Call quickly: features of using the built-in phone application and contact manager on Samsung smartphones. Why do we love icons so much? errors in interface icon design
But not everyone wondered if there were any hidden possibilities and how much more convenient the Android OS can be when all the hidden features are known.
The secrets of the mobile OS will significantly expand your understanding of the functionality and methods of system management. Below is the most interesting feature, which is of greatest benefit to beginners.
Secret. Access to contacts in a telephone directory or e-book.
To avoid searching for the contact you use the most.
Actions:
1. Long press on free space desktop, call context menu(depending on the version of Android, either at the bottom of the screen or immediately above the finger), in which we select “Add shortcut” (add shortcut - it often happens that in a non-original version this phrase in English).
IN in this case a shortcut will be created that, when pressed, will call the subscriber you need. Using this scheme, you can install shortcuts on the Android desktop for the subscribers you need that you often dial.
If you need to often write an SMS message for a specific subscriber, then you need to select “Contact” or write an SMS when setting up a shortcut.
Now you have mastered one of the secrets of the Android OS and are able to mobile dial the subscribers you need. Standard method adding numbers to favorites and using 10 quick call numbers is well known and is not of much interest to users of Android devices, so to access the keyboard you need to tap the screen three more times. And in this case, on the main screen, immediately after unlocking, you will need numbers and applications.
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Icon, pictogram, badge, symbol, image - whatever they call these elements GUI. Why are they needed at all, how to use them correctly and what you need to know so as not to confuse the user.
It was with icon design that the life of our studio began in 2005. Therefore, we are happy to share with you all the knowledge accumulated over all these years.
Why did a person even come up with the idea of using icons instead of words?
This question concerns not only interfaces. IN Everyday life Icons surround us everywhere: they follow us on the road in the form of road signs, meet us at the entrance to the store, and even sit on the labels of our clothes.
Even special T-shirts have already been invented for tourists, which help them find mutual language with natives in any country. All you have to do is point your finger at the desired icon.
Why do we love icons so much?
Because they have a number of advantages:
- They are conspicuous;
- They transmit information quickly;
- They are memorable;
- They save space;
- They are understandable in any language.
Interface icons have a number of other advantages:
- They are more pleasing to the eye than the canvases of text that could be in their place. The smaller the screen becomes, the more words I want to replace it with special icons.
- They can give your app a visual identity.
But the main thing that any icon should have is CLARITY.
If the user does not understand the meaning of the icon, he will either avoid it or become confused.
With ice cream - not allowed, with a cigarette - not allowed, with a unicorn - okay
To solve the problem with icon clarity, you can go in several ways:
1. Explain new icon text, give hints, teach the user to use it correctly
This way you create a new user experience. A person, just as he learns the alphabet, must also learn interface icons. To follow this path, you need to be confident in your product and in the willingness of users to learn in order to use it.
Let's take Instagram as an example.
The box icon was unclear; few people understood that it could be used to send private messages.
Today the icon for sending private messages has been changed to a clearer one.
Therefore, let's consider the 2nd option.
2. Strive for clarity, create icons that are as clear to the user as possible
And exactly how to do this and not make a mistake in choosing will be discussed further.
Why are interface icons not always clear to users?
Let's understand the reasons.
10 mistakes in interface icon design
1. Inaccurate icon design
First, let's do a little test.
This is precisely an example of an icon that cannot be interpreted unambiguously, which means it can cause confusion among the user.
An old article about icon design mistakes cited the curious example of creating a data filter icon in the shape of a funnel.
The client's response was: "I'm not entirely sure why you drew the filter icon as a martini glass!" 🙂
To avoid double interpretation, the designer must clearly convey the image, the meaning of which can be easily grasped. Don't make the user think.
2. Ambiguity of association
Unlike the first reason, in this case the image itself is usually conveyed correctly, but it is not clear to the user why this particular icon was used and what it means.
Look again at the example of the old Instagram private message icon. The image is quite perceptible - a box is depicted. But what do you associate the box with? Save? Inbox? Add new file? The association is too subtle, the user needs to think, which means the image was chosen poorly.
Here's another one clear example how confused I was by the interface.
As it turned out later, when you hover the cursor over the icon, a hint pops up.
In this case, the image of a trash can would be much clearer to the user.
In addition, here the interface allows you to place the words “Delete account”, in which case using text instead of an icon would seem justified.
