inessential by Brent Simmons

Open Source Icons

There’s lots of free code out there—lots of code that you can learn from or contribute to or adapt for your own apps. It’s totally cool. I myself have even released some.

Maybe I’m thick, but what I can’t find is open source icons. These days OS X apps are supposed to have toolbars when appropriate—but there’s no source of standard and freely usable icons for commands like cut, copy, paste, refresh, view in browser, and so on.

Not every small developer has an art department or can afford to hire someone to do icons.

I propose, to all the icon makers out there, a website for open source icons. Any Mac developer could use the icons in their software as long as they give credit (with a URL) to the person who made the icons.

I’d be happy to do the site programming. I’d be happy to host it. I just need to hear from some actual icon designers that would like to participate. Whaddaya say?

Update 3:10 p.m.: Scripting News asked, “Why only Mac developers?” Answer: not necessarily only Mac developers. It’s just that I can verify and test Mac icons far more easily. But it would be cool to have Windows and Linux icons too.