Re: Objective-C 2.0 and other new features in Leopard

[Jesse Ross]

> > As to the look, is there a reason why Camaelon still isn't part of  
> > the standard GNUstep distribution?  Yes, the default look is  
> > clean, but it's clean and very 80s.  Nesedah is clean and modern,  
> > and Narcissus is even cleaner.  Using GNUstep apps without  
> > Camaelon feels like stepping through a time warp.
>
> For what it's worth, I like the "very 80s" look. What's wrong with  
> the 80s look?
>
> User interface is very hard to design well, and NeXT did an  
> excellent, and, in my opinion, ever since unsurpassed, job. It is  
> not easy to tinker with a good design and make it better.
>
> The NeXT look-and-feel is consistent and minimalist. The (i)  
> simple, (ii) square (iii) gray (iv) static GUI elements remain  
> subdued in the background, and do not compete with the user's own  
> data for the user's attention. The design looks as if it was  
> carefully designed by a single brain who understood the design from  
> a holistic point of view, had considered every angle of it, and  
> trimmed out all the fat.

...

> I'd be more conservative in making claims we can so easily improve  
> on the NeXT original design. I've looked at some of the themes  
> offered in Camaeleon. They look interesting/OK. I personally prefer  
> the NeXT design.
>
> I think a theming engine is useful; but I'm not convinced it's such  
> a great priority and I can see good reasons not to have it a part  
> of the standard distribution (see pitfalls above).

Not that there is tons to look at yet, but this is the current status  
of the Narcissus theme:

http://jesseross.com/clients/etoile/ui/themes/narcissus/02.png

I really like the NeXT style too -- it is by far one of the most  
consistent and elegant UI's ever designed. I think you'll find that  
Narcissus is honest to the NeXT style, but is more approachable to  
people used to current GUIs with their gradients and smooth edges.

J.