Capitalize on Universal Symbols
Does everything have to be new to be effective? It doesn’t work that way with symbols. Pretty much everyone recognizes a red octagon atop a post at the intersection of two streets. Same is true with the male and female symbols that differentiate between restrooms.
But what about websites? Should every link look the same? Should every symbol, nationally and internationally, indicate the same thing? Is it an effective use of the visual? Or is it another indication of the “dumbing down” of the masses? I wonder how the folks at Apple and Microsoft would answer.
Don’t get me wrong. I like symbols. They offer a way to capitalize on their universality. But do we need to simplify everything? I fear we may be sacrificing communication and functionally in an effort to make it more simple for people to get more done.
Substituting symbols for words may make it easier, but it can make me :(