Re: Conlang Flag Design

Adrian wrote (of his version of my flag):

<<My variation is primarily an attempt to promote discussion about
whether the problem of the black band can be overcome. The idea behind
it is that even if that /particular/ solution doesn't work, it might
help someone to visualise a solution that /would/ work. I've tried to
make that clear in the latest update.>>

Ah.   And, yes, your latest update does make that clear.   Incidentally, we
haven't heard anything from those who find the black jarring.   Have either
of the solutions worked?   Any ideas?   I mean, was it the size of the black
band, the shape of it, or just the very fact that it was cutting off part of
the sun?

Adrian continued...

<<For my part, I'll advocate any of the versions that don't have rays (I
can't stand those rays), with your new version at #1, although 25:43
is a mean aspect ratio. :-)>>

Yeah, I know.   I was being lazy: I just cut off from the bottom.   If people
like the smaller band, the aspect ratio can be fixed later.

The rest is still Adrian:

<<Does anyone prefer the versions with rays over all of the versions
without rays?>>

Looks like there are advocates of both.   Personally, I'm on the fence
with the rays.   Should they be entered as two separate flags, or would
that produce a Woodrow Wilson effect?   [For non-Usonianoj: In 19something-
or-other, Teddy Roosevelt, a Republican, disliked incumbent Taft, also a
Republican, so
he created his own party, the Progressive Party, and ran for president under
that ticket.   This was thought to have evenly split the Republican vote,
giving
an easy victory to Democratic candidate Woodrow Wilson, as a result.   The
effect was *much* more dramatic than Nader's perceived effect on the
Democratic vote in the controversial 2000 election.]

<<I think the tongue glyph would spoil it - just doesn't go with the
design, which is all geometric.>>

Yeah, on second thought, I agree.

<<I'm surprised that my modification has been received unfavourably - I
expected that most people would be neutral to the change and that a
few might favour it. The white and purple bands on the edge of
Christian's flag don't actually mean anything, so I thought that if I
bent them, I could make them into a symbol of how a conlang evolves
into hitherto unexplored territory as the inventor develops it. Then
again, I'm a sucker for symbols and the sort of person who finds
"because it looks cool" a tad on the lame side. :-)>>

I personally liked *the idea*, but I still can't get past the fact that this
is a flag, and that a flag seen first, explained second.   Maybe we can
all try to think of a justification for the flag as it stands, instead...?
The
white bands are the same color as the slashes which represent language,
and there are two of each, so maybe something can be made of that.
As for the purple, could it be enough that we've decided that purple is
the color of creativity...?   Maybe that the only limits of a conlang is the
limits of one's imagination.   There's got to be *something*.

All right, those are my thoughts for now.   Everything's still looking good.

-David (who's surprised that sigs don't carry over to different AOL
applications, as he's currently visiting his parents and using their computer)