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Microsoft issue design guidelines to PC manufacturers
“We want people to fall in love with their PCs” say Microsoft, “We want PCs to be objects of pure desire”. Steady on. But they do have a point: if they want to sell plenty of new Vista systems, they are going to have to lose that utilitarian indifference to the way Windows PCs look.
Ahead of the release of the new Windows Vista operating system, Microsoft have sent out a set of design guidelines for the look of new PCs. It seems a little strange that a concern with the look of Windows machines should have come so late to Microsoft. The PC has scarcely been out of that ugly beige box since it arrived in 1981, and nobody seemed to think there was anything wrong about that until alarmingly recently.
Given the effort that has gone into Vista, it is no surprise that Microsoft should wish to influence the presentation of new PCs running the new operating system, if only to give consumers an added incentive to upgrade. Mindful of the success of Apple in integrating the hardware and software more closely as part of an elegant and streamlined product, Microsoft have sensed that a closer relationship with the hardware that supports it could prove critical to the success of Vista.
Critics have mocked Microsoft for apparently attempting to mimic the selling points of Apple systems (the use of translucency in the Vista 'aero' graphical interface will make Mac comparisons inevitable), but it's hard to see how they could continue to remain competitive without considering the design of new PCs. It's also the case that the markets and objectives of the two companies are really quite different. Apple have always restricted their operating systems to their own hardware, whereas the 'Vista Industrial Design Toolkit' implies no strong element of compulsion, and really only promotes current design trends.
The toolkit recommends a focus on 'accelerated curves' and 'purposeful contrast', specifying a set of preferred colours including 'obsidian' black and a white shade named 'ice'. Microsoft have specified how they would like certain features, such as buttons, to look. The design principles themselves are largely aesthetic, and concerned with a producing a harmonious overall experience for Vista users.
HP and Dell have expressed non-committal concurrence with the objectives of the toolkit, to focus more on aesthetics and the closer integration of hardware and software. Some manufacturers are unhappy and would sooner direct all their energy into technical innovation. But if this is going to make the PC better looking, what could be wrong with that? Technology has never just been about practicality, it's about the lovely shiny new lycra-wearing, ray-gun-wielding future. We can't go to the future in beige. We just can't.
“We want people to fall in love with their PCs” say Microsoft, “We want PCs to be objects of pure desire”. Steady on. But they do have a point: if they want to sell plenty of new Vista systems, they are going to have to lose that utilitarian indifference to the way Windows PCs look.
Ahead of the release of the new Windows Vista operating system, Microsoft have sent out a set of design guidelines for the look of new PCs. It seems a little strange that a concern with the look of Windows machines should have come so late to Microsoft. The PC has scarcely been out of that ugly beige box since it arrived in 1981, and nobody seemed to think there was anything wrong about that until alarmingly recently.
Given the effort that has gone into Vista, it is no surprise that Microsoft should wish to influence the presentation of new PCs running the new operating system, if only to give consumers an added incentive to upgrade. Mindful of the success of Apple in integrating the hardware and software more closely as part of an elegant and streamlined product, Microsoft have sensed that a closer relationship with the hardware that supports it could prove critical to the success of Vista.
Critics have mocked Microsoft for apparently attempting to mimic the selling points of Apple systems (the use of translucency in the Vista 'aero' graphical interface will make Mac comparisons inevitable), but it's hard to see how they could continue to remain competitive without considering the design of new PCs. It's also the case that the markets and objectives of the two companies are really quite different. Apple have always restricted their operating systems to their own hardware, whereas the 'Vista Industrial Design Toolkit' implies no strong element of compulsion, and really only promotes current design trends.
The toolkit recommends a focus on 'accelerated curves' and 'purposeful contrast', specifying a set of preferred colours including 'obsidian' black and a white shade named 'ice'. Microsoft have specified how they would like certain features, such as buttons, to look. The design principles themselves are largely aesthetic, and concerned with a producing a harmonious overall experience for Vista users.
HP and Dell have expressed non-committal concurrence with the objectives of the toolkit, to focus more on aesthetics and the closer integration of hardware and software. Some manufacturers are unhappy and would sooner direct all their energy into technical innovation. But if this is going to make the PC better looking, what could be wrong with that? Technology has never just been about practicality, it's about the lovely shiny new lycra-wearing, ray-gun-wielding future. We can't go to the future in beige. We just can't.
