New skin - feedback requested

[Isomorphic]

Hello All,

We're seeing a lot of requests for a new look and feel and we want to make sure the direction we've taken for our next skin design addresses what these users want.

A lot of people are using adjectives like "nice, clean" - when pressed for details, some people have indicated they want a pretty much color-for-color, element-for-element match of the look and feel of Microsoft Outlook 2007 (Google image search) as used by Ext, Jxlib and others, with first priority being the light gray color scheme.

If this describes what you want, please let us know by posting here. Don't be shy - we need to know if this is the right direction.

If this isn't what you want, or there are other look and feel options you also want, please post links or descriptions of the look and feel options you would like to see.

[hschmitt]

Gray color scheme: pro

...
the look and feel of Microsoft Outlook 2007 (Google image search) as used by Ext, Jxlib and others, with first priority being the light gray color scheme.

If this describes what you want, please let us know by posting here. Don't be shy - we need to know if this is the right direction.
...

We want to switch from gwt-ext to SmartGWT. We are just holding back because of the schemes...
The gray color scheme would perfectly fit our needs.

[mike.art1]

I like the light gray scheme, but our existing app has the Outlook blue look and changing the color isn't an option. What would be ideal is to come up with the outlook or jxlib kind of look and have a tool that will allow us to change the color. Simiilar to what SpiketIDE theme generator has for Ext.

[sjardine]

+1 for gray and outlook blue. Thanks!

[ausername?]

Yop!
That would be exactly what we need !
thks

[chrisboesing]

I would like the have a skin without any images, so that you can change the whole look and feel of the skin just by setting some colors and don't have to change any images.

[teseling]

Another +1 for gray and outlook blue

[claudiobosticco]

another +1 for outlook blue skin.

And something like SpiketIDE theme generator would be ABSOLUTELY great.

Regarding the new skins, which I like overall, I'd like a more 3d look of the tabbar...maybe more similar to those of the TreeFrog skin.

[Isomorphic]

Thanks for the feedback so far guys..

For those requesting an Outlook-style blue - SilverWave is in a similar color spectrum. Are you asking for a closer match to Outlook blue because:

1) you need to match / intermix with existing designs where SilverWave might clash

2) you like SilverWave but you need / prefer to use the ubiquitous Outlook look and feel, so there's no chance anyone will object to your application's appearance.

3) at as an aesthetic level you just don't like SilverWave as much (what specifically don't you like, if you can share? Could changes to SilverWave make it preferable to a more Outlook-like look and feel for you?)

4) some other reason?

It'd be great if you guys can take the time to answer these - it will help us decide on the relative priority of an Outlook-like blue vs a Slate color scheme, something similar to Google Chrome's look and feel, etc. And the SilverWave design can still be influenced as well.

[gaspo100]

Can skin change be applied without reloading the application? In GWT-Ext skin changes are applied without reloading.
If the application is large it may take a while to cycle through all the available skins.

[hschmitt]

Thanks for the feedback so far guys..

For those requesting an Outlook-style blue - SilverWave is in a similar color spectrum. Are you asking for a closer match to Outlook blue because:

1) you need to match / intermix with existing designs where SilverWave might clash

2) you like SilverWave but you need / prefer to use the ubiquitous Outlook look and feel, so there's no chance anyone will object to your application's appearance.

3) at as an aesthetic level you just don't like SilverWave as much (what specifically don't you like, if you can share? Could changes to SilverWave make it preferable to a more Outlook-like look and feel for you?)

4) some other reason?

It'd be great if you guys can take the time to answer these - it will help us decide on the relative priority of an Outlook-like blue vs a Slate color scheme, something similar to Google Chrome's look and feel, etc. And the SilverWave design can still be influenced as well.

1) No
3) The colors in Silver Wave are a good start, but the blue that is used in grid headers is too heavy. We would prefer a more spare use of colors.
For example the scrollbars look a bit childish (sorry for that). Also the split bar image does not look pretty nice.

[zerozerosette]

+1 for a light gray theme.
Thank you...

[hawkettc]

Low Bandwidth Skin

I'd like to second the earlier comment requesting an imageless skin - current deployments to Google Application Engine have bandwidth quotas, and such a skin would increase the volume of users before the quota is reached. Going forward, once GAE bandwidth can be paid for, it saves money :) - think in terms of a GMail like interface, but with the data bound components of SmartClient. Cheers,

Colin

[mike.art1]

1) you need to match / intermix with existing designs where SilverWave might clash

Yes
2) you like SilverWave but you need / prefer to use the ubiquitous Outlook look and feel, so there's no chance anyone will object to your application's appearance.

No. I don't particularly fancy the L&F of Silverwave. The colors are too dark. It also has a non standard scrollbar and splitter.

3) at as an aesthetic level you just don't like SilverWave as much (what specifically don't you like, if you can share? Could changes to SilverWave make it preferable to a more Outlook-like look and feel for you?)

It's possible but unless I see silverwave with a lighter color its hard to say.

[claudiobosticco]

I declare beforehand that I'm not a designer, and also I must say sorry for my English :-)

> 1) you need to match / intermix with existing designs
> where SilverWave might clash

well, my existing designs are based on a #181ea5 blue. When I tried extjs I found it a better match. But SilverWave it's not bad at all either, only I think that some of its components don't mix well as in TreeFrog, for example. More on that later.

2) you like SilverWave but you need / prefer to use the ubiquitous Outlook look and feel, so there's no chance anyone will object to your application's appearance.

well, this could be a good argument :-)

3) at as an aesthetic level you just don't like SilverWave as much (what specifically don't you like, if you can share? Could changes to SilverWave make it preferable to a more Outlook-like look and feel for you?)

here I'm trying to compare the showcase application in SilverWave to that in TreeFrog.
The ListGrid Header under the SectionHeader: I like much more the contrast in the TreeFrog skin. In the SilverWave skin, I just don't feel it's right. Maybe the ListGrid Header darker than the SectionHeader is the coulprit?
I like the scrollbars, but maybe too dark the "scroll track"?
Also, I like more the TreeFrog's TabBar, maybe they have a better 3d look.