In its latest release, Exacq added an option for a dark/high contrast UI, here:
I was happy about this because I find it much easier on my eyes. Milestone has had this option in the Smart Client for some time, and Genetec's Security Desk and Config Tool are both dark by default.
Question is: how much does this matter? Have you ever had a question from a customer about a light or dark UI or one or the other being hard to view for extended periods?
Poll:
I find it easier to view cameras in dark view, but find it easier to program a system in a light view.
Any specific reasons why? Do you find text legibility better in light views?
One issue I'm seeing with the new exacq UI is that they need to tweak some of the font colors, as they're too dark to easily read against the background. Most of the UI is fine, but I find myself squinting at some things.
The dark GUI would be perfect at where I work, we work in a close dark environment, and our VMS only has the white background which is hard on the eyes.
We have receiently (finally) switched from Genetec Omnicast to security desk, I do like the dark contrast, I don't like the default white camera names in the tree, we have a lot of groups in a tree and it is hard to tell if a camera is selected because it only gets bold but stays white, I can't always tell if all cameras in a tree group are selected. Just a minor annoyance. I am actually kinda overwhelmed at all the options and the 500 page manual is taking a long time to go through.
There are probably a lot of reasons to support both. Some thoughts...
NOCS/SOCS are sometimes dimly lit and might use a projector for large display purposes. Bright white UI elements in a dark room would probably be uncomfortable to look at for long periods.
There MIGHT be some energy savings by using dark themes but I don't know if it would even be measurable.
Light themes may be required for accessibility.
I very rarely see systems with the light theme enabled. Either some don't know it's there, don't care, or simply prefer the dark theme.
As little use as different themes might have, it makes sense to have at least a couple themes for user-facing interfaces since if the application is designed properly, the theme should be easily interchanged. Think CSS for web design. You can completely change the feel of a website by modifying the CSS file(s).
It's not a copycat of milestone ??
Dark themes are preferable in control posts that are in dark areas, such as living units (in prisons). It also coincides with darker night time images which makes the whole thing work with the reduced night time lighting. This means you have reduced contrast between the control post and the areas being directly observed. One could switch to white for daytime, but changing is just more work than it is worth.
For most monitors, except some specialized high end variable backlight televisions, power draw is not related to the number of white pixels, but is related to the overall brightness setting that affects the power draw of the LCD screen's LED backlight,
So with 93% preference for dark theme, will IPVM be offering the same on their web UI?
My browser is a blare of white light from the IPVM page, contrasting with the dark VMS consoles & cli's on other screens.
NOTICE: This comment has been moved to its own discussion: Should IPVM Have A Dark Theme Option?
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