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Microsoft Updates Azure Icon, Plans Default Font Change

Microsoft recently announced a few planned design changes, including a new Azure icon.

The new Azure icon will be a blue "A," replacing the current cluster of four squares. The new design coincides with Microsoft's Fluent Design System approach. It's meant to align Azure with other Microsoft icon designs currently in use.

The change will take effect cross Microsoft's sites "in the coming weeks," a Friday announcement indicated.

Here's the new Azure icon:

It will replace the current Azure icon here:

Microsoft is seeking public comments on the Azure icon design change via this feedback forum. One person has already offered feedback on the new icon in this Twitter thread, indicating that the new Azure icon looks like the Autodesk icon, shown here:

In other design news, Microsoft indicated last month that it was seeking public comments on which of five new fonts it commissioned from font designers should become its next default font. This new default font will become part of various Microsoft products, such as the Microsoft Office suite.

The new fonts -- Tenorite, Bierstadt, Skeena, Seaford and Grandview -- are designed according to the sans-serif style. One of them will replace Calibri, the current default font. Microsoft earlier had favored Times New Roman, but replaced it with Calibri in 2007.

Microsoft is seeking public comments via this Twitter thread on the favorite new default font. It's not an elimination contest, since fonts less favored will still be available in Microsoft's software.

Also last month, Microsoft indicated that its coming Visual Studio 2022 product will use the new Cascadia Code fixed-width font, plus newly updated icons. Those design changes have already elicited public comments, as described in this Visual Studio Magazine article.

About the Author

Kurt Mackie is senior news producer for 1105 Media's Converge360 group.

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