from a design perspective, consistency is key. light mode is on? then light mode means light mode, and apps should be in light mode.
do you want both your terminal to be dark theme and your gtk apps (including all of the gnome UI) to be light theme at the same time?
do you want settings within every single app in order to change from light mode to dark mode, as opposed to a global toggle that applies to every UI on your computer?
alternatively, is the terminal the only exception to this global toggle, and this design inconsistency by having the default contradict the default of the rest of your desktop environment is your preference?
And I think all programs should follow user theming, regardless of desktop environment, widget set, or anything else. ('Scuse me while I give GTK4 the stinkeye again.) You can never tell whether someone's colour selection is a matter of accessibility rather than just personal preference, so you absolutely should not ignore it. Defaults matter very little as long as you can change them.
This is why we ask respectfully that our applications not be themed.
Ok, just skimmed the page, but if I read it right, your apps are for screenshots, not people. That's a choice, but ok, I wasn't going to use them anyway, judging from the screenshots. May I suggest renaming the site pleasedontusemy.app, for clarity?
This is a great explanation of what drove me away from Gnome into the loving arms of KDE. I used to be a Gnome 2 die hard. I don't like Gnome 3, but I'm still glad it exists because some of you guys do.
My wife laments the fact that my laptop, desktop, and the family PC all have different desktop environments and the text is so small you need a magnifying glass, and yet, I have never seen her struggle to use any of them. Her Windows work PC however...
Are there any sickos that use black text on white?
Hi.
I think the other way around: I read black letters on white paper when I read a book; why shouldn't it be the same on a screen? I find the black background more fatiguing for the eyes.
On paper, you use the subtractive colour model, so the light is reflected off the page, and the text is taking away from what's reflected.
On a screen, you use the additive colour model, so seeing brighter colours means more lights have to be shined directly into your eyes.
If you are finding white/bright text on dark backgrounds difficult to read, adjust your font size settings/thicknesses or check your eyesight out.
A book doesn't actively shine light at you. That being said, all colours are beautiful. Don't shame peoples taste or use-cases.
Default background color should simply change with the dark mode setting.
The only reason computers had a black background was with picture tubes the flyback signal would trigger if the luminesce level was high causing the picture to roll.
Once they'd fixed that (eg MacIntosh), they went back to white.
Guess it depends on the theme. MacOS had it since OSX. FVWM back in the day. Just changes from time to time. If I'm in a bright ass room, sometimes it can be more comfortable.
It makes sense to use the same setting for this, at least by default, as for dark and light mode in general. Why would you want your terminal dark but your email client bright?
I sometimes prefer light mode, for example on my laptop in bright environments because I find that it gives me better contrast and keeps more of the screen viewable
Pure black background makes it unreadable for me. When I encountered this on websites, i use the Firefox function to turn it into a black on white background theme, so my eyes don't hurt reading longer text. Same logic applies to the terminal, especially when programming. I think pure black as a background shouldn't be default. However I do actually appreciate darker tones as background, but its never pure black. It depends on the combination of colors for text (and on the rest of the system theme).
Not black text on white, but light grey/purple on dark grey was pretty popular with Sun Microsystems. I think OG Apple Macintosh used Black on White, or at least close enough colors.
tbh i prefer white on grey or red on yellow tho, white on black is kinda hard to look at for long. black on white is good but many programs these days output very bright coloured text, almost impossible to read on white bg.
I never noticed that the gnome terminal uses light mode by default. Bit everytime i had to use gnome the first thing i do is turn on dark mode in the settings, so maybe that's why.
67 Comments
ejs@piefed.social · 39 pts · 163d
from a design perspective, consistency is key. light mode is on? then light mode means light mode, and apps should be in light mode.
do you want both your terminal to be dark theme and your gtk apps (including all of the gnome UI) to be light theme at the same time?
do you want settings within every single app in order to change from light mode to dark mode, as opposed to a global toggle that applies to every UI on your computer?
alternatively, is the terminal the only exception to this global toggle, and this design inconsistency by having the default contradict the default of the rest of your desktop environment is your preference?
mosspiglet@discuss.online · 6 pts · 163d
That's exactly how I like it. Terminal, white text on black background. Browser, etc in light mode.
MonkderVierte@lemmy.zip · 5 pts · 163d
xfce4-terminal (which is standalone btw) has a "follow system theme" setting. This is something they do right.
nyan@sh.itjust.works · 25 pts · 163d
And I think all programs should follow user theming, regardless of desktop environment, widget set, or anything else. ('Scuse me while I give GTK4 the stinkeye again.) You can never tell whether someone's colour selection is a matter of accessibility rather than just personal preference, so you absolutely should not ignore it. Defaults matter very little as long as you can change them.
shark@lemmy.org · 13 pts · 163d
Yeah, stopthemingmy.app feels crazy to me to be coming from the open-source community.
billwashere@lemmy.world · 11 pts · 163d
I first read this as…
Stop them in my app.