Here is another example when there is a dissonance between the meaning of an icon and its image:
I never would have thought that this icon could be used to delete a folder
On the one hand, the icons in the interface should match the style and look holistic and harmonious, so that it doesn’t turn out like this:
But on the other hand, the icons should be easily distinguishable from each other.
When 2 very similar icons are responsible for different functions, confusion arises.
Here's another example:
4. Previous user experience is not taken into account
Do you remember how in Viber, when you sent a message, there was an icon with an arrow next to it?
Many new users were confused, thinking that the arrow meant “Send a message”. Why? Because many new users came to Viber from Skype and other instant messengers, where the arrow meant sending a message and was located in the same place.
The arrow in the Viber interface meant sending geolocation data. No wonder why all my friends at that time knew where I was;)
Now the Viber interface looks different:
Therefore, when creating an interface, carefully study the interfaces of your main competitors so as not to confuse or retrain users.
Creating a new user experience is difficult path and often unjustified.
5. The mental characteristics of the target audience are not taken into account
Some icons may be interpreted differently in different countries.
Just as gestures are perceived differently in different countries, icons can also be understood differently.
If you are creating universal application, targeting many countries, then use more universal icons.
Although, admittedly, there are not so many of them. Now among them we can name the image printer(seal), Houses(return to main page), magnifying glasses(search) and almost everything. Icon representing hamburger menu, may soon also become universal. However, some tests show that users are more accustomed to seeing a button labeled “Menu” than 3 horizontal bars.
If your application is focused on target audience specific country, take into account its peculiarities of perception.
For example, for residents of the United States, an icon with a supermarket cart will be more familiar ( shopping cart) to indicate purchase (
).
For UK residents user interface it’s more common to see a basket ( basket) or bag ( bag).
6. Wrong message
Icon design can influence user behavior.
So, when choosing an icon for the “Add item to cart” action, you should focus not only on mental perception, but also on the subtext that they carry.
The supermarket cart means that the user can at any time either put an item in the cart or change his mind and put it out. Those. in this case, you do not put pressure on the future buyer and gently persuade him to buy.
A package or bag has a much greater impact on the user’s consciousness, urging him to make a purchase rather than putting the product in the cart. We are used to putting things in our bag after paying for them at the checkout, i.e. This icon more persistently calls for a purchase.
Both icons can be used and work both as a plus and as a minus. You can add an item to your cart and forget about it, or you can leave the site without deciding to put the item in your bag. Consider the specifics of your product and choose the right message.
7. Outdated images
Here you need to be extremely careful. Icons age, just like people.
Will the new generation understand this icon if they have never held a floppy disk in their hands?
On the one hand, replacing many popular icons will soon become a necessity.
But on the other hand, generations change much more slowly than our understanding of any subject changes.
Let's take an image of a phone for example.
The first icon is still relevant and understandable even to new generations, because its shape is easily recognizable.
If you position the smartphone icon, you can confuse the user. A smartphone is associated not only with the call function, but also with a bunch of other features.
Take a closer look at the icon that Twitter uses to create a new tweet. The icon was shaped like a quill pen to convey the message “Click here and you can write.”
Many icons whose images are outdated will not lose their relevance for a long time, therefore, assess the risks when changing the image of a long-familiar icon to a newer one.
We haven’t listened to music from cassettes for a long time, we don’t use an old-style microphone or a TV with horns, but these images are much more understandable to the user than if we depict instead the black rectangles of a smartphone, which can now replace all these objects.
8. Overloaded design
Don't forget that the interface icon should be clear not only in its large size, but also in miniature.
That is why extra elements will create dirt in the interface and cause confusion among the user.
Compare for yourself:
This problem is less pressing now than it was before the advent of flat and clean design trends. Flat icons much easier to perceive than complex 3D objects. and this is one of the reasons why they are so popular. However, in the hands of a skilled designer, a three-dimensional icon can be made recognizable in any size.
9. Use of text or lack thereof
Should I use text in icons or not? Explain the meaning of the icons or leave it to the user? There is no clear answer to these questions.
Sometimes you need to convey such a complex concept that you can’t do it without some text or a hint.
At the same time, if we abandon icons altogether and use only text, we will not be able to quickly focus our eyes on the desired button.
If it is possible to add text that does not overload the interface, then it is better to add it.
But as for the text in the design of the icon itself, it is better to avoid using it, because... in the very small size icon, it will be unreadable, and the design will look overloaded.
