Completing a 3D project means you have to Render images.
One of the most common tasks in any 3D software is to finalize the animation created with the Render process. The UI module for this was defined with a soft blue tone. In addition, this is the screen color that was most active for the 3D application for the user. Soft red-colored buttons denoted something that was animated and keyframed. There are green-colored icons with blank space and others containing a “curve” to identify those channels which contain keyframes. -Blank to Simplified- representation of animation curves is a great way to not fill the screen with distracting imagery sitting still cluttering the workspace. The icon changes, and becomes active, only when it’s in use. Here we find another principle of design: Utility over form.
Enter XSIMOD Theme
The scope of reviewing the entire Softimage interface and why it stood the test of time in the 3D industry is far too long to do and escapes the intent of this post. We will review what design principles were assigned to the Blender interface to customize it with this theme. I will also point where a design rule breaks and how it can be -currently as the time of this writing- be fixed.
XSIMOD Theme for Blender 2.83
I will take the initial reference colors presented at the beginning of this article to interpolate functions over other areas in Blender that were not existent in Softimage, improving whenever possible, a choice for palettes that favor contrast and neutrality for long hours exposed to the monitor light indoors. In other words, the goal is to alleviate the user experience and help to a quicker identification of the operations in the interface.
EDIT>Preferences>Themes is the general category that I will be adressing for the rest of the post. When you see a “/” means the subcategory where you can modify the colors. In this picture you access the colors in the N menu from “/3D View>Theme space>Panel Colors.
Change the property icons from the /User Interface>Icon Colors. Scene Icons are white.“SCENE” color is set to BLACK which makes all SCENE related icons BLACK.Following design rules, we can find harmony/constrast colors to represent the different icon categories: Scene, Modifiers, Shading.
The shading tab icon is orange because the most important nodes in the MATERIAL EDITOR are orange: Texture and images. The user doesn’t have to know this at first, but his subconscious will trigger correlated memory making a cohesive experience in the future when he needs to divide the workspace in different windows. Associative memory is put to use.
This is where you find the culprit for the fringe text when you don’t want to use “anti-alias” text option.Yes, this white halo around text is called “fringe” and you should avoid it like the plague.
Consistency in XSIMOD theme for Blender
You can clearly identify the monkeys’ colors in the Viewport and Outliner (Finally!)Bright colors draw first level of attention, the second menu has the normal selection color code, making good contrast to read in HD monitors. (Needs testing on UHD).Options in Grease Pencil (brush sensibility and opacity icons) as well as the Official PIE menu addon, have also been taken into acquaintance for the theme.NLA tracks identified with green (Ready) action clips. Video sequencer editor has blue Video strips by default and pale dark yellow stripes for audio. NLA also has audio clips with pale dark yellow color. When your track is converted to a clip, you see a GREEN color container (green=ready). If your track is NOT converted to NLA Clip but instead remain as ANIMATION ACTION, the track color is YELLOW so you can identify that IS THE ACTIVE track over writing all under-tracks and that you should be warned (yellow=warning) to either convert to NLA or Mute the clip.Here’s a rare capture of a META NLA STRIP with the bright green color.NLA Transitions (unselected)NLA Clips can only apply Transitions (purple box when selected) when they are in THE SAME NLA TRACK.Complete NLA with applied XSIMOD theme: Yellow for tracks that haven’t been converted to NLA clips, Green for NLA ready clips, Purple for NLA clip transitions.If you have an NLA clip you need to adjust the animation curves inside, just select the NLA clip and press TAB. You see the “selection” EDIT color being a cyan to edit your animation curves in the the Graph Editor. Notice the cyan color in /NonLinear Animation menu.Bar 1 – Medium contrast. Bar 2 – Low contrast. Bar 3 – High contrast. Bar 3 applies “selection” (cyan) rule of importance with the current tool active.If you chance the color of /User Interface/Tool you can change the “SEE THROUGH” button and other buttons in the interface regarding the category “tool” (?)These buttons are labeled in the “Tool” category. Choose a bright yellow to differentiate your click selection for ACTIVE/INACTIVE
SCROLL DOWN THE ARTICLE AND CLICK ON THE NEXT PAGE>>
4 thoughts on “XSIMOD THEME for Blender 2.83 (Updated March 2020)”
Brilliant analysis. Have you shared this with the Blender Foundation? couldn`t they take it into account in order to revamp Blender`s UI with the more logical and user friendly Paradigms that you have exposed from Softimage`s legacy?
More clear text, less incomprehensible iconography and redundant UI access.
Blender` s new features are incredible but it still has ways to go before being fully welcoming and intuitive
Hi Roger. I actually did, and the Blender developers are considering this as a “flag theme” to fix a lot of their inconsistencies -like you mention- on the future theming options for Blender. They don’t say that directly, but you can read about it here: https://developer.blender.org/T74360
They are -specifically- adjusting the theme with more scrutiny than the others, which is a good thing.
hi, great solution for theme designer .
hope the themes get tweaked in your design rule direction so it fits better and ist feels more equal.
selection color and outline color are broken in different themes ,like your stamentment say it.
in the mayo modo theme for example , the multiple object selection color hirachy in 3d View and in the outliner doesn’t looks quiet right.
It is hard to tell which object is the active and passive in 3d view and in the outliner and the color doesn’t match and they are different .
great work hope this will be help to bring the UI in a better shape..
thx for your hard work..
4 thoughts on “XSIMOD THEME for Blender 2.83 (Updated March 2020)”
Brilliant analysis. Have you shared this with the Blender Foundation? couldn`t they take it into account in order to revamp Blender`s UI with the more logical and user friendly Paradigms that you have exposed from Softimage`s legacy?
More clear text, less incomprehensible iconography and redundant UI access.
Blender` s new features are incredible but it still has ways to go before being fully welcoming and intuitive
Hi Roger. I actually did, and the Blender developers are considering this as a “flag theme” to fix a lot of their inconsistencies -like you mention- on the future theming options for Blender. They don’t say that directly, but you can read about it here:
https://developer.blender.org/T74360
They are -specifically- adjusting the theme with more scrutiny than the others, which is a good thing.
hi, great solution for theme designer .
hope the themes get tweaked in your design rule direction so it fits better and ist feels more equal.
selection color and outline color are broken in different themes ,like your stamentment say it.
in the mayo modo theme for example , the multiple object selection color hirachy in 3d View and in the outliner doesn’t looks quiet right.
It is hard to tell which object is the active and passive in 3d view and in the outliner and the color doesn’t match and they are different .
great work hope this will be help to bring the UI in a better shape..
thx for your hard work..
#longliveXSI