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Introduction
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The design of type began with early cuneiform images
carved into stone or painted on cave walls.
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The tradition expanded into blackletter calligraphy in
the middle ages, then flourished in the industrial age
with the development of Roman (serif) and then Gothic
(san serif) letterforms.
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Now,
with the advent of PCs, anyone can create a typeface;
there are literally thousands available. But that doesn't
mean they are all GOOD.
Serif fonts
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Serif
fonts are marked by little 'feet' that extend from the
stem of the letter. All fonts were Roman (serif) until
the 20th century. Serifs say tradition, elegance, formal.
Serifs enable reading of large blocks of printed text,
hence most books, magazines, etc. use it for body text.
Types of serif fonts:
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Old
Style. With some of the earliest fonts, the serifs
flow out in simple, graceful curves. Examples: Caslon,
Caxton, Garamond, Goudy, Oldstyle, Palatino, Early Roman.
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Transitional:
Smaller curves connect the serifs. Examples: Baskerville,
Century, Tiffany, Times.
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Modern: The stems are thick and the serifs thin,
contrasting with each other. Example: Bodoni.
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Egyptian: Slab serifs. Thick. Think Circus, Westerns.
Examples: Clarenden, Lubalin, Memphis.
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comparing
types of type (11)
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Sans
Serif
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No 'feet.' Clean, simple lines, less traditional looking.
Hugely popular in the mid-century Swiss design movement.
Examples: Helvetica, Univers, Futura, Avant Garde.
Gill Sans.
- Studies
show that reading on-screen
is easier with sans-serif typefaces. So designers have been
charged with creating new, easy to read styles for Web use:
Verdana, Arial, and Trebuchet are a few.
Display/Decorative (or everything else under the sun):
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Script: calligraphic (think Wedding invitations),
roundhand (think cursive, with conected letters), and
brush (Think brush painting). Examples: Brush, Zapf
Chancery, Commercial Script.
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Decorative: This category includes everything from
historical styles such as Art nouveau and Art Deco to
high tech to wacko and fun to creepy. Choose with caution.
Examples: Balloon, Klang, Lithos.
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