Now before you all get up in arms, I am well aware that there are two ways that the marker alerts you as to which end is which, the little picture of the nib on one side of the marker and the visible 0.7mm wide ring of either grey or dark grey in between the cap and the marker. After almost a full semester of use I now always pause before taking off the cap and check that I am taking off the right end.
As I use Copics more and more I'm sure that it will be come an automatic, almost subconscious response to the grey rings under the caps. Also I appreciate the fact that Copics are tools that require years to master and therefore should not be expected to be instantly understood. However, in terms of user interface, the system of nib differentiation is not ideal.
I can see several solutions to the problem which wouldn't change the overall aesthetic too much. Perhaps increasing the width of the grey rings from 0.7mm to 1.2mm would make them more easily distinguishable. Another solution would be to put the nib icons on another face of the copic, so that they stand out, rather than being lost amongst the clutter of the barcode and brand name. Would these changes drastically increase the cost of production and hence retail value? Probably, but if it reduces the times spent on each rendering AND we all know time = money, then you'd save money in the long run (although to be honest if Copics cost any more than they already do I would be living in my non-existent car).
Sam F
had the same proplem sam! the first few months when i got mine in high school it was a pain, cause as you said, if i wanted the chisel end, id get the other...and so on.
ReplyDeleteI agree that it would make things easier if the indication was made more clearer, but then it wouldn't be a classic copic marker! I like the subtle value that the indication has, and almost encourages you to uncover little things like this, once you get to use it. kind of like when you buy a back back and one day (like 4 months later) your friend goes "whats this pocket for"... and you never even realised it even existed.
Who knows if all of hat even makes sence.. maybe if copic read this they would say "whaat is this kid talking about, we just chose cool grey cause it looked cool"
Tom G
I still haven't learnt to look at the little grey ring! I just open them and hope for the best. Maybe it would be easier if each lid was a different colour? So one was the same grey of the case, and the other was the colour of the ink? That would certainly be clear enough for even me to figure out!
ReplyDeleteHolly
back pack**
ReplyDeleteHolly I feel that your idea would be quite effective. Alternatively Copic could introduce transparent caps (retaining the colour swatch on top) so that the nibs are actually visible to us before removing the caps. Whilst this would greatly change the overall aesthetic of the Copic perhaps a more subtle solution would be to slightly taper the marker towards the smaller tip? although I don't know how this would effect ergonomics.
ReplyDeleteAshlee Shepherd