Reservocation, Issue: 016
Article
I wanted to ask a handful of top interactive designers something that has become more important lately. Type as it appears in Web browsers. It’s really come to the forefront for me personally since the release of Apple’s Safari Web browser and its native support of anti-aliased text (you can’t turn it off—easily). What does this mean for interactive designers? What affect will this have on branding or any image-based text that we specify? What kind of typographic control will designers have (or not) in the near future? Will aliased text survive?
What’s next for HTML type or textual content as it appears in Web-browsers running on desktop or laptop systems?
TODD DOMINEY
I think that question is best answered with a glass half full, half empty analogy. The “full” group would point to advancements in CSS, notably CSS2, and the level of typographic control the specification offers. In the future, if all major browsers fully supported CSS2, designers would have much more control over the visual presentation of their document’s textual content, provide a richer visual experience for their users, and slim their document weights down (for there would be less need for graphical text). In theory, CSS2 is something to remain hopeful and enthusiastic about. But, our reality is something quite different.
Web design — in the raw, textual sense — has stagnated. Microsoft’s Internet Explorer, the monopoly power holder on the web, hasn’t been updated in years. Competing web browsers like Safari on OS X, Mozilla, Firebird (now Firefox — Ed) and Opera have broader support for CSS than IE, and continue to update their technology to accommodate more features of the CSS spec. [For an example of this, see http://whatdoiknow.org/other/shadow.html for a demo of the text-shadow CSS2 attribute] But, the advancement of textual content on the web depends on the end user upgrading their technology, and even if Microsoft released an updated IE tomorrow, it would be years before enough people used the browser for web designers to comfortably deploy modern techniques on a public web site.
So, for now, designers are stuck on the current CSS specification (which isn’t even fully supported by every browser either), and a paltry selection of system fonts to choose from. Microsoft made an incredible contribution to the web, and end-user experiences, by offering the typefaces Verdana and Georgia for free. I couldn’t imagine designing a web site without them. But, the typefaces — which are now no longer available for download, and can only be installed in OS X by installing Internet Explorer — are the property of Microsoft. The web depends on them. Without Verdana and Georgia, we would be reading everything set in Arial and Times, which would be a horrible experience to say the least.
I personally think one of the fastest ways to push web typography forward would be more open-source, free typefaces. The challenge is figuring out a way to get them on end-users’ machines, and we all know how quick some people are to download anything, let alone install. But, more typefaces would offer designers much greater freedom in their design, without relying on fancy CSS attributes or browser support.
Do you see any problems with aliased text?
I personally think that 5% or less of the aliased typefaces are worth using. They are quite popular — especially in the Flash community — but I think a lot of designers use them to evoke an attitude and style, without a lot of consideration into whether their visitors can actually read their content. Aliased typefaces are not as easy to design for broad sections of copy as some people would believe. Just about any bitmap face can be used for display at 18 pixels or higher, but once you start setting paragraphs of text in a bitmap face at 10 pixels or smaller, you better make sure it’s a good one.
JEFFREY ZELDMAN
Sub-pixel anti-aliasing in Mac OS X and Windows Cleartype is changing the landscape. In OS X, a web page at Amazon.com looks more like printed type to my eye than an anti-aliased comp in Photoshop 7. Windows Cleartype is almost as good (type bunnies can argue which system is better) but it is off by default and most people don’t know to turn it on. Hardware keeps getting better, faster, and cheaper, and I suspect that in the next version of Windows, Cleartype, or an improved technology that replaces it, will be on by default.
When that happens, even the fussiest art director will see that what we’ve been saying for all these years about CSS and semantic markup is true: you can make a great-looking page without setting all your text in Photoshop and exporting it as GIFs — a great-looking page that remains accessible in text-only environments.
People working on the next version of Windows rave about it without spelling out what it will do. In addition to the expected OS-level web services and the embedding of the “browser” in all kinds of applications, I think Microsoft will try to compete with OS X by offering numerous high-quality fonts, as Apple does. They won’t be the same fonts, but they will likely be comparable in quality and variety.
