Notes on Baeird: Typography

My Internet is down again so I’ll do this in word and then cut and paste into my blog later.

Chapter 4 of Beaird’s text: Typography

Beaird says that “the majority of the decisions that need to be made in our work with type involve the space around the letter forms and text blocks rather than the actual type itself.” That is a new way of thinking of it for me.

The SAFE LIST consists of nine font families.

CSS allows you to choose multiple fonts in order of preference.

If you really want your font to appear in a certain way, use images to display.

If you want to replace text that changes periodically, the solution is “siffer” sIFR, scalable Inman Flash Replacement. It uses Flash and JavaScript

You can control spacing horizontally and vertically.

Kerning refers to adjusting the space between letters

You can use the CSS property to adjust a fonts tracking. Add pixels to make text more open, e.g.

Vertical spacing: known as leading. You can use CSS line-height property. The unit that measures the size of a font in CSS is an em.

Fonts:

Serif: provide horizontal line reference.

Sans serif: They stand out at headlines, esp. when the main text is serif. On the web, though, the opposite it true. Probably not a good idea to use as headlines these days on the web.

Handwritten: Convert to images or use sIFR to make sure everyone can see.

Fixed-width or monospaced font: not proportionally spaced.

Novelty fonts: Can be good for logo design.

Dingbat fonts: Many available on the web. Try ScrapiCons.

Choosing the right fonts: Define feelings trying to evoke in target audience. Rule of thumb: don’t use more than four different fonts in a web design. Don’t combine two different serif with two different sans serif in same project.

Section on setting font size and em’s is going over my head ??? p. 122

The homepage should have a singular message that’s conveyed in large type. Not too much reading. It’s a hub.