High Definition Icons

At the time when Windows operating system was launched only cathode-ray tube monitors were used. They were usually 14-inch large and their resolution and colour accuracy were very low in comparison to contemporary ones. 16 colours were sufficient for office work. That is why icons of 16x16 and 32x32 pixels in 16 or 256 colours were exactly what a developer needed.

In contrast to old standards, nowadays we all work with full-colour high resolution LCD monitors. The size of the used icons is 48x48 pixels and their colour depth is 32 bits. Besides, the possibility to use some of these bits as a semi-transparency mask makes the icons seem merged into the graphical user interface of an application. The sizes just mentioned are comfortable and sufficient for what we use today. However, with the fast development of technologies they will not be suitable for future use.

Today, with monitors having a resolution of 96-DPI (dots/pixels per inch), 48x48 icons are presented on the screen in a half-inch square. Having in mind that the resolution of future flat monitors will be about 240 or 320 DPI, which means that the 48x48 icon will be displayed into a square of 1/5 or 1/6 inch, it is certain that 48x48 dots will not suffice for the convenient work with new flat panels. The same will be true for display sizes bigger than 22 or 24 inches.

What is necessary for icons to appear the same size and the same quality as well, is for them to consist of much larger images. In order to meet the new requirements Windows Vista launches a new standard for Windows icon sizes supporting PNG compression: 256x256 pixels. However, if you create an icon and save it in Windows XP ICO format, the file will be 400Kb. What you have to do is to compress the images. Only 256x256 images are subject to compression. The compression scheme is PNG (Portable Network Graphic). The resultant icons reach sizes of 100Kb to 150Kb.

It is not necessary to hire a specialized company or a designer to make your icons. If you look for the icons you require in a search engine, you will certainly come up with many icons suitable for a variety of applications. You will be able to find all existing colour depths and sizes, including 16-colur 16x16 dots format and the recently introduced 32-bit 256x256 high-definition format of Windows Vista. The icons provided are in the formats: ICO, PNG, GIF and BMP.

An important feature of the compressed icons of Windows Vista is that they work with Windows XP. However, only 48x48, 32x32 and 16x16 formats will be identified and shown. The 256x256 PNG formats will not be recognized.

It is possible that 128x128 used by Windows XP Desktop will support 256x256 format when modified for Windows Vista. PNG compressed 256x256 icons will work in Microsoft Visual Studio 2008. However, for the time being they are not operative in Delphi programming environment.

The new generation of icons created by Windows Vista is intended for high definition monitors and operating systems. Simultaneously, they can still be used with Windows XP and older screens. Bearing in mind that creating a new icon is not a simple activity, the new 256x256 icon format gives more opportunities for designers to develop their skills and deliver more functional and attractive icons. So, it is highly recommendable that you use this icon size into your products if you want them to look modern and be operative on future high-definition displays.