modx.com

Since we’re actually trying to make a living full time on MODX and there is an existing logo that’s quite similar and we’re looking to grow a lot overseas, it’s not worth the risk to stick with one that could wind up in a legal disagreement. Would never expect that to happen, especially from Clearleft, but it’s the right thing to do in deferring. http://modx.com/about/blog/separated-at-birth/

It was not an easy decision to make because I have a huge soft spot in my heart for the old logo.

I understand all those considerations. I think that logo was used by Clearleft for some past conference or something? Its nothing like the main logo they use on their website. Clearleft is a huge deal in the CSS and Modern Web Standards arena by the way.

That being said, I still much prefer the old MODx logo. The new one fails to paint a visual picture of the application or the mission of the project in my mind. The monochrome favicon looks odd as well.

I know we are beating this poor horse again, but the presentation of the letters keeps changing as well. MODx, modx, MODX, etc. In hind site I think it would have been better to have come up with one convention and stuck with it.

I don’t want to appear negative here. But messing around with logos and typography can be a damaging venture. Recently GAP changed theirs and there was an immediate negative reaction that prompted the restoration of the old logo and typography. This action made the rounds on the all design sites which prompted the question "what where they thinking?"

Still, MODx will never become "New Coke"...

Quote from: splittingred at Feb 15, 2011, 01:42 PM

I’m gonna squash this rumour - while MODX is the official name for the product and company surrounding it now, it is *not* required for everyone to use it. You can still use MODx, modx, mOdX, mODx, or whatever you feel like using. We are only standardizing the name as MODX for official copy and marketing purposes, as well as branding consistency.

My point is that if we care about marketing and branding consistency, we need people both inside and outside to spell the name consistently. Changing the spelling from MODx to MODX makes that *less* likely to happen and actually works against those goals. I understand the need for a new logo, but not the need to change MODx to MODX, which is a different issue. To me, the new logo looks equally good (or bad) with the lowercase x. It also seems terribly myopic to me to make the orthography of the actual product name subservient to the logo.

Do a web search for MODx and you will find that virtually all of the references refer to us as "MODx." Think about how many of those references on the web won’t be updated to the new version -- ever. It is MODx that has won awards and been favorably reviewed, not MODX.

We currently *have* branding consistency and we’re about to give it up, IMO, and I don’t see any significant benefits to offset the loss.

Just my $.02. I’ll shut up now.

All right team, I hope you’re not feeling beaten up by all the negativity around, but it’s very important to hear from the community.

I get the point with the logo design shift. Great move BTW--The resemblance with Clearleft was very striking, but I’m still not sold on the typo. It would be helpful that you run quick community polls (scientific or not), just to get the mood of community on things as important as brand identity. I’m certainly not an expert and I hope I’m not teaching anyone any lessons, but I’m a very proud developer and MODx brand ambassador.

As the owner of a strategic design agency and big fan of MODX, huge props on the new site design and I don’t question the logo change at all. The new one is stronger and I applaud the team in making the choices of keeping consistent with brand identity. I’m guessing that the majority of pushback on the new logo in the forums is coming from developer types (that I have huge respect for) but they aren’t brand identity experts.

Quote from: CBorah at Feb 15, 2011, 10:49 PM

The new one is stronger and I applaud the team in making the choices of keeping consistent with brand identity. I’m guessing that the majority of pushback on the new logo in the forums is coming from developer types (that I have huge respect for) but they aren’t brand identity experts.

Speaking as an ignorant "developer type," I’m sure that I’m not the only one who would appreciate hearing from a brand identity expert, such as yourself, how changing "x" to "X" in the spelling of the product name constitutes "keeping consistent with brand identity" and how it makes the logo stronger.

I like the new logo (but don’t like the Favicon - why not use the logo in color and as the ’x’??). The old one had been a bit nerdy (That’s what I heard from clients), not as professional as the new one looks.

I even like the change of MODx to MODX for branding. Sure, it’s right that old blogposts use MODx but they’re about old code, too. And MODX is more intuitive for the whole mass than MODx is. I really got lot of questions about the name and its meaning from clients and partners but another question was: "Why is the x not a X??".

Quote from: smooth-graphics at Feb 16, 2011, 07:19 AM

I like the new logo (but don’t like the Favicon - why not use the logo in color and as the ’x’??). The old one had been a bit nerdy (That’s what I heard from clients), not as professional as the new one looks.

I even like the change of MODx to MODX for branding. Sure, it’s right that old blogposts use MODx but they’re about old code, too. And MODX is more intuitive for the whole mass than MODx is. I really got lot of questions about the name and its meaning from clients and partners but another question was: "Why is the x not a X??".

Excellent points. I agree that the new logo looks more professional and I like the colors better too.

Maybe I’m just being sentimental about it the MODx orthography and the clients’ reactions to it are certainly more important than mine.

Smooth-graphics, we updated the favicon to use the "M" yesterday with a gradient background that is used in the main site sections. The actual logo device didn’t work well even if we were just using a piece of it.

On the branding, we want to increase business demand on the product to increase demand for developers and designers who work with MODX. Anything we can do to reduce friction on bids to clients, improve our professional appeal makes sense at this stage of our existence. The main part of the new site is aimed at business and potential client decision makers but with easy links into the more complex information about it for designers and developers.

Thanks all for your great comments and thoughts.

Quote from: smashingred at Feb 16, 2011, 01:08 PM

Smooth-graphics, we updated the favicon to use the "M" yesterday with a gradient background that is used in the main site sections. The actual logo device didn’t work well even if we were just using a piece of it.

I don’t think it’s so good idea to jump between the M & X to be both elements of the Identity.
If the main focus is on the X so be it, scrambling the M to be and give the weight on the Favicon it’s not clicking so well when trying to achieve one solid identity focusing the X in the logo.

BTW, Colorful is nice, but maybe the plate of colors in the logo reminds a little bit the logo of joomla (not by shape, by mood).

nevermind