Murdoc@sh.itjust.works · 6 pts · 163d
I did the same thing the other day when I saw "winedlloverrides" (for the program Wine if that helps).
brax@sh.itjust.works · 6 pts · 163d
I expect more of this kind of nonsense as more and more people come to Linux.
Obin@feddit.org · 6 pts · 163d
Ok, just skimmed the page, but if I read it right, your apps are for screenshots, not people. That's a choice, but ok, I wasn't going to use them anyway, judging from the screenshots. May I suggest renaming the site pleasedontusemy.app, for clarity?
njordomir@lemmy.world · 4 pts · 162d
This is a great explanation of what drove me away from Gnome into the loving arms of KDE. I used to be a Gnome 2 die hard. I don't like Gnome 3, but I'm still glad it exists because some of you guys do.
I need a certain level of customizability.
shark@lemmy.org · 2 pts · 161d
For sure, KDE is the way to go, and it’s easy enough that even my mom can figure it out.
njordomir@lemmy.world · 2 pts · 161d
My wife laments the fact that my laptop, desktop, and the family PC all have different desktop environments and the text is so small you need a magnifying glass, and yet, I have never seen her struggle to use any of them. Her Windows work PC however...
eldavi@lemmy.ml · 20 pts · 163d
hello!
black text on white with comic sans. lol
Giloron@programming.dev · 11 pts · 162d
A variable width font in a terminal???
Use this instead: https://tosche.net/fonts/comic-code
eldavi@lemmy.ml · 1 pts · 156d
it's not actually comic sans, it's something like this and i think i like this better; thanks for making me aware of it.
doubtingtammy@lemmy.ml · 7 pts · 163d
I can see comic sans making it more usable
flameleaf@lemmy.ml · 5 pts · 163d
How? It's not even a monospace font
Giloron@programming.dev · 8 pts · 162d
It can be. : )
https://tosche.net/fonts/comic-code
eldavi@lemmy.ml · 4 pts · 163d
it helps if you're middle aged and some characters like "l", "1" and "I" look too much alike for comfort.
jqubed@lemmy.world · 20 pts · 163d
IIRC that’s the default on macOS if the theme is in light mode instead of dark mode. So probably.
duckythescientist@sh.itjust.works · 8 pts · 163d
I'll occasionally switch to that as it shows up better on projection screens for presentations, but it's not my default.
Cekan14@lemmy.org · 15 pts · 163d
Hi.
I think the other way around: I read black letters on white paper when I read a book; why shouldn't it be the same on a screen? I find the black background more fatiguing for the eyes.
Skullgrid@lemmy.world · 8 pts · 163d
ooh ooh I know!
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RGB_color_model
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CMYK_color_model
On paper, you use the subtractive colour model, so the light is reflected off the page, and the text is taking away from what's reflected.
On a screen, you use the additive colour model, so seeing brighter colours means more lights have to be shined directly into your eyes.
If you are finding white/bright text on dark backgrounds difficult to read, adjust your font size settings/thicknesses or check your eyesight out.
Liketearsinrain@lemmy.ml · 7 pts · 163d
Hadriscus@jlai.lu · 2 pts · 161d
That's not a reason
Skullgrid@lemmy.world · 1 pts · 161d
you think having a bright light is meant to be shined into your eye all day?
XenGi@feddit.org · 8 pts · 163d
A book doesn't actively shine light at you. That being said, all colours are beautiful. Don't shame peoples taste or use-cases. Default background color should simply change with the dark mode setting.
ThomasWilliams@lemmy.world · 2 pts · 162d
The only reason computers had a black background was with picture tubes the flyback signal would trigger if the luminesce level was high causing the picture to roll.
Once they'd fixed that (eg MacIntosh), they went back to white.
thlibos@thelemmy.club · 13 pts · 163d
I change mine to white text on blue background a la Commodore 64.
wibble@reddthat.com · 8 pts · 163d
Black on light grey. AmigaOS represent
ninth_plane@lemmy.world · 7 pts · 163d
Works best with an authentic font: https://gitlab.com/Screwtapello/topaz-unicode
Im_old@lemmy.world · 2 pts · 163d
Oh man, thank you for that. So many memories!
prex@aussie.zone · 2 pts · 163d
Oooh! I was orange(ish) text on black a la Wyse but I might change for a bit
floquant@lemmy.dbzer0.com · 2 pts · 163d
You might like cool retro term
billwashere@lemmy.world · 11 pts · 163d
Green text on a black background with a background image that makes the terminal window look like it has scan lines.
Tippon@lemmy.dbzer0.com · 10 pts · 163d
Try having astigmatism, white text on a black background is physically painful
mastod0n@lemmy.world · 6 pts · 163d
I have astigmatism and the only time this gets problematic is when I don't adjust the brightness accordingly for dark mode.