So, when you want XHTML text to display as Gill Sans in the Mac environment, you’ll be able to pick a roughly comparable face like New Century Gothic for the Windows people, and although the two fonts are not the same, the design effect will be quite similar — and thanks to sub-pixel anti-aliasing, it will look really good in both environments. (You can already specify tracking in CSS, and it works all the way back to IE5/Windows. A little tracking allows the soft-edged text to “spread” in a way that looks good and maintains legibility.)
GABE KEAN
The problems with aliased text (specifically, the HTML text used in the browser) are that there’s really only a limited selection that work well. This shows its ugly face with branding, as the designer is trying to differentiate a client’s message from the rest, and generally, the designer uses typographic systems to accomplish that. The designer is asked to make some guesses about the typefaces that are installed on their audiences’ computers.
Many have encouraged their clients to move to Flash-based environments, as all fonts can be embedded and there is also a wide selection of aliased typefaces that are now available (thanks to folks like Miniml and T26).
My assumption for the future is that browsers will “ship” with a new set of aliased typefaces that will offer the same legibility and versatility as Verdana and Times. These fonts would need to be automatically installed with the browser. Font licensing could be taken care of by the browser manufacturers before hand.
JIM COUDAL
Somehow, working part of my time designing for the web and part of my time designing for print I’ve split into two completely different people. One of me is fine with limited choices when it comes to type. That part of me sees freedom in constraint, appreciates that everyone has to play by the same rules and has learned to love the tiny differences that taste and execution can make. And to see blocks of text as living, flowing organisms. That’s all good.
The other part of me finds solace in simple jobs where a couple paragraphs can be set with a classic or unusual face, where letter-spacing can be specified precisely, where kerning pairs can be nudged and widows assassinated. Set it once forever. Now that’s power. That’s really making a design decision. That’s all good too.
The odd thing is that I’m OK with this schizophrenia. I enjoy it even. I imagine the day will come when these two typographic skill-sets will be reunited and I’ll be all one designer again. And that’ll be good too.
Screens are looking better and better and I can’t say I miss the pixely look as much as I thought I would. When I see it now, primarily in Flash files, I think of it as a choice made to achieve an effect or a mood and not the necessity it once was.
I had a dream once that a couple of smart and talented people changed everything by offering a license-free, automatically-updatable set of fonts, designed for the screen and completely platform and browser agnostic. They offered them as an easy to download and install package and designers everywhere included them in their style sheets and always pointed to a link that said ‘this site looks best with _____ fonts and they’re available here for free.’
Of course, after I woke up I forgot the fabulous brand name I had imagined and realized that there wouldn’t be any money in it and that it would be a boatload of work. So, by the time I got out of bed and to the mouse I was setting a paragraph in Verdana 12 over 16 and trying to decide if it was time give Trebuchet another look. It wasn’t.
CRAIG KROEGER
I think the first thing to keep in mind is that there is no right or wrong opinion in this matter. Whether your preference is aliased text or anti-aliased text, there should be room for both on the web. What is wrong is when the choice is no longer left to the individual. When Apple (remember when they were for individuality?) decides that anti-aliased text is my only choice, that’s where I have a problem. Just as having limited type selection is bad for designers and viewers alike, having no choice in how you view that text is just as bad, if not worse. Screen viewing will never be, and should never be, like reading printed text. Forcing typefaces to look like their printed counterparts shows no attempt to embrace the media for what it is. Screens consist of pixels, for better or worse.
As it will come as no surprise to any one who knows my work from miniml.com, my preference is aliased text. I find anti-aliasing to lessen clarity for the sake of aesthetics, but that's just my opinion. In regards to less than 5% of aliased typefaces being worth using, I completely agree. What should be mentioned though is less than 5% of ALL typefaces are worth using, not just the aliased ones. Contrary to what some may believe, the intent of miniml fonts is to improve legibility, when used in the proper circumstances. The aesthetic appeal is just a side-benefit. I find it ironic that Macromedia Flash, of all things, could eventually be the savior of aliased fonts. Fortunately, there’s nothing Apple or Microsoft can do about that.
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