-mole feature, than actually using the OS and apps they’re tasked to design.
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I think they represent vector graphics.
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I only care little about the icons. They’re just… Icons.
The real question, for me, is “is it worth it?”.
I own the perpetual license versions of Logic Pro and Final Cut Pro, and the unpaid version of Pixelmator Pro which I have used long before it being acquired by Apple. I use all three occasionally. They’re not a source of revenue for me.
I installed them all on my iPad and didn’t renew the subscription because I found little use for them on that platform.
I hardly use iWork because I have a paid MS Office subscription and access to the unpaid Google docs suite. They both work well on both my Mac, iPad and iPhone.
Which leaves me wondering if I should or shouldn’t be moving to the creator studio just for the iPad versions of those apps… And I guess I’ll postpone this decision for later. As for now the incentive isn’t there.
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Q: Why subscription as the ONLY option for iPad versions, though?
Surely a bit of an own goal for Apple? At one point they wanted people to use iPads a la “what’s a computer” ad campaign: for creative stuff without needing a Mac. But then they’ve gone all out against those versions for many, by making them subscription only vs. the Mac versions.
With many potential users simply not going to want to do subscriptions especially for often more feature limited iPad versions, they’re now more likely to choose to get a Mac and simply buy the Mac versions outright, than do that – doh!
(tip: anyone can buy the $630 worth of these apps for $200 via the Pro Apps Bundle for Education, without any restriction! ;-)
The premium features are likely to just be AI and stock, which many will not be bothered with missing out on, either.
Though I suppose you could argue the opposite too. People may choose to use the iPad subscription as they get the apps + the new AI features/stock. But again, the iPad versions of the non-iWork apps are feature limited and much more fiddly to use, so that seems the less likely scenario for most, I suspect.
If it gets worse with Pages & Numbers, then I’ll just use LibreOffice full time. Obviously Apple is showing its total disdain of its users with the new Numbers “icon”.
The more incompetent ones?
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The Audiobooks app is also Orange.
As graphic objects, the icons are probably technically fine, so I wouldn’t say incompetent. For the ACS ones, ok some artistry and abstraction might be visible. There appears to be a disconnect, in that meaning (why neon in ACS?) and usefulness (Tahoe menu icons) of the icons is not there, which is a matter of society and corporate culture etc. There should be a reason, a concept involved imho.
I get the general feeling from recent developments that a new generation is coming in charge at Apple, not so schooled in HID or flawless implementation as previously, not so considerate of a wide range of use cases, maybe more focused on self than user or team, etc.
When I started with Apple products in the 80s, I was in my early 20s, and those early staffers were slightly older. They must be going into retirement by now.
The software and hardware are much more complex now than then of course, so teamwork and coordination need to be at a high level. Pressure to produce to a schedule is there too.
Or maybe the icons were designed automagically by some ‘intelligent’ digits.
Apple doesn’t have a Lightroom killer. No one does. I saw the handwriting on the wall when Apple did not update Aperture for a couple of years and then Adobe released Lightroom. Never looked back. I wouldn’t dream of investing in Apple graphic apps again. I admit that I use FCP for my simple and short nature videos (because it is relatively simple to use), but, with very few exceptions, you won’t find it in the movie industry.
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Simon, I could not agree more with you and I have left several posts to the fact on X as well. Apple is such an artistic company that it boggles the mind on how they could sink so low with these new icons. Ironic in that they are being used to illustrate apps within a Creative Studio suite!
I cannot help but think back to the BEAUTIFUL icon they made for Front Row. Remember that one? I could almost feel the velvet seat and the wooden arm rest. Sigh. 
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Jason Snell has a hands-on look now.
They are offering a 1-month free trial to everyone and a 3-month free trial to purchasers of new Macs and iPads. However, it appears that anyone installing the app between now and late April. Footnote 5 (referenced from the 3-month free offer pane)l says:
“… Offer good for the later of (i) three months after eligible device activation or (ii) three months after first availability for subscription to Apple Creator Studio. …”
I interpret item (ii) to mean that anyone subscribing until April 28 gets the first 3 months free.
I read some reviews about the new iwork apps, and how they push the subscription in both versions. I am not using that suite anymore.