Bring back the classic but more visible 1Password key icon as an option [Under consideration]

benfdc

This may or may not be a transitory issue, but I think it worth mentioning anyway. For those of us still running 1Password 4, either because we have an AWS license or because we have not yet upgraded to Yosemite, the 1Password menu bar icon does not match the browser toolbar icon.

alanr

I've been using 1password for a bunch of years and now my eyes can't easily find it because of the icon change. Please include an option to use the old icon style in both 1password mini and in the browser extension. (was there any reason to change the icon in the first place??)

Megan

Hi @alanr,

Thanks so much for sharing your thoughts here!

As for the reasoning behind this change, previous versions of 1Password had a key icon included in our logo. But version 4, and now version 5 as well, have simplified the design so our logo is now simply the lock. Having a key icon as the extension icon just didn't quite make sense anymore. We thought that it would be easier for users if our extension icon matched the app's logo.

As can be evidenced by this active thread, the change might not be as easy on users as we had hoped. ;) (Personally, I love it, but I am a girl of very few extensions.)

rbrewer

Another vote for switching back to the key icon in the OS X menu bar, and just as importantly in the browser extensions. I'm still running Mavericks and 1Password 4, so I have the nice key icon in my menubar, but I have the lock icon for the browser extension in Chrome and Safari.

JefT

+1 vote for adding the option to switch between the new icon and the older key icon on OS X

Jasper

Hi @rbrewer and @JefT‌,

Thanks for the feedback! I will pass this along to our developers. :)

chiMaxx

In your most recent newsletter, you write:
"1Password 5 has been redesigned to fit in perfectly with OS X Yosemite’s new design, supports dark mode, and even got a new menubar icon."

I have to say: I love all the functionality updates in 1Password 5 and all the functionality. But I HATE the new menubar/browser-plugin icon. It simply looks too much like the already standard circled lowercase-i for “information” icon. http://fortawesome.github.io/Font-Awesome/icon/info-circle/ and so when I go looking for1Password, I don't find it.

Please go back to the key icon. It was identifiable at a glance. This one never will be because an existing icon is already too close in design and format--especially at small sizes.

jb510

Wow... when I posted about this I figured I'd be one lone person complaining about it... amazed how many others bothered to come and share the same feedback.

FWIW, I want the key back, but the easiest fix would be to add the blue circle to the keyhole so it truely does match the logo. The problem is being a monochrome circle with a vertical bar in it like EVERYTHING else is...

Beside you really should animate the icon so when 1P is locked the circle the circle is red, and blue when it's unlocked....

MikeT

Hi guys,

Thanks for the feedback.

@chiMaxx‌:

Please go back to the key icon. It was identifiable at a glance. This one never will be because an existing icon is already too close in design and format--especially at small sizes.

Understood, I've added your feedback to our list.

@jb510:

Wow... when I posted about this I figured I'd be one lone person complaining about it... amazed how many others bothered to come and share the same feedback.

Almost always when we change something, we will get a lot of useful feedback from our awesome community. The reason is that when the app is used often throughout the day, it is very noticeable even if we make a very subtle change.

the easiest fix would be to add the blue circle to the keyhole so it truely does match the logo.

I'm not sure we'll go that way, we don't want to go to the extreme of being the only or one of the rare icons with color on it. The guideline is to go grayscale on the menu bar and browser toolbars. It should not be too distracting, which is why it won't animate either. However, things do change and we'll see what we can do. I've added your feedback to our list.

Thanks again!

benfdc

I have just upgraded to Yosemite 10.10.1 and 1Password 5.1.BETA-5, so the inconsistency that I noted in #32 is gone. The key in my Menu Bar has been replaced by what looks like an IEC 5010 power symbol. Bleech.

Ben

Thanks for the update @benfdc. I can see the similarity. We'll take that into consideration when designing future 1Password icons.

skippingrock

@bwoodruff So what you are saying is that we have to "deal" with this confusing icon until the next release of 1P6? I do hope not. A user setting would be the best option. Yes it may not look the way the designers wish, but usability needs to be the overarching factor. In this case "form over function" is not in the best interest of your users. As a usability professional, I often run into this issue where the designer falls in love with their design to the extent that when a group of users don't "get it" and doesn't work for them the views are often ignored. This is a real shame when this is allowed to happen.

Had this icon been user tested before its release? What were your demographics for your testing? Did the user testing also include those that visual impairments? Had other icons been created and tested for its ease of identification over others? It would be good to hear about these results. If this was not done, I would strongly recommend that this be done the "next" time if that is for how long we are going to have to wait.

The key thing that we all need to remember when developing and designing things is this:

"You are not your user." "This and below are great articles that speaks directly to my point."

>

And guess what? They don’t think like you do. You know your product inside and out. You knew it when it was just a few sketches on a napkin. You have been using it in every form and iteration it has been through in its entire life-cycle. Your actions, decisions and preferences have been imprinted into every aspect of your product…

>

Utility vs. beauty

>

Kill your darlings

Anyway 52 Weeks of UX is a great resource for any of us looking to design and develop something for our fellow users.

Best regards, SkipR

Stephen_C

While your thoughts are doubtless interesting I imagine the developers may have had more pressing concerns given the recent releases of 1P5 for iOS and 1P5 for Yosemite—plus dealing with the fall-out from the releases of iOS 8 and Yosemite themselves, of course. :)

If you'd care to get involved in beta testing take a look at the Mac beta forum: I'm sure your input would be welcome there. (Just note that it's easier to do beta testing using the AgileBits store version of 1P. If you use the Mac App Store version it's much less easy.)

