Signs are necessary for every person to function well within society. Most signs are taken for granted because they are needed and are always assumed to be there. Signs can be broken down into three categories: symbols, icons, and indexes.
Symbols are visual representations of, most often, abstract ideas or invisible concepts that don’t have any direct connection to the symbol that represents them. Symbols’ meanings are often learned through cultures and are not immediately grasped by most individuals. The meanings are assigned to the symbols by people or cultures where the symbols themselves do not often have those inherent meanings.
Icons are visual representations as well, but, unlike symbols, they represent ideas, physical processes, or physical objects directly. Ranging from people being icons for a category to which they directly relate to small, simple visual pictures that represent a software program, icon meanings are found within their own visual display.
Indexes are visual representations of actions or complex messages that need to be expressed in a very simple way in order to be easily understood at a quick glance. Like roadway signs and the cautionary signs seen in front of parks, indexes directly illustrate a message to the viewer to take some kind of action.
3 symbol examples from Kristi, Nick and Duncan (respectively):
3 Icon examples from Kristi, Nick and Duncan (respectively):
3 index examples from Kristi, Nick and Duncan (respectively):
My examples of Symbol, Icon and Index (respectively):
Sources:
http://www.templeterrace.com/police/images/TrafficSignalSign.jpg
http://www.clker.com/cliparts/d/4/d/9/1237562201214390563pitr_Coffee_cup_icon.svg.hi.png
http://djkonservo.files.wordpress.com/2008/08/all_seeing_eye.jpg
http://www.freewebs.com/truesocialism/Communist%20Symbol.png
Rolling Stones logo: John Pasche, Graphic Designer
http://lifesavingfoundation.com.au/inc/images/shark_sign.jpg
http://ares.chairmanlol.com/content/543/resized/engrish-funny-1221804809-16526.jpg
Phone: http://www.clker.com/clipart-40845.html
