Paul and I have discussed releasing a DLB icon pack in the near future, so I’ve been thinking a lot about icons lately. It’s interesting to consider the conventions of icon design, which, in some cases, haven’t changed much in 25 years (at least). In particular, I’ve pondered over the icon for “save” which, in most cases, is represented by a 3.5” floppy disk (most prominently, in Microsoft Office).

When you first think about it, it seems to violate the UI metaphor principle. I mean, the save-floppy represents something that barely anyone uses today. Children born ten years ago have probably never handled a floppy disk. Not to mention all those born later and yet to be born. It may as well be a picture of an 8-track tape.

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I wrote a post a while back about a conundrum I faced—which side of a can of Red Bull should display the label: the side facing the customer or the drinker? On one hand, I argued, people want others to notice what they are drinking, so it is important for the logo to face outwards.

Earlier this week, a reader commented that the logo wasn’t that important – the unique, narrow shape of the can was how people would recognize the brand. I thought this was a good point, and it reminded me of something I’d read frequently in interviews with Matt Groening about the importance of profiles or silhouettes in design:

The secret of designing cartoon characters — and I’m giving away this secret now to all of you out there — is: you make a character that you can tell who it is in silhouette. I learned this from watching Mickey Mouse as a kid. You can tell Mickey Mouse from a mile away…those two big ears. Same thing with Popeye, same thing with Batman. And so, if you look at the Simpsons, they’re all identifiable in silhouette. Bart with the picket fence hair, Marge with the beehive, and Homer with the two little hairs, and all the rest. So…I think about hair quite a lot.

Of course, everything has a shape, but I think it is common to overlook the effectiveness of profile. Too often, I think, we focus on the content rather than the container and profile simply is simply what emerges. What Groening is saying, I believe, is not necessarily to do the opposite, but that a strong design works even when it is reduced to a mere outline.

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