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There has been a lot of talk and complaints about the new Google favicon lately. I’ve found it to be both too indistinguishable and unfamiliar to be able to recognize it immediately as Google.

One of the main purposes of the favicon is to act as a shortcut icon that will help you find a saved bookmark in your browser or an application on your desktop. Such a change of this icon completely disrupts what users are comfortable with and familiar with, which is extremely important when it comes to any interface or application.

Luckily, Google listens to its users and has decided not to close the door on the issue. And now if you have an idea for updating the Google icon (or gcon! no?) then now you can submit your favicon design to google and have your celebrity forever cemented in 16 pixels of stone, or at least until the next update. Beyond that, don’t expect to be compensated for fixing Google’s branding problems. Seems a little like spec work to me…

Graphic design seems to finally be getting some deserved attention from businesses these days and design-related salaries are steadily rising, however I can’t help but wonder what the overall perception of graphic design is from the general public. Good design can sell a product by consumers recognizing it as so. Products are more about style and what they say about their owner these days, rather than solely about the job it performs or the service it offers. This has led consumers to place certain products/companies on a cultural pedestal (people NEED their iPods). In the same way, consumers influence design by setting the bar on how it’s quality is measured.

There is an abundance of bad design in the professional world that is widely accepted and it is leading consumers to lower their design standards. This is one of the reasons the iPod absolutely exploded and became a cultural phenomenon. No other mp3 player at the time offered such ease of use AND looked amazing doing it. I’m getting a little sidetracked, but the point is that I decided to do a little experiment to see where most people are being exposed to graphic design and what quality of design is readily available to their eyes. Read the rest of this entry »