[HN Gopher] NASA Graphics Standards Manual (1975)
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NASA Graphics Standards Manual (1975)
Author : agomez314
Score : 224 points
Date : 2024-07-22 16:34 UTC (4 days ago)
(HTM) web link (standardsmanual.com)
(TXT) w3m dump (standardsmanual.com)
| glimshe wrote:
| As a Gen Xer, I feel I've been promised the future represented by
| the logo on this manual, but instead got what we have today... :(
| rob74 wrote:
| Yeah, that logo was much too futuristic anyway, it was retired
| in 1992 and replaced with the old one
| (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NASA_insignia). It probably
| didn't help that the old logo was associated with the Moon
| landings, while the most-remembered event from the run of the
| new logo (introduced in 1975) was the Challenger disaster...
| skissane wrote:
| > Yeah, that logo was much too futuristic anyway, it was
| retired in 1992 and replaced with the old one
|
| It was unretired in 2020 - https://www.nasa.gov/general/the-
| worm-is-back/
|
| Both the meatball logo and the "worm" logotype now coexist.
| The former is the primary NASA logo, the "worm" is only for
| selected uses, mainly launch vehicles such as certain NASA-
| contracted Falcon 9 missions, and SLS -
| https://www.space.com/artemis-2-moon-mission-nasa-worm-logo
| jaystraw wrote:
| cops still stealing skateboards? i explained packet switching
| to my friend today, he got it which was cool -- but on the ebb
| of the topic i said that without it, the world today would be
| way, way different. i dunno, i dunno what you expected. i'm
| 1986, and am continually beside myself. about what's possible,
| not neccesarily what's implemented.
| _kb wrote:
| Every astonishing feat of humanity is built on a tower of
| accreted now mundane technology (with that word meant in the
| wider sense, not computers).
| tommiegannert wrote:
| Context:
|
| > 1975 National Aeronautics and Space Administration Graphics
| Standards Manual Reissue. Published by Standards Manual, LLC.
| 2015.
| sandworm101 wrote:
| They want 100+ for a nasa book? Are not nasa publications outside
| copyrights? This should be availible somewhere as a pdf. Perhaps
| that is why they added a forward.
|
| https://www.nasa.gov/nasa-brand-center/images-and-media/
| jen729w wrote:
| Do you have any idea how much it costs to lay out, print, and
| distribute a 200+ page book?
|
| Hint: somewhere in the region of $100.
|
| Get yourself a PDF if you want. A PDF isn't a book.
| sandworm101 wrote:
| Ive purchased many books containing material that is out of
| copyright, most recently a compendium of Lovecraft's works.
| It can be done extreemly cheaply. Such books tend to be of
| horrible print quality. I would need to see loads more
| photos, and independant reviews, to even consider dropping
| 100+ on such a book.
| jen729w wrote:
| > It can be done extreemly cheaply.
|
| I'm sure they're beautiful books.
| davidham wrote:
| I have a copy of this from the original Kickstarter, and
| it's a gorgeous book. Very high quality, very well done.
| iancmceachern wrote:
| Me too, I also have the Apollo mission plans they had on
| Kickstarter. They're soooo nice
| bmitc wrote:
| To be fair, the book is just a scanned copy of the original
| spiral bound book.
| dTal wrote:
| Why would they need to lay it out? NASA already did that. In
| any case, it doesn't cost 100 bucks to print a book, that's
| absurd. The longest Harry Potter books have 700+ pages and
| they don't cost hundreds.
| Pinus wrote:
| A facsimile of a NASA design manual that's fifty years out
| of date must be considered a geek's edition, and the geek's
| editions of Harry Potter novels _do_ cost hundreds:
| https://www.bloomsbury.com/uk/harry-potter-and-the-
| prisoner-...
| bowsamic wrote:
| > Do you have any idea how much it costs to lay out, print,
| and distribute a 200+ page book?
|
| Are you saying that a vast majority of 200+ page books are
| sold at a huge loss? Because I've bought many 200+ page books
| and never paid $100
| notaustinpowers wrote:
| I work in the printing industry currently. A book such as
| this which has to take into consideration impeccable color
| accuracy (most likely using a Pantone printing process),
| high-quality photo printing, hard-covered, and bound to
| last a long time can absolutely be VERY expensive to
| produce, especially if they are not being produced at a
| factory-level scale and are viewed as collectibles.
