MediaGoblin Logo 4

The MediaGoblin Team tried a few combinations and settled on the type from my previous design, but dropped the symbol or any alternative. They forgot to tell me until recently, but it’s all good 😉

I suggested a number of fonts for the project and Lato was chosen. So I made my type have the same relative x-height and adjusted the kerning. Old on top, Lato in the middle:

The intention is to give it enough character to be recognizable, especially now that it stands alone, without making it busy. A little quirky, but not silly.

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Ubuntu Friendly Logo 7

Paul and Marcus from the Canonical Design Team saw a problem with the gap-less regular/light combo I used for the text in the previous iteration. So I offered a tweaked version of the 2nd variation from post 5:

But Marcus as head of visual design insists on the layout that is specified on page 105 of the guidelines, only allowing the symbol to be replaced and a choice of regular or light weight for the 2nd word:

Thus:

This makes the symbol appear so weak and fragile and highlights what I think is the biggest problem of the updated visual identity: the relative size of the Circle of Friends (and any symbol taking its place for a derivative or sub-project) leaves it ending up so damn small, given the usual sizes for the text as used on the web. I doubt that a person not familiar with the CoF would be able to make out its actual geometry, given that tiny pixel-salad on the upper right of ubuntu.com.

I made it very clear that this solution is not acceptable to me and that I think going with the plain CoF would be better under this circumstances. Ara and Co respect this wish. I’m done with this, but let me close with what will be the solution, if no one else comes up with another idea (and why would anyone, given those guidelines):

Media Goblin Logo 3

I refined the 2nd concept from the previous post by drawing the symbol several times to find the right shape. Picking up the M and G shapes for the type would lead to bland repetition and a much too wide stance. All lowercase with a rather common m avoids this, while still giving room to take cues from the symbol.

Full size

Media Goblin Logo 2

So I learned I must be more careful to make my ones unlike sevens, the lack of a horizontal stroke is not enough 😉

I chose 2 concepts from the sketches that I think are the strongest and appropriate shapes, with what I like to think of as a tribal flair. The bottom is a little rough; it offers room for lots of variations and tweaks.

SVG file.

Media Goblin Logo 1

GNU Media Goblin will be server software for hosting and sharing media including images, music and video.

The project is looking for a logo. Initially I wanted to limit my contribution to guidance. That doesn’t seem to work out and now I made the mistake to pick up the pen … 😉

It looks like Flickr and DeviantArt serve as main references. OStatus based messaging and the option to set up your own instance shall be among the benefits of this project.

While a logotype (without symbol/emblem) would be an option, there’s a desire for a symbol and that’s what I will explore now.

As this won’t be just for photos (or just for music or just for video), we are left with the highly abstract media, where a symbol would have to be about all the options or none at all. The community and sharing aspect is shared by many projects and commonly leads to circles and hand-holding little people symbols and stuff like that 😉

The goblin in the name may serve as inspiration, but the tone shouldn’t become silly or scary. It’s meant to be somewhat lighthearted and playful, but not to the degree where it would rub against dead serious user content.

Ubuntu Friendly Logo 6

Ara Pulido, being the leader of Ubuntu Friendly, preferred the first logo and right sticker design from the last set and so do I. As a hopefully last touch, I tweaked the placement of the text on the sticker. As far as I am concerned, this shall be the final artwork for the project, but we will wait for feedback from the Design Team (Edited following Ara’s comment below).

The SVG files can be found in the Launchpad branch. The sticker file has an outline on a separate layer; it should only be used for presenting on white ground, not be printed on actual stickers.

My intent was to present a fairly linear process from conception to execution. In the end it became a bit chaotic, as this wasn’t one of those cases where a design just clicks after only few rounds. I had to cut down on presenting variations along the way, in favor of actually getting things done 😉

Thanks for the feedback along the way. especially to those who went beyond just stating a preference for one variation!