The Glossary of Typefaces

[Gare]

If you want to spec type like the pros, you gotta speak the language of typography.

FontShop has graciously proviede us all with this free resource:

Typeface Anatomy & Glossary

Check it out!

My Best,

Gary

[angelize]

There is a lot of good information there. Thanks for sharing this.

[wizard509]

That's cool Gare! What a neat resource.

[jon404]

What I REALLY want, Gare, is for Adobe to sell their Font Folio library for $99, instead of what, $3,000? Maybe we can get Magix to ban Adobe products from the EU unless Adobe agrees to my reasonable request. After all.

[Gare]

Well, Jon, the $2,599 SMRP I've seen for Adobe Font Folio 11 is certainly a kick in the wallet for anyone who has a real professional need for the best renderings of popular and classic typefaces. Adobe, to the best of my recollection, has never discounted typeface collections, at least not significantly.




I almost never want to "be fair" when I'm a consumer, but to be fair (!) in this case, Adobe Systems got taken for a ride several years ago when Apple and Microsoft essentially trashed the pricing of commercial typefaces by introducing TrueType. You could get packs of 20 fonts for $49 or less and they were from Monotype and other classy foundries.

This mostly set the "dollar a font" trend and the bottom feeders who'd make knock-offs thought this was great because prior to TrueType, someone with a copy of FontMonger or some other font making program would rip-off, say, Gradl (Led Zepplin albums used this typeface on occasion), and have to put it up as shareware. After TrueType set a new low for font prices, these same people suddenly were charging $2 a font and you could pay with the just-born PayPal micro-payment invention!

However, two things happened, actually 2.7. As the market became saturated with typefaces, people became more selective and the "junk fonts" became relegated to backwaters websites or pirate sites where many of them originated. This need for quality typefaces was seen by a lot of foundries who promptly celebrated and got drunk in the streets for several weeks.

Microsoft and Adobe Systems (the square dance of Commerce frequently changes partners) decided to try to stuff the genie back in the bottle by introducing OpenType, which is both a robust coding language and more like Type 1. And I've never seen font prices for OpenType drop to a buck a font again, not even with the indie foundries.

I'm not going to play the "Oh, Adobe Font Folio averages out to less than $2 a font" game, because many of the fonts one would buy are shovelware—unusable, uninspired, trash—or foreign language fonts, or all 103 members of some font family of which you only need four.

Adobe is in the position to never really discount the font folio, or even individual typefaces. They can sell this $2,599 pack to enterprises as a perk for their art directors instead of giving them a raise. Don't laugh; I knew an art director that got a corner window office instead of a raise.

What Adobe might consider is adopting a limited version model for their typefaces, like they used to do with Photoshop LE, and the elements line of limited Adobe design software.
How about marking down a font if a certain character is missing?




Okay, _eriously: I have to design print and web stuff all the time, and

1. I've been collecting typefaces since 1991, and I find it hard to believe that serious designers don't already have the workaday fonts such as Adobe Myriad, Futura, Garamond, and other staples. There's certainly a better and less expensive way to get a working set tucked under your belt than to buy Font Folio. Before Bitstream was bought by Monotype, these folks used to be the OEM for Monotype, Linotype, Adobe and others, rivaling URW for EOM design typefaces. And I think you can still get over 900 ove the "essential" fonts a good designers needs by buying CorelDRAW, even back to version 5 if you can find a discounted or legitimate used copy.

2. I support "the Little Guy", not because I'm an altruist, but because really and truly, some of the best novel, well-coded, inventive designs do not come from a "font clearing house" which Adobe Systems sort of is. P22, Nick Curtis, Emigré, Letterhead Fonts, the Fontshop, The Font Bureau, and many, many more independent "boutique" font places will sell you a designer type from anywhere from $15 and up. Nope, it's not the "dollar a font" world out there; it never really was if you're serious about typography.

My Best,

Gary

[jon404]

You're right... Adobe never discounted fonts. Digitally, I came up on the PC side... with Corel Draw and that full font collection. Still have my library book! I don't suppose that Magix has something similar? But I'm no fan of Adobe. Zero love. Oh, that's not fair... I like Acrobat Pro, and old Photoshop 7. And before Xara, I used Illustrator quite a bit. But all the rest of it's bloatware at ridiculous prices.

Did you know that Dan Solo died last year? We used to send off to Solotype for headlines... he was a real type guy. A few of those 4,000 fonts are at http://www.myfonts.com/foundry/Solotype/ ... shame the whole collection never made it to a CD or DVD.

Stepson sent me a subscription to Wired magazine at Christmas. Good God. Never thought six-color printing would have the unintended consequence of unleashing typographical insanity. But times change. If people don't read much, who cares?