Microsoft has revealed a redesigned logo for Windows 8 in a recent post on the company's official Windows team blog. Redmond's new operating system logo borrows heavily from the original Windows logo that was introduced alongside Windows 1.0 in 1985. Earlier this week we had pointed out the Windows logo was getting a Metro makeover, but the software giant just made it official today.
Sam Moreau, Principal Director of User Experience for Windows, notes that in addition to a complete reimagination of the Windows operating system, the team wanted to revise the existing Windows OS logo. Microsoft hired renowned design firm Pentagram to help with the project and it was during an early meeting with the firm that executives were presented with a very basic question.
Paula Scher from Pentagram asked the team, "your name is Windows. Why are you a flag?"
Moreau feels that users can trace the evolution of the Windows logo in parallel with advancements in computer technology used to create them. Windows logo rendering became more detailed with each major release. As such, the current generation eventually morphed into a flying or waving flag rather than the window it originally started life as.
With Windows 8, the company wanted to go back to the basics to better reflect the Metro style design principles. The new logo is indeed more window-like than flag-like, using simple lines and a straightforward concept that Microsoft describes as being "Authentically Digital." The design itself is based on the International Typographic Style, also called the Swiss Style, which was developed in the '50s to emphasize cleanliness, objectivity and readability.