Re: "modern" colors Re: Changes for emacs 28

[Philip K.]

Ergus <spacibba@aol.com> writes:

>>In what way have the "fully redesigned the mode-line"? The link you
>>provided has no mode-lines.
>>
> https://github.com/jonathanchu/emacs-powerline
> https://github.com/TheBB/spaceline
> https://github.com/domtronn/spaceline-all-the-icons.el
> https://seagle0128.github.io/doom-modeline
> https://www.spacemacs.org/ (there are pictures)

If this is modern, I'd very much argue against modernizing.

First of all, most of these changes are either non-functional or just
changes for the sake of change. They also remind me of the prompts some
people use in their shell, that use those modified fonts to create the
illusion of pentagon-like shape. That's already existed for a few years,
and from my experience, after reaching a critical-mass and it looses it
novelty value, it will look even more outdated (or perhaps even
"cringe") than what we have no. Think of those 3D, hyper-detail desktops
that were cool 10-15 years ago. Or the skeuomorphism found on Apple
operating systems. What use to be cool, fresh and new, was that only
because it managed to make use of new technical capabilities, that
previously limited the design (higher density displays, enough spare
computational power to render excessive animations, etc.). 

These tendencies usually go too far, and eventually this excess is
commonly understood. But until then, the movement is recognized as
modern, and following it's style doesn't make sense for everyone. For a
new programme, without an established user-base, appearances are a lot
more important, because "first look" count. But established applications
can suffer from it, as I often hear from MS Office users, who lament the
frequent changes in the UI. While a change of theme or mode-line isn't
that drastic, I think the analogy can be recognized.

Secondly, design reflects mentality. One can say a lot about a person,
by looking at their living room furniture. Most would consider VS Code
or Atom to have modern UIs and designs, but I don't think that it could
or should be disconnected from the UX. I'd argue: The UX or an "ideal"
work flow in Emacs doesn't match that of VSC or Atom, and by reflecting
that in the design, we don't stand to gain a modern UI, but "break" the
UX. Emacs is different, and to a certain degree this should be reflected
in the way it looks (which doesn't mean everything should stay the
same). 

Maybe it would be better to aim for "Timeless", instead of "Modern".

(I recognize that the argument is a bit flimsy, but I'm writing this
around half past one in the morning, so mistakes are bound to happen.)

-- 
        Philip K.