| tecleandor wrote:
| I see USD85 or GBP65 for the book. I understand it sounds
| expensive when you're looking at a mass produced, probably low
| quality, maybe printed in China book, like one of those $200 or
| even $400 textbooks.
|
| But $85 for this doesn't feel expensive at all, specially with
| paper price/availability in the last 5 or so years:
| 220 pages 129 image plates 9.5 x 11.5" 24.1 x
| 29.2 cm CMYK + 5 Pantone(r) spot colors Stochastic
| screen 100 gsm Yupo Original and Perigord Matte 135 gsm
| papers Case-bound with two-color silkscreen and soft
| touch lamination Individually packaged in static
| shielding pouch Printed in Italy
| d3nit wrote:
| 1976 Manual: https://www.nasa.gov/wp-
| content/uploads/2015/01/nasa_graphic...
| nirav72 wrote:
| I love all these NASA standards guides and manuals. One of the
| best one I still refer to and has been posted here often is
| their wiring guide.
|
| https://s3vi.ndc.nasa.gov/ssri-kb/static/resources/nasa-std-...
| jen729w wrote:
| For those nostalgic for this era, go give Neil some money for his
| epic typeface Berkeley Mono. He work(s/ed?) at NASA.
|
| https://berkeleygraphics.com/typefaces/berkeley-mono/
| travisporter wrote:
| Wow that's one of the most beautiful fonts I've ever seen but
| I'm not seeing it in this document is it the actual nasa logo?
| cptcobalt wrote:
| They're unrelated, but the typeface is intended to evoke the
| vibe of computers in that era.
| zamadatix wrote:
| I don't quite follow how the number "0" character in this
| example image is portrayed:
| https://cdn.berkeleygraphics.com/static/images/marketing/cod...
|
| In 2 lines it seems to have 3 separate forms?
| j33zusjuice wrote:
| If you scroll a bit further, you'll see there are actually 4
| forms for the number 0. Of course, I have no idea why.
| conkeisterdoor wrote:
| Different strokes for different folks :)
| l_h wrote:
| You can choose which one you want when you download the font
| package. The "7" character is also available in two different
| glyphs.
| zamadatix wrote:
| Ah that makes some sense. Thanks!
| mistrial9 wrote:
| compare to
|
| https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bell_Gothic
|
| https://github.com/adobe-fonts/source-code-pro
|
| https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tahoma_(typeface)
|
| https://fonts.google.com/specimen/IBM+Plex+Mono
|
| others?
| 0xffff2 wrote:
| I'm a big fan of Berkeley Mono, but I don't think Neil ever
| worked at NASA.
| monocultured wrote:
| It's such an incredible flex to have a design system and brand
| guidelines for a calling card, side of van, oh and here's how to
| apply logo on a rocket btw.
|
| Love these old design systems and how prescriptive they are.
| toddmorey wrote:
| For sure. May just include rocket mockups now on any client
| work just to have a very comprehensive branding package.
| mwexler wrote:
| The other books they offer at
| https://standardsmanual.com/pages/titles follow a similar pattern
| but across a variety of domains. Worth a look to see approaches
| to the NYC Subway map and DC Comics.
| m3kw9 wrote:
| would be the most interesting coffee table book
| hanniabu wrote:
| What you think you'll get when you pay $50k for a branding and
| design document
| mkhalil wrote:
| High-quality PDF Version of the manual (NASA Graphics Standards
| Manual) if anyone is interested (legally distributed by NASA):
| https://www.nasa.gov/wp-content/uploads/2015/01/nasa_graphic...
|
| Never was the type of person to spend $90 on a look-book/coffee-
| table book, but bless those who make things like this possible I
| guess \\-_-/
| serialNumber wrote:
| bless you as well for linking this !
| bbor wrote:
| A) thank you so much!
