Icon
An icon is a symbol representing a command, device, directory, or common action.
When to use
- Beside a label, where the icon speeds up recognition of something already named.
- Alone in a dense control such as a toolbar, where there is genuinely no room for words.
- For a meaning readers already know, such as a cross for close or a magnifier for search.
When not to use
- For a concept with no established symbol. An invented icon has to be learned, and most readers will not.
- Instead of a label where a label would fit. Words are unambiguous and icons are not.
- As decoration beside every item in a list, which adds noise and slows scanning down.
Guidance
Do
Resolved
Pair the icon with a word. The icon is found quickly and the word says what it means.
Don't
Do not leave a meaningful icon alone without a label. A tick could mean resolved, approved, done or selected.