10. Icon scaling
When raster icons are enlarged or reduced, they become fuzzy and blurry, which is why many designers prefer to create vector icons, so that later you don’t waste time on drawing small details manually, but simply enlarge or reduce the image.
But this approach is also wrong.
Here is an example of what a reduced icon looks like (in the red circle) and one hand-drawn by the designer in a smaller size (in the green circle).
Therefore, always ask the designer to draw elements manually when creating new dimensions.
conclusions
Why did we highlight these 10 errors and leave the rest, no less important, without attention? Because these errors affect CLARITY icons cause confusion, confuse users and can affect conversion.
As you can see from the examples, just one incorrectly selected icon can force the user to delete their account, refuse to make a purchase, or refuse to use an inconvenient application.
So, choose the right icons and better trust it
With the advent Android systems 5.1 Lollipop users have not only new useful features, but also frankly stupid “features”. For example, Google FRP Lock, also known as “factory reset protection”, the essence of which is to protect the phone from intruders who decided to bypass the smartphone lock by resetting the settings.
After resetting the settings, the user must log into the Google account to which this phone was linked, but it often happens that the phone simply does not accept the correct account and password. How to deal with this problem?
Easy Ways to Bypass Google Account FRP After Reset
There are already many methods for bypassing FRP Lock, many smartphones have their own instructions.
Google's security policy states that FRP Lock is only valid for 72 hours, so if you are not in a hurry, you can just wait three days, then the smartphone will turn on.
Bypass FRP Using Memory Card
Let's start with the simplest and most harmless option, for which you only need a memory card or OTG cable with a flash drive. This FRP reset takes place thanks to a pop-up message about the connected memory card, from which you can get to the system settings, proceed in order:
- Insert the memory card into a working phone
- In the notification, tap OK, you will be taken to the storage settings
- Press " Application data»
- Go to the " All" and find " Settings", click " Launch»
- Settings open, select " Recovery and reset»
- Now click on " Reset DRM " and confirm deleting the keys
- Return to " Recovery and reset" and perform a factory reset
- Wait for your phone to turn on, now you are free from FRP Lock.
Easy Reset FRP Lock Using Sim Card
This method assumes that you have the opportunity to call a locked smartphone; if this is not possible, proceed further. Bypass FRP with SIM card:
- Insert the SIM card into the phone and turn it on, wait for the connection to connect
- Call a blocked phone, during the call, click on the add call icon, and hang up the call
- You are on the dialing screen, now you need to enter the combination *#*#4636#*#*, the advanced settings window will open
- In the left top corner there should be a back arrow, click on it and you will be taken to the standard settings
- Open " Recovery and reset", disable binding backup copy To Google account(Either " Clear credentials" V " Safety) and reset the settings.
- Wait full inclusion device and sign in to your Google account.
Bypass FRP Lock Using Wi-Fi
During initial setup go to the Wi-Fi connection page, then reset FRP Lock according to the instructions:
1
. Select any network, open the keyboard by clicking on the password entry field
2
. You need to call up the settings in the keyboard, how to do this depends on the keyboard, if there are several options:
- Press Spacebar
- Click " Switch language»
- Press and hold the icon Swipe»
- Press icon numeric keypad (123 )
- Press comma
- Turn on voice input, don’t say anything, wait for an error message and an inconspicuous settings icon will appear next to it, select Google Now, click refuse and you are in the search bar, you just need to write “ Settings", and you are already at the goal, continue from point No. 6
3
. Once in the keyboard settings, you need to go to another window, for example, call the help window (hidden in the upper right corner under the vertical ellipsis)
4
. Immediately after opening a new window, press the “Recent Applications", a search engine line should appear there (if it doesn’t appear, try continuing to navigate through the windows until it appears)
5
. Click on "Search" and enter " Settings", select application "Settings»
6
. Open " Recovery and reset»
7
. Check the box " Delete account" and click on " Reset»
8
. After reboot, your phone/tablet will be free from Google FRP Lock!
Ways to Bypass Google Account FRP After Reset for Advanced Users
These methods to bypass Google FRP account after reset are not recommended for users who have never used or. These methods are only suitable for smartphones with an MTK chip!
Bypass FRP Lock using SP Flash Tool
- Install drivers SP Flash Tooland download the scatter file from your firmware (you can download the fullfirmware, unzip and take scatter from there)
Important! You need a scatter file from current firmware! If you have Android 5.1 installed, then scatter from Android 6.0 may not work!
