I'm thankful that they put text underneath the icons so I can tell WTF the icon is for, but the text makes the icon redundant.
OK, fifteen pages of complainers who have no idea about HCI now... let me give you a clue.
Icons are beneficial in all interfaces - menus, file managers, toolbars, you name it. They let you find what you're looking for faster. The human brain is optimized to recognize and analyze colors and shapes. When you're confronted with a menu of 10 programs, research shows you find yours more easily by looking for the circular blue-and-red icon than the words "Mozilla Firefox".
Factors in icon design include:
- A clear shape. Firefox is a circle, VS is an infinity symbol, Notepad is a rectangular notebook, and Word is a W in a square.
- Evocative colors. A red cross means delete, a green tick means confirm, yellow-black strips mean security, gray means utility application
- A unique, simple, recognizable design. Your brain sees it a few times and henceforth only looks for the icon, because it's less strain than reading the text.
If you don't trust me, perhaps you'll believe:
Microsoft
Apple