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Microsoft issue design guidelines to PC manufacturers
“We want people to fall in love with their PCs” say Microsoft, “We want PCs to be objects of pure desire”. Steady on. But they do have a point: if they want to sell plenty of new Vista systems, they are going to have to lose that utilitarian indifference to the way Windows PCs look.
Ahead of the release of the new Windows Vista operating system, Microsoft have sent out a set of design guidelines for the look of new PCs. It seems a little strange that a concern with the look of Windows machines should have come so late to Microsoft. The PC has scarcely been out of that ugly beige box since it arrived in 1981, and nobody seemed to think there was anything wrong about that until alarmingly recently.
Given the effort that has gone into Vista, it is no surprise that Microsoft should wish to influence the presentation of new PCs running the new operating system, if only to give consumers an added incentive to upgrade. Mindful of the success of Apple in integrating the hardware and software more closely as part of an elegant and streamlined product, Microsoft have sensed that a closer relationship with the hardware that supports it could prove critical to the success of Vista.
Critics have mocked Microsoft for apparently attempting to mimic the selling points of Apple systems (the use of translucency in the Vista 'aero' graphical interface will make Mac comparisons inevitable), but it's hard to see how they could continue to remain competitive without considering the design of new PCs. It's also the case that the markets and objectives of the two companies are really quite different. Apple have always restricted their operating systems to their own hardware, whereas the 'Vista Industrial Design Toolkit' implies no strong element of compulsion, and really only promotes current design trends.
The toolkit recommends a focus on 'accelerated curves' and 'purposeful contrast', specifying a set of preferred colours including 'obsidian' black and a white shade named 'ice'. Microsoft have specified how they would like certain features, such as buttons, to look. The design principles themselves are largely aesthetic, and concerned with a producing a harmonious overall experience for Vista users.
HP and Dell have expressed non-committal concurrence with the objectives of the toolkit, to focus more on aesthetics and the closer integration of hardware and software. Some manufacturers are unhappy and would sooner direct all their energy into technical innovation. But if this is going to make the PC better looking, what could be wrong with that? Technology has never just been about practicality, it's about the lovely shiny new lycra-wearing, ray-gun-wielding future. We can't go to the future in beige. We just can't.
“We want people to fall in love with their PCs” say Microsoft, “We want PCs to be objects of pure desire”. Steady on. But they do have a point: if they want to sell plenty of new Vista systems, they are going to have to lose that utilitarian indifference to the way Windows PCs look.
Ahead of the release of the new Windows Vista operating system, Microsoft have sent out a set of design guidelines for the look of new PCs. It seems a little strange that a concern with the look of Windows machines should have come so late to Microsoft. The PC has scarcely been out of that ugly beige box since it arrived in 1981, and nobody seemed to think there was anything wrong about that until alarmingly recently.
Given the effort that has gone into Vista, it is no surprise that Microsoft should wish to influence the presentation of new PCs running the new operating system, if only to give consumers an added incentive to upgrade. Mindful of the success of Apple in integrating the hardware and software more closely as part of an elegant and streamlined product, Microsoft have sensed that a closer relationship with the hardware that supports it could prove critical to the success of Vista.
Critics have mocked Microsoft for apparently attempting to mimic the selling points of Apple systems (the use of translucency in the Vista 'aero' graphical interface will make Mac comparisons inevitable), but it's hard to see how they could continue to remain competitive without considering the design of new PCs. It's also the case that the markets and objectives of the two companies are really quite different. Apple have always restricted their operating systems to their own hardware, whereas the 'Vista Industrial Design Toolkit' implies no strong element of compulsion, and really only promotes current design trends.
The toolkit recommends a focus on 'accelerated curves' and 'purposeful contrast', specifying a set of preferred colours including 'obsidian' black and a white shade named 'ice'. Microsoft have specified how they would like certain features, such as buttons, to look. The design principles themselves are largely aesthetic, and concerned with a producing a harmonious overall experience for Vista users.
HP and Dell have expressed non-committal concurrence with the objectives of the toolkit, to focus more on aesthetics and the closer integration of hardware and software. Some manufacturers are unhappy and would sooner direct all their energy into technical innovation. But if this is going to make the PC better looking, what could be wrong with that? Technology has never just been about practicality, it's about the lovely shiny new lycra-wearing, ray-gun-wielding future. We can't go to the future in beige. We just can't.