Selecting a Plasma logo

[Jens Reuterberg]

About half a year ago this thread started and so far no actual change has 
happened. 

The background is that the past logo for Plasma Desktop was disagreed upon by 
the Plasma developer team and they wanted a new one. Thomas created a 
competition of sorts which had a lot of suggestions in it.

Currently, no final decision has been made on this which leaves us with three 
options:
1) VDG decides.
2) The developers decide
3) We use the KDE logo 

Now 

#1 means that we with a high level of chance will go to the Plasma logo we had 
before this started. There is zero criticism against it that has been valid 
except that the developers who didn't like it in the first place didn't like 
it. Which is relevant of course.
#2 means this thread needs a choice. This WILL NOT continue in any structured 
form where people are egged on to make "suggestions" and then a round table 
debate. It has taken work time from VDG contributors, caused meaningless 
arguments and bikeshedding and has been the kind of work we can all see will 
never end. I honestly regret not having the courage to say "No" when it was 
first debated.
(if some designer wants to work with the Plasma Developers on this, go for it, 
no one will stop you of course. But the VDG will not supply designers to this 
task formally or make any further efforts which has been so far a half a year 
of throwing manhours into a pit)
#3 Means that we take the work on seperating KDE the community from Plasma the 
desktop and pretend it didn't happen. Which sounds dramatic but its 
essentially leaving it as a status quo.

Now this is Open Source and KDE, none of us have the right to dictate to 
others what to do with their spare time.
But as a designer I can assure you that what we are doing with this is wasting 
our collective time. 
There is NO perfect solution. No perfect logo for a project which out of the 
blue will summarize everyones expectations and hopes. Nothing that can't be 
shredded in a round session of bikeshedding and "uhms" and "ehrs". There will 
never be a choice made.
The reason why the old icon was the one we stuck with has parts to do with no 
one actually speaking up at the time when it was thrown in there. But that is 
not relevant. 
It is good because it is different from the K, clearly different. It is good 
because it played on the shape of the cashew symbol but using the design 
guides formed in the beginning of Plasma 5. It is good because it is so 
absolutely abstract as to not clash with any other symbolism out there. It is 
a blank slate to be loaded with meaning instead of an heraldic symbol where 
the meaning and statements we feel we are part of need to be presented. 
This is also BAD as it needs to be used and reused to gain meaning. If we 
don't use it it is JUST a bit of abstract scribble. 

None of this means that the suggestions in the thread Thomas posted are bad, 
or worse than, or subpar or anything. It just means that if the choice was 
mine - if we where picking one thing to present to a client in a professional 
setting. I would pick the original logo without a second hesitation. 

Unless something is posted here my assumption is that the design decision is 
up to the KDE Design Group/VDG and we will choose, reply and move on with this 
and our lives.


On Monday, 25 July 2016 20:54:14 CET Thomas Pfeiffer wrote:
> Dear Plasma development team, dear VDG,
> the official deadline for the Plasma logo contest has passed yesterday.
> We have five entries into the contest, with one actually consisting of five
> different mash-ups and modifications of the other entries, and one being
> Plasma's current logo.
> You can find all the proposals here:
> https://forum.kde.org/viewtopic.php?f=285&t=133836
> I think we have quite a good selection here, and hope that we can find
> something here which we can agree on.
> In the contest thread, I promised a jury consisting of VDG members and
> Plasma team members.
> Now I've decided that since the whole Plasma team has to be able to identify
> themselves with the logo, and all VDG members should have the possibility
> to chip in as well, everyone who participates in the discussion is part of
> the jury. There won't be a voting process. Either we can agree on a logo,
> or everything stays like it is (the official Plasma logo still being what
> we have now, and the K logo being used for the launchers).
> I'd give us a discussion period until Sunday, unless a clear agreement can
> be reached before that.
> Please refer to the logo proposals by the creator's forum name (remember
> that our current logo is Uri's, not mine ;) ), and for Ken's just say e.g.
> "Ken's fourth logo".
> Happy discussions, here is to us finding a logo we can all (at least more or
> less) identify with!
> 
> Thomas
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