|
| B) used bookstores sell coffee table books for dirt cheap
| sometimes, check it out if your taste is more flexible
|
| C) wow page 11 bothers me. Why, why, why... the grid is there
| for a reason!! Just make it line up with the grid, oh my god
|
| EDIT: page 39 is also a really neat tip, for anyone writing a
| book. TL;DR: format your cover as a variation of your content
| pages. Might apply to websites and their splash pages, too!
| Certainly stands in contrast to the current SOP for SV startup
| splash pages
| gdubs wrote:
| Re: grid: Rules are meant to be broken :)
|
| Visual weight sometimes dictates a slightly less than perfect
| alignment.
| _2 wrote:
| While photographing I was trying to get an image perfectly
| aligned, but couldn't get it done. A friend, who was with
| me, said his best image was unaligned intended, because it
| would look just not aligned, even when it was. Since then I
| don't care anymore if the image is not perfectly aligned,
| but looks like it is, to the eye.
|
| Thank you for bringing back this memory with your comment!
| davidivadavid wrote:
| Aligning fonts on a grid in the way you're suggesting is a
| common beginner mistake in typography.
|
| https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Overshoot_(typography)
| pc86 wrote:
| The paragraphs at the top of page 11 explain why the grid is
| there.
| akira2501 wrote:
| > legally distributed by NASA
|
| They're a public agency. Anyone is entitled to "legally"
| distribute this material.
| bangaroo wrote:
| my girlfriend bought this for me as a gift and it's one of my
| favorite things i own
|
| i find the whole concept of brand identity and branding so cool,
| i love looking at branding guides for whatever reason, and one
| that includes "the proper way to brand a spaceship or satellite"
| is high up in cool factor
| qingcharles wrote:
| As a Britisher my fondness has always been for this one:
|
| https://britishrailmanual.com/
| Ylpertnodi wrote:
| Starting at PS75, it would appear their books (manuals) are
| almost as pricey as their tickets. Limited demand, I guess.
| ezekg wrote:
| I have this in my office. My wife got it for me years back. One
| of my favorite things to flip through when I need some branding
| inspiration.
| pndy wrote:
| For last 3 years it feels like clothing with worm logo is all
| around - there are tshirts, hoodies, pretty sure I even noticed
| socks and backpacks. NASA managed to promote itself quite well
| and its branding raised to the range of a popculture symbol.
| Comparable ESA is rather a "quiet" agency and its merchandise
| exist solely on their site and nowhere else; I wonder if they do
| have similar document regarding logotype.
|
| ---
|
| Since we're talking about space, agencies and logos, a little
| story: there's POLSA - Polish Space Agency, cause we _can into
| space_ contrary to popular belief. In 2015 the agency has
| launched a competition to design its logo and over 400 works were
| sent. The reward was 10k PLN / ~2.3k EUR. Work of renown poster
| artist was selected, independently from all other works submitted
| which raised quite a storm here. The director of the
| organizational office stated that: " _none of the designs
| submitted met the aesthetic requirements for a logo. In addition,
| despite the fact that close to 400 designs were received, in many
| cases we had to deal with reproductive work._ " In the end, in
| 2021 another logo was made and agency didn't disclosure who was
| the author and how much this lovely thing cost.
|
| Works submitted: https://joemonster.org/art/35407 - copied from
| fb page that tried to collect all rejected designs; some are
| clearly jokes (Bolek and Lolek inside Jetsons' flying car, or
| coat of arm eagle tail repurposed as rocket) but there are few
| which were really good
|
| Design commissioned and executed by prof. Mieczyslaw Wasilewski
| for 15k PLN/ ~3.5k EUR: https://brandingmonitor.pl/zenujacy-zart-
| polskiej-agencji-ko...
|
| The final logo: https://www.urania.edu.pl/wiadomosci/polska-
| agencja-kosmiczn...
| croisillon wrote:
| for all good things ESA does, NASA was the first on the Moon
| and that's pretty much anyone needs to know...
| eastbound wrote:
| There is an old debate that the Russians were the first
| during the whole race to space (first in orbit, first animal,
| first human - both died), and were overpassed by the
| americans at the last leg. Then the Europeans were ahead with
| a supersonic jet in commercial exploitation, and the Russians
| beat us this time (by 3 months, with a copy of our own
| design).
