4 ms·

Please, creators, if you're reading this: Stop labeling things 8-bit that are in no way 8-bit except there are some big squares/cubes involved.

nomel 8y ago
In this context, "8-bit" is a well understood name of an art style. In this context, it's well understood that this has nothing to do with the bus width of processor architecture or misc color/data bit widths. Think of it as a label like "modern art", which is art from 1860s to the 1970s.
- sushisource 8y ago
  Sure, but they're already saying "Voxel", which seems to be a better, more specific term here.
  - nomel 8y ago
    Technically accurate and precise specificity is rarely a goal when marketing a product. Their target audience will be using "8-bit" in their search terms.
- rpdillon 8y ago
  The tag line is on the site says: > A free lightweight 8-bit voxel art editor and interactive path tracing renderer. Is the sentence in some way more clear with the modifier '8-bit'? What's being clarified?
  - gbear605 8y ago
    That people are looking for “8-bit.” For instance, someone might google “8 bit editor.”
    - PavlovsCat 8y ago
      Someone might also google "audio editor", so why not also call it an audio editor to be on the safe side?
      - nomel 8y ago
        8-bit style voxel art can easily be made with this. In fact, that's the intended use case. This would be a very poor tool for creating audio, and anyone looking for an audio tool would notice this immediately. "8-bit voxel" is completely understood to the target audience. Anything involving audio would not.
  - ghusbands 8y ago
    That the voxels are each a solid color and are expected to be displayed at between 1x1 and 4x4 screen pixels per voxel. Definitely not minecraft-style, for example.
- MattRix 8y ago
  You are correct in general, but in this specific case the program is labelled "8-bit" because there is a palette limit of 256 different colors per model. Note: not output pixel colours, but rather colors that each voxel can be.
crazygringo 8y ago
"8-bit" is clearly and widely understood as meaning "intentionally pixelated for artistic effect with a limited color palette, with an overall aesthetic comparable to classic 8-bit game consoles", whether in 2D or 3D. Obviously it's not meant to be taken literally. You might as well complain that "modernism" isn't modern anymore or that "gothic" novels aren't from the same time period of gothic architecture... or that roman typefaces come from places other than Rome, or that italic typefaces aren't all from Italy.
- TeMPOraL 8y ago
  > You might as well complain that "modernism" isn't modern anymore or that "gothic" novels aren't from the same time period of gothic architecture... or that roman typefaces come from places other than Rome, or that italic typefaces aren't all from Italy. I learned not to in front of people, but honestly, this is a problem - a problem of people introducing bad names, and then no one correcting them even decades later.
  - OskarS 8y ago
    It’s not actually a problem. It’s fine. We all understand each other.
    - TeMPOraL 8y ago
      It's more and more cases of terms where the meaning in use is different from the literal one. I.e. more exceptions to remember. More unnecessary cognitive load.
      - hellofunk 8y ago
        The majority of phrases and words in any language have a modern meaning that does not resemble their literal origins. That’s how language works.
      - OskarS 8y ago
        You find it cognitively burdensome to remember that italic fonts aren’t necessarily made in Italy?
MattRix 8y ago
The real reason it's called 8-bit is because each model has a limit of 256 colours, NOT because of "8-bit" retro aesthetics. See: https://twitter.com/ephtracy/status/575207275985530880?s=20 https://twitter.com/ephtracy/status/575207275985530880?s=20
Kiro 8y ago
8-bit has evolved to mean something else to the masses. Deal with it.

nomel 8y ago

In this context, "8-bit" is a well understood name of an art style. In this context, it's well understood that this has nothing to do with the bus width of processor architecture or misc color/data bit widths. Think of it as a label like "modern art", which is art from 1860s to the 1970s.

sushisource 8y ago
Sure, but they're already saying "Voxel", which seems to be a better, more specific term here.
- nomel 8y ago
  Technically accurate and precise specificity is rarely a goal when marketing a product. Their target audience will be using "8-bit" in their search terms.
rpdillon 8y ago
The tag line is on the site says: > A free lightweight 8-bit voxel art editor and interactive path tracing renderer. Is the sentence in some way more clear with the modifier '8-bit'? What's being clarified?
- gbear605 8y ago
  That people are looking for “8-bit.” For instance, someone might google “8 bit editor.”
  - PavlovsCat 8y ago
    Someone might also google "audio editor", so why not also call it an audio editor to be on the safe side?
    - nomel 8y ago
      8-bit style voxel art can easily be made with this. In fact, that's the intended use case. This would be a very poor tool for creating audio, and anyone looking for an audio tool would notice this immediately. "8-bit voxel" is completely understood to the target audience. Anything involving audio would not.
- ghusbands 8y ago
  That the voxels are each a solid color and are expected to be displayed at between 1x1 and 4x4 screen pixels per voxel. Definitely not minecraft-style, for example.
MattRix 8y ago
You are correct in general, but in this specific case the program is labelled "8-bit" because there is a palette limit of 256 different colors per model. Note: not output pixel colours, but rather colors that each voxel can be.

crazygringo 8y ago

"8-bit" is clearly and widely understood as meaning "intentionally pixelated for artistic effect with a limited color palette, with an overall aesthetic comparable to classic 8-bit game consoles", whether in 2D or 3D. Obviously it's not meant to be taken literally. You might as well complain that "modernism" isn't modern anymore or that "gothic" novels aren't from the same time period of gothic architecture... or that roman typefaces come from places other than Rome, or that italic typefaces aren't all from Italy.

TeMPOraL 8y ago
> You might as well complain that "modernism" isn't modern anymore or that "gothic" novels aren't from the same time period of gothic architecture... or that roman typefaces come from places other than Rome, or that italic typefaces aren't all from Italy. I learned not to in front of people, but honestly, this is a problem - a problem of people introducing bad names, and then no one correcting them even decades later.
- OskarS 8y ago
  It’s not actually a problem. It’s fine. We all understand each other.
  - TeMPOraL 8y ago
    It's more and more cases of terms where the meaning in use is different from the literal one. I.e. more exceptions to remember. More unnecessary cognitive load.
    - hellofunk 8y ago
      The majority of phrases and words in any language have a modern meaning that does not resemble their literal origins. That’s how language works.
    - OskarS 8y ago
      You find it cognitively burdensome to remember that italic fonts aren’t necessarily made in Italy?

MattRix 8y ago

The real reason it's called 8-bit is because each model has a limit of 256 colours, NOT because of "8-bit" retro aesthetics. See: https://twitter.com/ephtracy/status/575207275985530880?s=20 https://twitter.com/ephtracy/status/575207275985530880?s=20

Kiro 8y ago

8-bit has evolved to mean something else to the masses. Deal with it.