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 Workers Icon |
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Add Workers icon to cartIcon sizes: 256x256, 64x64, 48x48, 32x32, 24x24, 16x16, 512x512
File formats: ICO, GIF, PNG, BMP
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What Are Windows Icons?
A number of independent vendors are providing custom icons in sizes and resolutions common to certain computer platforms. The article explains what icons are, how they are designed and implemented in various systems, and what standards exist for Windows icons, Mac icons, and PNG icons.Computer icons are incorporated into any graphical user interface. Icons are small pictograms of standard resolutions that visually represent objects, actions, and symbols. In graphical user interfaces, icons are used as a quicker, more intuitive way to communicate with the user. Icons representing typical elements of a user interface are more visually appealing than text, can be recognized faster, and are easier for new computer users.
Originally introduced in 1970 by the Xerox Research Center and widely popularized by the Mac OS and Microsoft Windows platforms, icons make computer novices feel more comfortable with computer systems, learn quicker and work more efficiently. Icons can be used to replace or supplement text commands. Commonly used in menus, toolbars, on buttons and in new ribbon-style user interfaces, icons have come a long way from the original concept.
There are several image formats for storing icons. The Windows systems use Windows icons in the platform-dependent ICO format. Mac OS systems store Mac icons in their specific formats, while Unix-based systems employ PNG icons for most applications. As such, icon editing software is generally available for the Windows and Apple systems, while Unix users can create their icons with just about any graphic editor.
As a rule of thumb, icons are square pictures that come in a number of standard sizes and color resolutions. Most systems use icon sizes of 16x16 to 128x128 pixels, while some platforms readily accept icon images as large as 512x512 pixels. The large 512x512 pixel icons were first used in Mac OS Leopard.
Pixel dimensions of all icons are operating system dependent. For example, Windows icons are defined as images in 16 and 256-color gammas as well as True Color images with alpha channel. Windows icons come in standard sizes of 16x16, 32x32, and 48x48 pixels. Windows Vista defines new standards for Windows icons, including icons in resolutions of up to 256x256 pixels in True Color only. Optionally, icons of 128x128 and 512x512 pixels are supported. Interestingly, the high-resolution Windows Vista icons are stored in compressed PNG format instead of Windows ICO used in previous versions of Windows and for lower resolution images. Other platforms such as Windows Mobile can use standard icons of other resolutions, e.g. 24x24 pixels.
Numerous independent designers are providing custom icons. Aha-Soft offers a wide selection of Windows icons, Mac icons, and PNG icons in all sizes and resolutions standard to those platforms. The company sells royalty-free icons individually and in matching sets incorporating icons drawn a common style or theme.
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