| rdlw wrote:
| Both died??
|
| I mean, Neil Armstrong died too, but it hardly seems fair
| to put it that way...
|
| Also, you missed first spacewalk and that they got the
| first satellite AND the first human in space, and the first
| flyby of the moon, and the first images of the far side of
| the moon, and the first extraterrestrial rover.
| croisillon wrote:
| Lagniappe: https://edition.cnn.com/2022/07/23/tech/nasa-
| apparel-popular...
| mewse-hn wrote:
| That is really unfortunate that they landed on a logo
| suspiciously similar to the logo for the game Starfield when
| there were so many good submissions. Half of the 22 submissions
| that were rejected look cleaner and more professional than the
| final version. The controversy seems justified.
| pndy wrote:
| Wasilewski's blue triangle design was ridiculed as an unaware
| call to polandball and few memes spawned here and there.
|
| Personally, I think that the saddest thing is that govt still
| doesn't have an unified visual identification for all its
| departments and agencies - old logos are still being all
| around and digital govt platform sites are different one from
| another.
|
| https://www.gov.pl/web/premier/wspolna-identyfikacja-
| wizualn... - sadly, in Polish but they are aware since 2022
| that unified style is already a thing elsewhere
| wolframhempel wrote:
| I need to develop better impulse control. I was already halfway
| through filling out the shipping address when I took a deep
| breath and thought - really? Are you ever gonna seriously read
| this?
|
| But then again, it does come wrap in space foil...so there's
| that...
| acosmism wrote:
| I do too. I went through the exact same series of thoughts
| (didnt realize the space foil thing you mention) and figured im
| already fully invested since the form was filled
| corysama wrote:
| Related: Nixon, NASA, And How The Federal Government Got Design
|
| https://web.archive.org/web/20181005033340/https://www.fastc...
|
| Archive link because the actual page is missing a few images :(
| blackhaz wrote:
| Ah. The times when designers were actually designers.
| Optimal_Persona wrote:
| One of my favorite software developers - Valhalla DSP, who make
| awesome reverb, delay, and modulation audio plugins - references
| the NASA design guidelines.
|
| https://valhalladsp.com/2011/04/26/valhallaroom-an-overview/
|
| "The idea behind the GUI was to organize the controls in a
| logical manner, such that their size and display status was an
| accurate representation of their relative importance. The GUI is
| also proudly 2D, with the controls being more of an abstraction
| of knobs and sliders than an ersatz depiction of hardware that
| doesn't exist. Futura Demibold was chosen as the font, as it is
| specified as the control panel font in the NASA usability
| guidelines, and because it just looks cool. The tooltips area is
| an effort to incorporate documentation as a design element, in
| keeping with the minimalist/Swiss School influences."
|
| Valhalla is one of the few audio plugin developers who make
| plugins that are usable/legible even when the vector interface is
| zoomed down to its smallest size. Apple could do well to take
| inspiration from NASA and Valhalla - their redesigned plugin
| interfaces in Logic Pro X have small regular weight Helvetica,
| tons of wasted blank space and are unreadable to my not-getting-
| younger peepers at smaller sizes. I feel like no one in Apple's
| design department is over 30.
| speckx wrote:
| I have this book; as a NASA nerd, I love it!
| starkparker wrote:
| FWIW NASA's modern brand standards (including RGB/HEX/CMYK/PMS
| codes for the brand colors) are at https://www.nasa.gov/nasa-
| brand-center/brand-guidelines/
| dang wrote:
| Related:
|
| _NASA Graphics Standards Manual_ -
| https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=14890791 - July 2017 (8
| comments)
|
| _NASA Graphics Standards Manual (1976) [pdf]_ -
| https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=11356246 - March 2016 (8
| comments)
|
| _NASA's 1976 Graphics Standards Manual [pdf]_ -
| https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=10236380 - Sept 2015 (1
| comment)
|
| _NASA 's 1975 Graphics Standards Manual_ -
| https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=10171018 - Sept 2015 (10
| comments)
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(page generated 2024-07-26 23:07 UTC)