ZeldmanIcons = Zicons = New trend?

April 11, 2000 2:44 AM

ZeldmanIcons = Zicons = New trend?
First there was 'open links in new window', then favicons, thereafter, links to individual posts and now is the new trend Zicons (from weblogs.com)?!
Another Winer plan is launched.
posted by williamtry (14 comments total)

No offense to Jeffrey, but I thought the icons were cool in my OS a couple years ago, and I can't see the utility of using them for weblogs. I know icons are big in chat or message board systems like this one, but with those things you usually don't have very much material to get a feel for a person, so the icons make up for that. With a weblog, we're dealing with a lot more writing, so the utility of them getting across some aspect of a writer's personality doesn't seem as necessary.
posted by mathowie at 6:59 AM on April 11, 2000

Maybe I wasn't paying enough attention. Am I missing some fundamental point? Are any of these icons supposed to mean anything in particular? Or are these things just more colorful cowskulls?
posted by harmful at 7:15 AM on April 11, 2000

I think there need to be more.
posted by jamescblack at 7:21 AM on April 11, 2000

From what I gather of the site...it just looks they're trying for a more creative way to link weblogs?
posted by dangerman at 8:37 AM on April 11, 2000

I dunno. I don't think I need an "out of the box" addition to my site. I mean editthispage already comes with a certain amount of that - why would I add more? As it is I'm already considering moving away from/off of editthispage so I have a complete tabula rasa to work with.
posted by mikel at 9:10 AM on April 11, 2000

Icons are a revolutionary idea! I think we should develop a new, international Internet language that consists entirely of icons and pictograms. Think of the clarity of communication we could achieve! The predominance of the English language on the Internet, after all, is just one more way the United States is exerting its cultural influence on the rest of the world.

We can free the Internet from this linguistic tyranny, but we must start now. There is much to be done, primarily replacing the left-to-right, phoenetic-alphabet domain name system. Then the weblog community can lead the way into a new age of communication. Pictophiles of the world unite!
posted by daveadams at 9:34 AM on April 11, 2000

You Pictophiles stay away from my Playboys!!!
posted by dangerman at 9:40 AM on April 11, 2000

anybody ever taken a second look at the masthead at evhead.com?

posted by Zeldman at 9:45 AM on April 11, 2000

Or better yet, Nikolai made his own icons for each of his favorite Web sites.
posted by jkottke at 10:16 AM on April 11, 2000

ouch...and old skool swings back
posted by dangerman at 11:03 AM on April 11, 2000

pictographical languages, eh? back to hieroglyphics? or mebbe we want something like anti-math?
posted by sonofsamiam at 12:06 PM on April 11, 2000

OK, I'll jump on the bandwagon. Somebody pick me a frickin' icon.
posted by harmful at 2:52 PM on April 12, 2000

I'll just use a
skull.
posted by mikewas at 6:09 PM on April 12, 2000

Oooh, shoulda read the other comments first.
posted by mikewas at 6:10 PM on April 12, 2000