I think the current Rust logo has a very detailed shape. The holes and individual teeth of the gear will not be readable at small sizes. The original designer of the logo had the same thoughts, but I think the logo should be even less detailed. Also, the choice of the serif font could easily be associated with the wild west era, while Rust wants to appear modern in any other place.
I have experimented with some ideas - but they may be too reduced or too abstract for some tastes.
Do you think any of these directions could be worth exploring more?
I like B1 because it's quite reduced, but I can still clearly recognize the R. I think that's because it uses a normal, usual R shape (unlike the C row), and the concave corners that guide your eyes are all included.
I'm not sure why you chose to put the R in a circle with the outer parts cut off. It looks good, but is there any special meaning behind this core principle? What does this kind of logo communicate?
I also think that further abstracting Ferris (that's how I see D1) won't work, because everyone outside the community will be utterly confused what this logo is supposed to show.
I don't like the fact that it seems to be losing sight of what the original logo was. It's not supposed to be an R in a circle. It's supposed to be an R in a gear. Simplifying the gear down into a circle seems like it's missing the point.
Logos are designed to be the simple - so that people can easily identify what it stands for and it is easier to replicate which the current logo does well. Nothing stopping from trying your artistic hand at something fancier
Why did you remove the example you made? Other's may like it. I'd let other's weigh in. Don't take my opinion as the only one. Try some variations. Maybe try something with a "Safe" with the Cog as the dial. Probably not a good idea (I'm not good at that sort of thing for sure), but, experimenting with some concepts might lead you to something.
I somewhat like the idea of adopting a standard (low detail) "icon" along with "rust" in a unique (but not too flashy) font. From a branding standpoint you can use the graphic and text, or just the graphic or text and it is still recognizable. I don't like the complexity of the Elixir "logo" but that and Nim would be examples.
I really like the vibe of the design you are going for with a more modern and clean look.
I really dislike the abstract circle logos, but then I really do like the current logo. It scales to at least 32x32 very nicely and is immediately recognizable. It's versatile in that it can be any color palette and can have details added at larger sizes to give a "rusty" or 3-D look. It communicates that this project is for getting things done, it hints at a "bare metal" ideal, and it has a nice history reflecting early Rust developers' cycling background.
It would take something really exceptional to sway me that the current logo needs to be replaced.
Judging by the icon in the header of this page, I'd argue that it scales down quite nicely. The only thing it would need to scale down even further is perhaps larger and fewer gear teeth for small sizes, and I think it's pretty normal to have alternate variant for extreme sizes like that.
I think the current logo jives with what Rust is about in a way that the proposed 13 logos don't. They're interesting geometric shapes, but they don't really say anything.
Having details in logo strikes warm feelings with someone who values craftsmanship.
Is it possible to have current logo for huge sizes (and retina screens), and a smoothed version for small and tiny places to avoid pixilation glitches?
In C there is one type of pointer. The whole point of Rust is having several types of pointers for a craftsman to choose from. Can we bend modern-day style paradigm to allow several related logos?
I don't understand the need for a new logo.
People don't read logo's as much as they recognize them, and the current is pretty recognizable even when it's scaled down.
We can talk about aesthetics but that's just an exchange of personal (and perhaps even uninformed) opinions i.e. it's not likely to lead somewhere productive.
I like the current logo as well! I think it's unique & recognizable. IMO it bucks the modern style, but that's great! I think of it like SEO for the eyes
The cutoff was an experiment whose goal was to reduce complexity even further. Also, I wanted to go away from the obvious 'R' to achieve a more abstract look and to make it unique. Just an 'R' in a circle is not that unique.