- Now we transfer the value “linear_start_addr" from scatter.txt in "Begin Address" in SP Flash Tool, also "partition_size:" in "Format Length", this is where Google FRP Lock is located
- Click Start and connect the switched off phone to the PC, wait until the cleaning is completed
- Turn on the device, no more FRP Lock!
Answers to frequently asked questions
Bypassing Google account after resetting on Asus ZenFone Go ZB452KG
- Download at microSD card application Nova Launcher And Assistive Touch
- Turn on your smartphone, connect to Wi-Fi, go to Google checks account and click on the input field, the keyboard pops up, click on the vertical ellipsis in the keyboard (upper right corner) and click “ Share»
- Select Gmail, click add address and select " Personal"(Not Google!), log in to your email (you can create any email except Google new mail and then delete it)
- After logging in, click " Go to Gmail", click on the arrow " Back" in the upper left corner, and go to the application settings
- In Settings, click on the vertical ellipsis in the corner and select " Account management»
- Settings are open! Now open Screen Settings and select " Wallpaper", set any wallpaper and the home screen will open
- Click " Menu", open file manager and install Assistive Touch and Nova Launcher, upon request
- Connect to Wi-Fi
- Return to the " Welcome" and click on the link " Important information»
- Select " License agreement and trademarks»
- At the very bottom there will be a link to the Sony website, click on it and the browser will open!
- Long press to highlight any text and press " Share", select the Email application
- Log in to your email and send the previously downloaded application to it
- Install this application, during installation click " Tune" and check the box " unknown sources»
- After installation, immediately open the application! You are in settings, do a factory reset
- The smartphone has rebooted and no longer asks for an account!
I think many people know about the possibility of adding a site icon to the desktop mobile device. This is convenient and the reasons may be different (no mobile application, providing the same information, or you want to immediately open a specific page of the site, etc.). The manifest file is responsible for some properties of how the site will be displayed and how the icon will look after adding.
Manifesto for the site is a simple JSON file that allows you to configure the following things:
1. What icon will the user have after he adds your site to his desktop?
2. How will your site be launched (with address bar, without it or in full screen mode)
3. Splash screen
4. Color theme
5. Screen orientation
6. Initial url
and much more
More details
To show how manifest affects the display of the site, I created a simple test web application that returns the region name by code.First, let's record the state of affairs before adding the manifest file.
After the user has added an icon, it will look like this (on Android 5.0)
The browser pulled the name from the tilte tag. So, if you don’t have a manifest file, then at least the title should be normal. But the icon in the form of the letter “G” appeared on its own (it is not clear why exactly G).
And the site itself will look like this 
There’s nothing special here, except that we can remove the address bar to make the application look like a native one.
Meet manifest.json!
An example manifest can be found at this link. Let's briefly go through the parameters:name– the name that will be displayed under the icon, and generally wherever your “application” will be displayed
short_name– will be used in cases where there is not enough space to display the full name
icons– set of icons different sizes
start_url– defines the url that opens when the icon is clicked (can be used to capture users who open the site through the desktop icon by adding a parameter, for example, ?src=homescreen to the url)
display– is responsible for how your site will be displayed (with an address bar without it, etc.)
background_color– sets the color of the page before it loads. Until the page has loaded, the user sees a white empty field in front of him. To somehow brighten up his gray everyday life, you can change this color. For example, set the background color of the site.
Generate and conquer.
Of course, you can write the entire manifesto with pens, but this is boring, time-consuming and you can make mistakes. There have already been many craftsmen who have automated this process. Below short review tools for automatic manifest generation.brucelawson.github.io/manifest - all you need to do is fill in the fields (there are short description each parameter, so the process is quite easy), the generator will do the rest for you.
www.favicon-generator.org - at least the direct purpose of this site is to generate icons, and not a manifest. He still creates it and, unlike the previous one, you will already have icons (for iOS and Android) and a manifest. True, the manifest will have to be corrected (change the name and other settings).
manifest-validator.appspot.com - This tool is designed to validate your manifest.
Result
So we drew the icons and made the manifesto. Next, you need to tell the browser about the manifest by adding the following to the head tag:All. Let's see what happened
Icon:
Left to. On the right after (the icon turned out to be unimpressive, I’ll be happy to change it if you send me a better one). It is already noticeable here that Android used the name from the short_name field, since name apparently does not fit.
