![]() In re: Helvetica's readability - I agree with Thomas to the extent that there are other fonts that are more readable. ![]() No ordinary mortal can read and comprehend even a portion of such text. In the course of any given month I see a large number of contracts with fine print set in 6-pt Helvetica (often even smaller) across the entire width of an 8.5" legal-size page with margins of 0.25" or less. Readability is a little more complicated because it depends primarily on the skills of the author of the text, but again Thomas is right in that Helvetica can have a further negative impact on readability in the sense of "ease of reading".Īnyone involved with typography is of course acutely aware of the nefarious effect of a line with too many characters and words in it, but set a ridiculously long line in Helvetica and you have a contract attorney's dream: fine print that is essentially unreadable even though the individual characters are readily recognizable. I have come to use legibility as shorthand for "ease of individual character recognition". The concepts of legibility and readability are always a potential point of contention. I avoid both at all costs, as well as the unspeakable Courier. While I dislike Times to a much lesser degree than Helvetica, I agree with Thomas re a better "ease of reading". What is the greater typographic 'crime', an inappropriate typeface choice, or a safe if overused one? Is the overuse of Helvetica today the result of designers being 'lazy', because they know it works? Also, I'm sure some good quotes will come out of this, so can people include their name (and position if applicable) if they're happy for me to use their responses. ![]() There are quite a number of questions I want to ask to promote discussion here, but I might just start with a few and see where it goes, and anything at all people want to add is a bonus. I've decided however, to write an essay that looks at both sides of the argument and typographic context in general. ![]() A particular designer was the impetus behind the article, and his stance is strongly anti-helvetica.įirstly, whether you agree or not, I think anything that educates the public and makes designers pause and question their choices is a positive step. Recently an article got published in a widely distributed newspaper here in Melbourne, Australia, that questioned the (over)use of Helvetica by designers as an easy/lazy/style driven choice. ![]()
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