Q&A 

What are icons good for?

Michael Wilson

What are icons good for?

Icons are an essential part of many user interfaces, visually expressing objects, actions and ideas. When done correctly, they communicate the core idea and intent of a product or action, and they bring a lot of nice benefits to user interfaces, such as saving screen real estate and enhancing aesthetic appeal.

Why are icons used?

Icons break down language barriers, reinforce website content and are far more memorable than text alone. Icons illustrate while adding freshness to your web design. An icon can quickly sum up and express what a section of text is about by communicating the core idea in a visual way.

What are examples of icons?

For example, the folders you see on your desktop or in open windows are icons. The files that you see in those folders are also icons. The trash can on the Macintosh and the recycle bin on Windows are both icons as well. Icons are a visual representation of something on your computer.

How do I use UI icons?

Reduce the amount of graphic details KISS principle works for all elements of UI including icons. Keep icons as simple as possible, and avoid unnecessary complexity by following two rules: Limit the number of colors used. Use no more than 3 or 4 colors to keep the design clean.

Why are icons better than images?

Icon fonts are text files that can be modified using CSS. Consequently, they scale much better than raster images, so changing the size of an icon font doesn’t degrade its visual quality. If the browser cannot interpret the fonts, then the user will just see empty characters.

Why are icons better than text?

Great icons generally improve the user interface design and make a webpage more pleasing to the eyes. When it comes down to icons vs text, visuals are more likely to be recognized and recalled. You have to keep in mind that some icons can be very difficult to interpret if you are not already familiar with them.

Can I make my own icons?

IconsFlow is the right tool to start creating a high quality icon set without any photoshop or illustrator skills. You can simply add all the icons you need and change the color of the elements, size and shadow effects. It’s easier than you think!

How do I make custom font icons?

Creating an icon font

  1. Step 1: Drag & drop selected SVG’s and create a new set.
  2. Step 2: Select all the icons you wish to include in the font.
  3. Step 3: Generate the font.
  4. Step 4: Rename all the icons and define a unicode character for each (optional)
  5. Step 5: Download the generated files.

How do I create an icon from a PNG?

How to convert a PNG to a ICO file?

  1. Choose the PNG file that you want to convert.
  2. Select ICO as the the format you want to convert your PNG file to.
  3. Click “Convert” to convert your PNG file.

How do I customize my Samsung icons?

Change your icons From a Home screen, touch and hold an empty area. Tap Themes, and then tap Icons. To view all of your icons, tap Menu (the three horizontal lines), then tap My stuff, and then tap Icons under My stuff. Select your desired icons, and then tap Apply.

How do I make my own Samsung icons?

Applying a custom icon

  1. Long-press the shortcut you wish to change.
  2. Tap Edit.
  3. Tap the icon box to edit the icon.
  4. Tap Gallery apps.
  5. Tap Documents.
  6. Navigate to and select your custom icon.
  7. Make sure your icon is centered and completely within the bounding box before tapping Done.
  8. Tap Done to commit the changes.