My Windows 9 Harmony UI.


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Here is a little concept I through together. I call it the ..

 

Windows Harmony UI

Where a mouse and finger can live together

 

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Its both Very touch friendly on the desktop side, while also being very mouse friendly. There would be a button that is NOT HIDDEN! You would push on the taskbar which would bring up the bottom bar. From there different layers would appear on top. You will still have the traditional desktop. This would be a metro screen replacement.

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Well, I'll give you one thing, it looks a hell of a lot nicer than any concept post here so far, but the concept seems somewhat minimalist. Where's the taskbar/app switcher (Is there even one?)? What do windows look like? Etc.

 

The concept needs more definition.

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awww nobody likes my concept :( :)

 

What's the presentation of Apps look like? For me the key improvement of the Screen over the old Menu is the presentation of programs (textmaze vs. tiles), so I'd be most interested in how that looks in your concept.

 

Though what you've shown so far looks very clean and easy to scan. Good spacing and use of "whitespace". Not necessarily the prettiest concept, but it looks very functional and easy to work with.

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Well, I'll give you one thing, it looks a hell of a lot nicer than any concept post here so far, but the concept seems somewhat minimalist. Where's the taskbar (Is there even one?)? What do windows look like? Etc.

 

The concept needs more definition.

 

Everything is still the same desktop wise. This would replace things like charms or even the metro UI IF you are on a desktop.

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Really don't like it. Visually it's incredibly simplistic and the functionality looks no better. The font sizes aren't even consistent and it looks like it was designed in MS Paint.

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What's the presentation of Apps look like? For me the key improvement of the Screen over the old Menu is the presentation of programs (textmaze vs. tiles), so I'd be most interested in how that looks in your concept.

 

Though what you've shown so far looks very clean and easy to scan. Good spacing and use of "whitespace". Not necessarily the prettiest concept, but it looks very functional and easy to work with.

 

Maybe something like this

 

2jbqnnn.jpg

 

 

 

Really don't like it. Visually it's incredibly simplistic and the functionality looks no better. The font sizes aren't even consistent and it looks like it was designed in MS Paint.

 

lol oh please, it's just a concept. Obviously it would look 100% better if actually used.

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Maybe something like this

 

2jbqnnn.jpg

 

 

 

 

 

 

If there were a way to categorize/group the icons, this could work quite well. Although that would bring it to almost being a desktop implementation of the Start Screen, not that I'd mind that at all. Do you envision this as supporting live tiles?

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Well, I'll give you one thing, it looks a hell of a lot nicer than any concept post here so far, but the concept seems somewhat minimalist. Where's the taskbar/app switcher (Is there even one?)? What do windows look like? Etc.

 

The concept needs more definition.

 

Maybe something like this

 

2cwkk07.jpg

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A general comment, the OP may kindly not take it to be a personal jibe.

 

All these various concepts tell me is that people love to criticize but 99.99% can't design worth a damn. Designing an easy to understand, easy to use with multiple input methods, yet powerful and scalable UI that will appeal to most classes of users is a supremely difficult task, and I have no doubt in my mind whatsoever that no matter what Microsoft does with the Start Screen or Menu in Windows 9 they will be loudly criticized and even abused for it by thousands of people. I feel for their UI team, I really do.

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A general comment, the OP may kindly not take it to be a personal jibe.

 

All these various concepts tell me is that people love to criticize but 99.99% can't design worth a damn. Designing an easy to understand, easy to use with multiple input methods, yet powerful and scalable UI that will appeal to most classes of users is a supremely difficult task, and I have no doubt in my mind whatsoever that no matter what Microsoft does with the Start Screen or Menu in Windows 9 they will be loudly criticized and even abused for it by thousands of people. I feel for their UI team, I really do.

 

That comment is fine. I'm using Photoshop and I am not a Photoshop expert nor am I a Graphic artist or UI artist. Just throwing something togethetr

 

Please ignore my horrid colors it's just a proof of concept..

 

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I would love if anyone could take this idea and turn it into something that actually looks nice :)

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Thanks for understanding the point of my comment.

 

I would love if anyone could take this idea and turn it into something that actually looks nice :)

 

I wonder if any real HCI and UID/UX experts are members here?

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On the windows update screen shot, take your finger and literally touch the photo on the screen from settings to Update and recovery to windows update and you'll see it has a very natural flow feeling to it. Without filling your screen with crap.

 

Personally I feel that not only is this touch friendly its actually faster than both the Desktop control panel and the Metro control panel. Nothing says that UI can't be used to give the user all the items of the traditional control panel, but just a faster way to get it them.

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I wonder if any real HCI and UID/UX experts are members here?

 

Yes they are... 

 

You can see them in graphics threads.. and other related threads such as UI concepts. And there are theme designers.

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Kinda sorta reminds me of the old Cairo Shell mockups before that project went belly-up.  Theirs was on top with a traditional taskbar on the bottom but just the vibe I got.

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Yes they are... 

 

You can see them in graphics threads.. and other related threads such as UI concepts. And there are theme designers.

 

Hopefully real and not just self-confessed experts. Maybe some might like to get involved in a collaborative project but I doubt they'll be interested unless they have free time or are big fans of the OS or just like a challenge. One never knows what great work might lead to though. There are always cases like that guy whose concepts got noticed when he was still a student and he's now working on the XBox team. Lots of artists and game designers as well whose fan art/works got them noticed and onto great careers.

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A general comment, the OP may kindly not take it to be a personal jibe.

 

All these various concepts tell me is that people love to criticize but 99.99% can't design worth a damn. Designing an easy to understand, easy to use with multiple input methods, yet powerful and scalable UI that will appeal to most classes of users is a supremely difficult task, and I have no doubt in my mind whatsoever that no matter what Microsoft does with the Start Screen or Menu in Windows 9 they will be loudly criticized and even abused for it by thousands of people. I feel for their UI team, I really do.

It is irrelevant if people can design or not. CONSUMERS dictate what they like. They don't need to design it, they need to USE it.

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Hopefully real and not just self-confessed experts. Maybe some might like to get involved in a collaborative project but I doubt they'll be interested unless they have free time or are big fans of the OS or just like a challenge. One never knows what great work might lead to though. There are always cases like that guy whose concepts got noticed when he was still a student and he's now working on the XBox team. Lots of artists and game designers as well whose fan art/works got them noticed and onto great careers.

 

See these concepts here. They are doing a good job with theirs.

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