advances in web typography
By adam sullivan, designer
Historically web designers have had to be satisfied with only a small sub-set of the huge range of fonts available in the print world. This has now changed, and typography can now be given the emphasis it deserves in web design.
Web fonts are fonts that are specially formatted for use on the world wide web. In the past, different browsers have varied in their support for web fonts and only consistently supported system fonts which are resident on client machines could be relied upon. Also, fonts are licensed by the foundry according to usage. Foundries have not been comfortable with licensing standard TrueType (.ttf) or OpenType (.otf) formatted fonts because there was no protection from piracy in this format.
More recently the Embedded OpenType format and now Web Open Font Format offered more security but these formats do not necessarily make it simple to support typography across all browsers.
More recently the Embedded OpenType format and now Web Open Font Format offered more security but these formats do not necessarily make it simple to support typography across all browsers.
This year we’re seeing a wave of web font services being marketed. This will have a profound impact on web typography. These services provide a tool for web designers and developers to legally display professional fonts on websites. This means that web designers will no longer have to adhere to a particular set of "web safe" fonts that the user has pre-installed on their computer.
Some of the services i have worked with and found to be very good across all major browsers are -
Pros - Easy setup for designers and developers, allowing integration within minutes. Integration with Google Font API and blogging platforms including WordPress.
Cons - Implementation requires JavaScript. Fonts are not available for desktop use. Paid service.
@Font-Face
Pros - Downloadable font files and sample code. Easy css implementation. Free service.
Cons - Font rendering quality differs from browser to browsers. Slight delay before font loads.
Google Fonts
Pros - Easy to implement. Fast font loading. Free service.
Cons - Small font selection in the Google font directory.
Fontspring
Pros - Large font selection. No recurring fees or bandwidth restrictions. Desktop license included.
Cons - Font quality varies. Can cost up to several hundred dollars depending on the font family.
Each of these allows for more expressive web typography. With a virtually unlimited palette of typefaces to choose from, we can now build designs that support brand unity: companies can keep their online communication “on-brand” by implementing their corporate or branded fonts across their websites.
Following that cliched phrase of “form follows function,” it’s important to create work that communicates clearly first, and looks “pretty” second. Typography, however, should be a priority in design, and not just a following act. A well written and presented message combined with effective imagery certainly helps create powerful functional design.
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