xrpsymbol / xrpsymbol.github.io Goto Github PK

I'm afraid the latest proposal from Ripple's HoC is not as legible as I would have hoped. The lines are too close and the symbol can be confused with most any x, ❌, X, ✕, ☓, ✖, ✗, ✘, etc.

Given the need for a ubitiquous & forward-thinking icon, leave the serifs & swashes out (I've added in courier for fun); An X with a couple marks on the top & bottom is all that is necessary for connotating a currency (the marks) and the symbol (an X). Forget the 'Ripple' – this is an exchange token. Does the US Dollar have 'US' in it? Look at all the symbols here and tell me if it's necessary to add in any other lines.

xrp.svg.zip

I believe a suitable currency symbol for XRP should satisfy the following considerations:

1. Fast to learn & recall.
2. Easy to hand-write on paper.
3. Fast to add to an existing font-set.
4. Be immediately likeable/accepted by a broad-range of people.
5. Follow currency symbol convention (tying in with point 1).

In service of these goals, I support the first proposal made on reddit by /u/dderkomai, of a capital letter X with an extra parallel line running from top-left to bottom right. This is similar to the current proposal, but with differences that satisfy the above criteria.

It's fast to learn and recall, easy to handwrite, fast to add to existing font-sets and it appears to be immediately liked and accepted by a broad range of people, having garnered a large number of votes in a shorter space of time than the original proposal, even though the included suggestion for "drops" appears to be almost universally disliked. This suggests the response to just the "X" may be even more positive (as upvotes may have been lost as a result of the disliked second idea). It also follows currency symbol convention.

Another somewhat less important but relevant consideration is the meaning behind the symbol. The "X" strongly visualises key properties of XRP and its intended use-cases:

• Financial Agnosticism (the letter "x" is immediately recognisable as a placeholder or wildcard)
• Cross-border (an "X" is also a cross)
• Bridging (the parallel lines symbolise a bridge crossing over water)

If a symbol is also required for "drops", I propose following existing convention for the worlds current reserve currency. The symbol for US cents" is a "c" with a vertical line through it. How about lowercase "d" with a vertical line through the circular portion, for drops? This would also satisfy all of the main criteria, with the coincident visual property that a lowercase d resembles a drop of water, and a vertical line through it symbolising a glint of reflected light. It is also a simple iterative step, "d" comes after "c" in the alphabet, making it rudimentary to learn and recall.

The symbol is too large and I think there is an ISO standard for that. Maybe with the droplet on the top left corner is better and more balanced?
And each symbol (see USD, EUR, CNY, JPY) have bars or lines crossing so I think this will need it too ;)

Some inconsistencies I've noticed in the XRP Text Mark design, which to some can come across as sloppy/unprofessional:

• The 'X' is wider than the other two chars. They ought to have consistent widths.
• Only the 'P' is missing a stylized 'gap', which seems imbalanced/inconsistent.
• The top-left corner of the 'R' is rounded/smoothed, but the 'P' is not. Again, not consistent design.
• The widths of the two gaps (in chars 'X' and 'R' but missing from 'P') are also inconsistent widths.

I do not believe these fall into the subjective category because they can be classed as internally inconsistent and are quite noticeable to the casual as well as keen eye.

@xrpsymbol @theogravity @voho @derkomai @kafkatanaka

Since Ripple is not XRP or vice versa, and we are already familiar with "drops" currently being the smallest possible unit of 'XRP'. If we make 'drops' the main unit, it finally we means we have a way to speak about XRP more 'fluidly' and the 'r' and 'p' in 'drops' fit nicely with the 'RP' in 'XRP'.

So ultimately it would mean 'X quantity of drops' rather than 'X quantity of Ripples' (or in fact, 'X-(units of the)-Ripple-Protocol' as may have been the original intention). "That'll be 13 drops, please."

We could then ask @nikb or @JoelKatz to update the name in the core Rippled code etc?

Possible name for smaller units could be 'droplets' as it intuitively makes sense, being that droplets are smaller than drops. One could also use the verb 'to drip' when sending money via the XRP ledger, for example, "I'm going to drip through some funds now".