Only my personal views...I don't work for AgileBits.

Stephen

benfdc

@Stephen_C—

This thread originated in the 1P/Mac beta forum. The folks at AgileBits had early notice of this problem, but opted to plow ahead anyway.

Ben

Hi folks,

We've heard your concerns and will continue to take them into consideration. I can't make any promises at this point that we're going to change the icon in the near future though.

Thanks.

Cannada_MIke

Hi, the new icon for password 5 looks very similar to the history icon for my browsers. You used to be able to choose an icon from several but I don't see the4ant anymore. Do I have any options?

Canada Mike

Megan

Hi @Canada_Mike,

I've added your request to an already existing discussion. As you can see, you're not the only one who isn't quite sold on the new icon. :) As Ben says above, we're listening.

Cannada_MIke

Thanks! I did search "icons" before I posted but did not see this thread.

littlebobbytables

No worries @Cannada_MIke‌ Sometimes searching can yield the result you're looking for, sometimes it returns just too many results. There's a reason people talk about google-fu :wink:

I vaguely remember trying to find out information about a program once with such a generic sounding name it was next to impossible to pin anything down no matter what I tried. I can't remember how that ended up (except that it probably involved a level of swearing).

jb510

Any update on this? I've been running the 5.1 beta in hopes this would get addressed, but still no improvement after what seems like 200 beta versions... ok, so maybe not that many but where on 26 and the last several have said they're release candidates.

Having been avid 1P fan long enough to have lived through the iOS debacle, the forum/support debacle, and others... I know all too well that AgileBits will just plow ahead in spite of vocal community outrage over something. I'm a dev too, I get it, often you need to...

But, is this really not getting addressed at all? Seems like a lot of people still questioning it:
https://discussions.agilebits.com/discussion/33570/1password-menubar-icon-is-boring-and-meaningless

littlebobbytables

Hi @jb510‌

Sorry, there hasn't been in any change in the state of this request.

xz4gb8

I learned of the changed icon when I could not find the 1Password icon on the menu bar after updating. I then discovered the missing key!

After working with the "power button" icon on the menu bar for some time, I still find it less easy to locate in a bunch of icons than was the key. This is exacerbated by the apparently random display order under OS X. Yes, I would appreciate a more distinct shape as before. The desire for similarity between menu bar icons and those in other places is more one of esthetic preference that usability. I prefer usability.

Note that IOS is such a different environment, with the "rounded square" icon format, that there is no icon problem on iDevices.

And a final note. IOS and OS X are very different user environments. The user clues (UI Elements) should be similar but do not have to be bit-for-bit identical, even if Jony likes it that way. To date, Apple is inconsistent in many of their application icons between the two environments.

viewpoint

Another vote for either adding color to the new icon, and/or switching back to the 'key' icon. A circle with a line does not look like a lock. It looks like...a circle with a line. Maybe AB is trying to not draw attention to 1PW as being installed if someone else should use your computer?

littlebobbytables

I don't think we're specifically going for the ninja look (as in trying to conceal that 1Password is present). I'll make your views known.

jb510

It's disappointing this won't actually be addressed.

FWIW though Google Drive still hasn't updated their icon for dark mode... Heck several people have written scripts and apps to automate it it's gone on so long: http://www.reddit.com/r/osx/comments/2jgvrg/google_drive_notification_icon_and_yosemite_dark/

Which bring me to this. FYI, that icon is just an image inside the application package. You CAN go in and edit it yourself.
Applications ▸ 1Password 5 ▸ Contents ▸ Library ▸ LoginItems ▸ 1Password mini ▸ Contents ▸ Resources ▸ menu-bar-icon.pdf
or if you prefer
/Applications/1Password\ 5.app/Contents/Library/LoginItems/2BUA8C4S2C.com.agilebits.onepassword4-helper.app/Contents/Resources/menu-bar-icon.pdf

The 2BUSA....app in the middle might vary, hence the first path.

Those icons used to be PNGs, but with OS X 10.10 for dark mode (I think that's the reason) they changed to being a vector transparency layer. While this is the "new" way to do things, it sucks because it has no color property. I tried changing it to blue in the PDF, but it's still just a transparency template so it's monochrome.

I'm not a designer and abhor Adobe Illustrator, but I'll hack with more and maybe make a little script/app like above to fix it... if I can figure out how to add a blue ring to it, if not I'll just change it back to a key, that'd be easy to do (I think).

littlebobbytables

I'm no designer at all, my skills peak at cropping and the occasional red circle for highlighting so I have no idea about vector transparency layers (beyond understanding the words). I suppose if you're a designer and using colour in an icon you don't want to have it dynamically alter for dark mode and would prefer to ignore it?

jb510

Ughh!!! WTH?!?!

alanr

The icon remains a persistent irritation. The undistinguished icon in the menubar is harder to look at, at least for some, and in safari the extension icon looks almost the same as the Safari web inspector icon (and it was there first).

If you value "consistency" over giving your users (some of whom, have been paying - and paying again for updates for years) an option to make the app more useful for them, you've lost your way. Please fix this. It can't be that hard!

Megan

Hi everyone,

Thanks for the continued feedback on this - we really do appreciate you taking the time to share your thoughts here. :)

JP Kelly

Please bring back the "key" icon. Perhaps give us an option in preferences?