This project consists in a Windows interface redesign, based on Microsoft Fluent Design and Fabric Design for the web.
I tried to make the Windows Interface look a little bit more consistent and elegant, with the dark mode as the main color mode of the system and the app layouts based on Fabric. I also created some new features for Windows Apps and Shell.
Motivation
As a Windows user, something that always bothered me was the inconsistency in Windows 10 interface. Though Microsoft created their Fluent Design System, the concepts of it are barely applied on the OS, resulting on a Frankenstein UI that mix visual elements from Fluent Design; Windows 8 Metro Design, the old Aero Design used on Windows Vista and 7, and even the legacy style from win32 components that date from Windows 98.
This is not just a personal issue: If you look at Reddit, Microsoft official forums or Quora, you will find a lot of users complaining and discussing why the most popular operating system in the planet has such a bad interface - not to mention the Microsoft influencers on websites and YouTube talking about the same thing.
Process
To improve my UI skills, I decided to redesign some core parts of the Windows Experience. I've studied the users opinions and critics on Reddit and Microsoft Forums, and made extra research and interviews with members from Microsoft and Windows related communities on Discord and Facebook.
For the actual UI design, i applied the Fluent Web, Fluent Cross Platform and Fluent Windows Guidelines. The icons are from both Fluent Design and Fabric UI, that share the same style.
All the photos used in this project are from Unsplash.
Credit to the photographers and artists:
Amin Rokhide | Annie Spratt | Bo Kim | Christian Fregnan | Denys Barabanov | Fezbot2000 | François Olwage | Isaac Quesada
Jeremy Bishop | Kelly Sikkema | Lawrson Pinson | Lesia and Serhii Artymovych | Library of Congress | Markus Spiske
Mehrshad Rajabi | Olena Sergienko | Stacy Marie | Swapnil Dwivedi | Thiago Japyassu | Tom Vanderheyden | Yining Liu | Zoltan Tasi
This project has no legal relationship with Microsoft Corporation, but it's copyrighted according to the rules of Creative Commons, and it can be published, as long as the authorship is properly credited.
Microsoft, Windows, Cortana, Office, Surface and XBOX are registered trademarks of Microsoft Corporation.
All brands mentioned in this project are in the property of its respective owners.
