9 Sep
2007
9 Sep
'07
11:52 p.m.
On 10/09/2007, Chuck Guzis <cclist at sydex.com> wrote:
Keeping things on-vintage, when were icons first used
on PeeCee
hardware?
Hmm... I've been mystified by strange symbols above connectors on the
backs of machines for a while now... Especially when it's from a
manufacturer I don't usually deal with. At least my own interest, the
BBC micro, got this right! Proper words on the ports..
I have to admit that I'm another one who's mystified by icons; unless
they're part of some very specialized application. Such as in
musical transcription software, where an eighth note (quaver for you
in the UK) means just that--to write it out in words would take
longer to interpret than "You want an eighth note? Just click on the
eighth note." "Sixty-fourth note" or "hemidemisemiquaver" is
just
too cumbersome.
Music is a good example where the symbology has had a good time to
develop and get standardised, so there's not a lot of choice when you
want to depict a quaver, etc. Computers are so new, though, and the
use of pictographs on them even newer, that there seems to be no
standard for even typical items, never mind the esoteric ports for
functions... I've seen "=" for parallel and "- - -" for serial on
one
box, and symbols reminicent from flow-charts for printers on another..
If you don't already know what a port might be, then you've no
chance.. Just write "printer port" FGS....
(I had a light come on the car dash the other day. Looked a bit like
the logo on some alien space ship in a Sci-Fi show. Nothing
recognisable, nor memorable enough for me to describe it now. But it
was yellow, rather than green, so I had to stop, dig out the handbook
from under the passenger seat, and look it up. Then
look up the
mysterious acronym that the description referred to. ["This
indicates
that the XYZ subsystem has activated" - almost as usefull as some PC
BIOS handbooks. "FooBar activation option? - This allows you to
enable or disable this option" Yes, I worked that out, but what does
the option DO??] It took me a good couple of minutes to find out
that it was nothing to worry about, and I wasn't being warned that the
engine was about to blow up. Now where's the advantage in that??)
I agree with Dwight; icons: nice idea.. shame it doesn't work...
Rob