Tippon@lemmy.dbzer0.com · 1 pts · 163d
I'll give that a try, thanks :)
Skullgrid@lemmy.world · 4 pts · 163d
astigmatist with shitty glasses here. Make your font bolder or bigger
Tippon@lemmy.dbzer0.com · 1 pts · 163d
I've got a feeling I've tried bigger, but not bolder. I'll try them both, thanks :)
Skullgrid@lemmy.world · 2 pts · 163d
also try thinner and more asymmetrical (dyslexic style) fonts too.
doubtingtammy@lemmy.ml · 3 pts · 163d
I do have astigmatism funnily enough
Tippon@lemmy.dbzer0.com · 1 pts · 163d
I can use the terminal in short bursts, but switching to black text on a white background just looks wrong. I might just have to suffer >.<
bufalo1973@piefed.social · 2 pts · 162d
Green on white?
Tippon@lemmy.dbzer0.com · 1 pts · 161d
Iccan't tell if that's a terrible idea, or absolute genius. I'll let you know tomorrow! :D
AstroLightz@lemmy.world · 8 pts · 163d
I like to use white on a transparent/glossy color.
Kind of like this (very old pic I know):
ThirdConsul@lemmy.zip · 6 pts · 162d
I vastly prefer suntan background and blackish font. White on black makes my eyes tired.
just_another_person@lemmy.world · 6 pts · 163d
Guess it depends on the theme. MacOS had it since OSX. FVWM back in the day. Just changes from time to time. If I'm in a bright ass room, sometimes it can be more comfortable.
schnurrito@discuss.tchncs.de · 6 pts · 163d
It makes sense to use the same setting for this, at least by default, as for dark and light mode in general. Why would you want your terminal dark but your email client bright?
jol@discuss.tchncs.de · 4 pts · 163d
Because when you're terminaling, you're hacking, hence dark. When you're emailing, you're officeing, hence light.
schnurrito@discuss.tchncs.de · 2 pts · 163d
What if I'm running an email client in the terminal? ;)
I myself prefer dark mode for everything. But if somebody prefers a bright background, why would they not in the terminal too?
Scrath@lemmy.dbzer0.com · 3 pts · 163d
I sometimes prefer light mode, for example on my laptop in bright environments because I find that it gives me better contrast and keeps more of the screen viewable
HelloRoot@lemy.lol · 1 pts · 163d
here is an interesting read: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0003687016302459
thingsiplay@lemmy.ml · 6 pts · 163d
Pure black background makes it unreadable for me. When I encountered this on websites, i use the Firefox function to turn it into a black on white background theme, so my eyes don't hurt reading longer text. Same logic applies to the terminal, especially when programming. I think pure black as a background shouldn't be default. However I do actually appreciate darker tones as background, but its never pure black. It depends on the combination of colors for text (and on the rest of the system theme).
PowerCrazy@lemmy.ml · 5 pts · 162d
Not black text on white, but light grey/purple on dark grey was pretty popular with Sun Microsystems. I think OG Apple Macintosh used Black on White, or at least close enough colors.
That said I use something like this for work.
savvywolf@pawb.social · 4 pts · 161d
Semitransparent backgrounds for terminals are the worst. I don't mean to kinkshame, but it, imo, should not be a default.
toastal@lemmy.ml · 4 pts · 163d
And make it #000 pure black if you do… I have written about why
bright_side_@piefed.world · 3 pts · 163d
I... like it 👀
db2@lemmy.world · 3 pts · 163d
Transparent is superior, fight me.
PabloSexcrowbar@piefed.social · 7 pts · 163d
Before I fight you, I have one question:
With or without background blur?
db2@lemmy.world · 3 pts · 163d
Without, I'm still watching what's happening in that background window.
PabloSexcrowbar@piefed.social · 4 pts · 163d
You're not invited to my birthday party anymore
db2@lemmy.world · 2 pts · 163d
😢
darklamer@feddit.org · 2 pts · 163d
You're wrong.
hexagonwin@lemmy.today · 1 pts · 163d
tbh i prefer white on grey or red on yellow tho, white on black is kinda hard to look at for long. black on white is good but many programs these days output very bright coloured text, almost impossible to read on white bg.
iirc black on white is also the default on xterm
juipeltje@lemmy.world · 1 pts · 163d
I never noticed that the gnome terminal uses light mode by default. Bit everytime i had to use gnome the first thing i do is turn on dark mode in the settings, so maybe that's why.
erebion@news.erebion.eu · 1 pts · 155d
"sickos"? Seriously? Ableist bullshit.
Also, ever heard of sunlight? Not all people use computers exclusively at night...
mech@feddit.org · -3 pts · 163d
If you are unable to change the default setting, you have no business opening a terminal.