Download the application: 
Here are the most pleasant changes. Firstly, instead of white screen you see a semblance of a splash screen, which is itself created by the system from the icon, full name and color specified in the manifest (perhaps this only happens on android 5.0 above). Secondly, this splash screen fades out smoothly, which is visually beautiful.
The site itself: 
Here, too, everything became concise. Without the browser UI, the site looks much better and is more similar to native app.
I have not listed all the properties that can be specified in the manifest file. WITH full list can be found
There are several reasons to create a menu with images (icons) in WordPress. Firstly, this great way save space by replacing the name home page to "house". Secondly, some symbols say much more than text values — Facebook buttons, Twitter, etc. And finally, thirdly, graphic elements can make navigation more visual by adding images, for example, to the category list. You can see all three options in the post preview on the left. And below I will tell you how they can be implemented.
So essentially there are three fundamentally different methods inserting icons into WordPress menu:
In the first case, you will have to do a little coding, which not all beginners can do. The second one is focused more on full-fledged images rather than character fonts. The third one is generally universal.
WP menu icons using Font Awesome
Previously, I already wrote a detailed article about using . In it you will find code examples for adding symbols to widget titles, content and navigation. Although, the last option was implemented there in a slightly different way than in the current post. You can take a look if you're interested.
1. So, in order to insert a picture into the WordPress menu, first of all, go inside the admin panel to the “ Appearance" - "Menu". Create new element You can navigate the site through “Pages” or “Custom Links”.
Whatever method you choose, the main thing is to add the Font Awesome symbol code in the “Link Text” field, for example, for the main one:
add_action("wp_enqueue_scripts", "enqueue_font_awesome"); function enqueue_font_awesome() ( wp_enqueue_style("font-awesome", "//maxcdn.bootstrapcdn.com/font-awesome/latest/css/font-awesome.min.css"); )
There is no need to download the script; it is downloaded directly from the official website of the service. There, in the Icons section, you can see the codes of other icons for the WordPress menu.
In some articles I noticed that developers include lines like this in styles:
| #menu-item-121 a, #menu-item-122 a (font-family: FontAwesome;) |
#menu-item-121 a, #menu-item-122 a (font-family: FontAwesome;)
Here, two elements with ID numbers 121 and 122 (see in the HTML code) are specified to use a character font. Perhaps it's some kind of old version implementation, because in my case, nothing was required other than connecting the script. However, just in case, I additionally present these styles.
Important nuance/problem! Since the text in this paragraph is essentially absent, then in mobile version navigation line “Home” will not appear. Therefore, if responsive menu in the theme is created automatically, you will probably have to abandon this implementation in favor of the option from . In this case, set the text-indent property in CSS: -99999px, and set the display of the icon in the before pseudo-element.
WordPress plugin for menu with images
2. This technique adds a new element to items - a style class. We indicate the name of the desired object, for example, my— menu.
3. Then go to the “Media Files” section and upload the image you need to display.
4. After that, open the template style file (style.css) and paste the following code there:
| .my-menu ( background-image : url ( "http://your_site/wp-content/uploads/menuimg.png") ; background-repeat : no-repeat ; background-position : left ; padding-left : 20px ; ) |
My-menu ( background-image: url("http://your_site/wp-content/uploads/menuimg.png"); background-repeat: no-repeat; background-position: left; padding-left: 20px; )
Save and see the result.
In principle, as I said above, there are different nuances here. Firstly, it would be possible not to create at all new class, but just look at the HTML code of the site and write styles, for example, for #menu-item-121 and so on. — the system automatically adds an ID to each navigation item.
Secondly, this example using the CSS background property you can replace it with the same Font Awesome:
| li#menu-item-2996 a: before ( content : " \f015 "; font-family : FontAwesome; padding-right : 7px ; ) |
li#menu-item-2996 a:before ( content: "\f015"; font-family: FontAwesome; padding-right: 7px; )
It all depends on what specific problem you want to solve. WordPress plugin for menus with pictures makes it much easier for novice users, although it is perhaps a little redundant. The option with Font Awesome is ideal if you already use this script on your site. Connecting it through the WP admin is as easy as shelling pears. And finally, the third method requires you to have a little knowledge of layout or carefully apply the code from the article.
What do you do to insert a picture or icon into a WordPress menu? We share our experiences and techniques below.