Although the desktop metaphor revolutionized user interfaces, there is evidence that a spatial layout alone does little to help in locating files and other data; distinguishable appearance is also required.
Studies have shown that average users have considerable difficulty finding files on their personal computers, even ones that they created the same day.
The mass availability of computer graphics supported the introduction of approaches that make better use of the brain's "visual hardware", by providing individual files and other abstract data with distinguishable appearance.
The Semanticons project[4][8] developed by Setlur et al. demonstrated an algorithm to create icons that reflect the content of files.
Developer Don Park introduced the identicon library for making a visual icon from a hash of a data identifier.