Since pd is "graphically challenged", the logos and icons should be
designed
accordingly.
To address something I missed earlier:
Pd is *not* graphically challenged, thank you! Its interface is. GEM does a bang up job with graphics, as does framestein (though I haven't used framestein much, the screenshots look good).
It doesn't have to be impressive, and that's the whole point. Pd has a very basic interface, and people using pd care more about its functionalities than its look. Branding doesn't always depend on shiny graphics; if the logos and icons are designed to be impressive, there's a high risk that a bunch of clueless newbies will complain about pd's look. So we should keep it simple, to the extreme. We love screen captures..
And while I agree that the interface is basic (how could I not), and for good reason, I don't see why Pd's logo should reflect the ugly interface rather than the attractive possibilities.
And if the newbies are going to complain about the look, it will happen whether the logo is aesthetically 'impressive' or not.
Obviously, there are a lot of different opinions about this :-)
I'm gonna have to second (or third, whatever) the motion that we somehow set a contest page that has only the submitted pics, with no explanation or reasoning involved, so that the votes will be cast based upon the individual interpretation of what looks best from a purely aesthetic standpoint.
Nicholas