New FreeBSD Logo Contest to Close on June 30

xbsd writes "The Official FreeBSD Logo Contest is closing on June 30, 2005. As of June 23 they have received 429 compliant submissions, but if you got the skills you still have a few hours left to submit a proposal. Now, is it time for F/OSS projects to follow NetBSD and get a more polished (or as some would say, 'corporate') public image?"

Comments

Copyright?

[ip_vjl]

The designer also certifies that the logo does not infringe upon the rights of any third party and that it does not violate any copyright.

How is anyone supposed to certify that?

You can certify that you aren't willingly or knowingly violating a copyright, but you never know if someone will pop out of the woodwork with a logo (you've never seen) that yours looks too much like.

Re:Copyright?

[StonedRat]

Copyright doesn't work like patents. If you created it independently with no knowledge of the other similar logo then you haven't violated copyright. Although i think it is possible to violate trademarks in that manner.

I like beastie

[menkhaura]

I didn't see the other entries, but I like beastie, Christian fundamentalists notwhitstanding. FreeBSD won't be the same without the handsome little daemon.

Re:I like beastie

[nacturation]

And what they don't need is something that looks like a generic flag. Sorry, but I don't find NetBSD's logo (as linked in the summary) to be very creative. Maybe someone said the same thing about the Nike swoosh or McDonald's golden arches originally, but time will tell whether NetBSD's stands the test of time. Perhaps with enough marketing dollars thrown at it (hah!) it will last.

Suddenly Everyone is an Art Critic

[Picass0]

Sometimes programmers should stick to programming. When they attempt to use corporate logos as the yardstick by which good art is measured, they only show that they need to get out more often.

Why should a corporate looking logo have greater value to a FOSS project than a whimsical cartoon? The BSD 'Beastie' logo is recognized worldwide, making it more successful than 99% of the logos that companies paid big money for.

We, as users and developers of FOSS, find much of the corporate attitude distasteful. Yet the FreeBSD group now seeks some official looking sterile abstract icon so they can show everyone their software is "Pro"?

Suddenly it's the FreeBSD 'hippies' that need to take the stick out of their ass. Go take an art class and relax.

As a graphic designer, let me speak from experience - Corporate art sucks.

Re:Suddenly Everyone is an Art Critic

[Zemplar]

"Sometimes programmers should stick to programming."

Precisely why they are asking for your help in submitting a logo!

"Yet the FreeBSD group now seeks some official looking sterile abstract icon so they can show everyone their software is 'Pro'?"

Obviously a little more PR and advertising of the BSDs are needed. Almost everyone has heard of Linux, however, very few outside of more "serious" IT circles or IT hobbyists have even heard of BSD, let alone FreeBSD. John Q. Public needs to know there is a better alternative and solution than Linux or at least they would have the knowledge that more options exist and they may choose either route themselves.

Re:Suddenly Everyone is an Art Critic

[WebHostingGuy]

As a graphic designer, let me speak from experience - Corporate art sucks.

Yep. But as a graphic designer you also know that most, if not all corporations don't use cartoon looking daemons. FreeBSD obviously wants to change its perception and unfortunately this is one part of that transformation.

Now, I'm off to buy some daemon t-shirts before they are gone forever...

Beastie isn't going anywhere.

[ulib]

From the Fine Article:

Q. Please save Beastie!

A. Beastie will continue to represent the FreeBSD Project as our mascot. We won't kill Beastie. The closest logo-like thing that we have now is shown below, and we are looking for other options to be used like there. The new logo design may or may not include Beastie, or even a stylized representation. Again, Beastie is still alive!

There are times when you want to present yourself with a logo, not with an image of the mascot. That's how I understood it, and to me it makes a lot of sense.

--
Requiem for the FUD

Some Suggestions

[fuzzybunny]

Here are a few to please corporate marketing, sales and management types (yes, they're work safe):

http://prague.tv/galleries/funny-pics7/freebsd.jpg -- Remember, sometimes less is more.

http://www.nrg4u.com/freebsd/baby-doll-1-small.jpg (yeah yeah, I know, but they could learn a thing or two from them)

http://intdata.homeip.net/img/freeBSD-girl.jpg (mmh, amazing how many critical pieces of infrastructure are held together by duct tape)

Redundant components: http://tinyurl.com/a2uhp

One for the marketing department: http://www.servepath.com/images/better_devil_250x2 80.jpg

One to compensate for corporate randomness: http://images-jp.amazon.com/images/P/483990930X.09 .LZZZZZZZ.jpg (what is it about Japanese graphics that just screams "weird!"?)

And finally of course, http://homepage.tinet.ie/~cullenm/2dart/regi.jpg (just to piss off the zealots)

Ok, of course I'm single-minded, but seriously, folks, stick to working on the (fantastic) OS, let the sysadmins smuggle it into the enterprise like they've been doing for years :)

Re:Long live Beastie

[nbritton]

Here are a few reasons why we need a logo...

1. Beastie is generic, it's associated with all of the BSDs and not specific to FreeBSD.
2. We don't have a logo. Beastie is not, and never was, the logo for FreeBSD.
3. Copyright and Trademark issues, Marshall McKusick holds all rights to him.
4. Beastie is too complex, economically, for print media.

Let me say again... Beastie is NOT being booted from FreeBSD and no, we did not cave into the demands of right-wing religious people. This is all about branding, marketing, and PR. And you could use the mozilla project as a case study of some of the positive side effects this could have for us.