NeXT logo by Paul Rand - Interview with Steve Jobs | Hacker News Reader

NeXT logo by Paul Rand - Interview with Steve Jobs

logodesignlove.com

55 pointsnadim8 comments

Jobs on Rand: “I asked him if he would come up with a few options, and he said, ‘No, I will solve your problem for you and you will pay me. You don’t have to use the solution. If you want options go talk to other people.’”

Wow, talk about a taste of your own medicine! I love it.

No, Jobs is entirely consistent. He brought this up as an example of what made Rand great.

It would be a "taste of his own medicine" if Paul Rand's terms resulted in a bad outcome for Jobs and NeXT.

(Also, I really like the products that Jobs makes, because they're really well designed and conceived. Apple products are great for the same reason that Paul Rand was great.)

I had originally written that they were "cut from the same cloth". In retrospect that's probably a better characterization. I imagine Jobs smiling to himself that he had clearly picked the right guy for the job.

Strangely enough, this Rand fellow sounds quite Roarkian.

I have to say though, the NeXT logo looks a bit too 80s...

It also seriously channels the ~1990 Windows logo with that color palette; I realize it's magenta and not blue, but still...

I guess this would be a good time to point out which came first (Windows 3.0 = 1990).

This kinda thing reminds me of the Amazon comments about Diane Duane's "So You Want to be a Wizard - 20th Anniversary Edition" being a "ripoff" of Harry Potter. Time is hard.

+1 for alluding to Ayn Rand via The Fountainhead.

"I have to say though, the NeXT logo looks a bit too 80s..."

I don't agree. I think anyone that has never heard of NeXT would only associate it with "modern" e.g., 1930s and up (because of the typeface).

Here's a good interview with Paul Rand where he talks about his design decisions and reflects on the value of his own trade:

"I've been thinking about this for many years [..] I concluded that we are not very important."

"A good designer who understands his business can make things memorable, make them easy to recall and improve the general quality of life, which is the only reason for our existence."

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ta4ef1xBeMA

Great designers leave their ego at home and build things for a purpose. Or how Paul Rand put's it: "Don’t try to be original. Just try to be good."

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