C H A P T E R 5

Icons

Extras Drawer Icon Shape

Icons for Newton applications generally should not look like icons for desktop computer applications. Boxy icons are common on desktop computers, where colors and shades of gray can distinguish one icon from another. In the Newton Extras Drawer, boxy black-and-white icons look too much alike, especially when they are in great number or are uniform in size. Try to give your Extras Drawer icon a distinguishing silhouette. If for some reason your design must use a black rectangular field, eliminate a pixel in each corner to make the icon more rounded. A rounded icon looks more Newtonlike.

Extras Drawer Icon Names

When you design an Extras Drawer icon, you should also come up with the name to be displayed beneath it. If the name is too long to fit on one line, the Extras Drawer automatically wraps the name onto a second line. You can control where the line breaks by including a blank space or a hyphen at a judicious spot in the name. Despite this accommodation of two-line icon names, you should avoid them. A two-line icon name crowds the icon below it and diminishes the vertical separation between icon rows.

Whether one line or two, broad icon names may collide in the Extras Drawer. To keep an icon name from running into its neighbors, make it no more than 9 to 11 characters long per line. (The length depends on which letters are in the name, since letters are different widths.)

Don’t worry about your careful work devising an icon name being undone by a user changing the name. Users cannot change the names of Extras Drawer icons.

Animating an Extras Drawer Icon

Instead of having an Extras Drawer icon highlighted when a user selects it, you can have it appear to move or to change to an alternate state. For example, many of the built-in applications’ icons feature this type of simple animation, including In Box, Out Box, Calls, Time Zones, Clock, Prefs, Setup, and Writing Practice.

Extras Drawer Icons

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Apple 2 manual Extras Drawer Icon Shape, Extras Drawer Icon Names, Animating an Extras Drawer Icon
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2 specifications

The Apple II is a defining product in the history of personal computing, first introduced in 1977 by Apple Computer, Inc. Designed by Steve Wozniak, the Apple II was one of the first highly successful mass-produced microcomputer products and played a significant role in bringing personal computers into homes and schools.

One of the Apple II's standout features was its color graphics capability. It was one of the first personal computers to provide color output, thanks to its built-in video interface. The initial model supported a resolution of 280x192 pixels with a palette of 6 colors, which allowed for vibrant visuals that set it apart from contemporaries like the monochrome Altair 8800.

The Apple II was notable for its open architecture. This design allowed users to expand the computer's capabilities easily through a series of expansion slots. Users could add floppy disk drives, additional memory, and various peripheral devices, making the system highly adaptable to individual needs. This encouraged a thriving ecosystem of third-party hardware and software, which contributed to its popularity.

Another significant feature was its use of the 6502 microprocessor. This 8-bit CPU was not only affordable but also powerful for its time, allowing the Apple II to run various applications efficiently. Along with a built-in keyboard and an innovative plastic case that housed its components, the design was user-friendly and appealing.

The Apple II also introduced the concept of “bootable software” through the use of floppy disks. The disk operating system (DOS) allowed users to store and run multiple programs without having to reload software manually, providing a level of convenience that had not been widely available before. Key software like VisiCalc, the first spreadsheet program, helped boost sales, showcasing the Apple II's utility in business and education environments.

The computer was also well-known for its early adoption of BASIC programming language. Apple provided an operating system that supported Applesoft BASIC, which enabled users, including students, to write their programs, further fostering a community of developers.

In summary, the Apple II's color graphics, open architecture, powerful 6502 processor, innovative use of floppy disks, and support for BASIC programming made it a revolutionary product in its time. Its legacy laid the groundwork for future personal computers and established Apple as a leader in the burgeoning tech industry. The Apple II remains an iconic symbol of the early personal computing era, reflecting a generation's transition into a digitally connected world.
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