The Lexicon Remember, rules must of first be understood before they can be broken. Once you have a good foundation of these rules, Letters you can freely journey into unconventional terrain. 19Rules of Typography “Some things never change, and in the typographic realm, principles upon which sound practice relies have remained essentially the– same Rob for centuries.” Carter About the Book About the Author Digital Type and Color Rob Carter teaches explains how to work useful reference book that typography and visual effectively on screen by providesthe work graphicprofiled. designers This is a communication at Virginia mastering the fundamental with a fresh set of possibilities Commonwealth University. principles of traditional for screen work. His design work has been typography: type and color. exhibited at the American The book opens with a Institute of Graphic Arts, through examination of the New York Directors’ Club, basics of type, color and the Society of Typographic traditional typographic Arts and elsewhere. He is rules. It then explores how the author of American those rules can be broken to Typography Today, and achieve new and innovative co-author of Typographic design. A wide variety of Specimens: The Great fully illustrated academic Typefaces, and the classic and professional case studies Typographic Design: Form reveal the rationale behind and Communication. (From the book: Digital Color and Type, Rob Carter. Rotovision, 2002) Rule 1 Rule 3 #6. Sitting Too CloseScience #5. Blocking the Window Seat has told us that people Because of how completely bullshit gravity is, generally prefer it when standing is generally more work than sitting, everyone else stays at least and generally worth avoiding if at all possible. So a couple feet away from them. anyone who makes it more difficult for someone Obviously, that’s not always to reach an empty seat is a real gaping asshole. going to be practical grills. If you happen to be doing that, say by parking yourself in an aisle seat, thus blocking an empty Bad typeface: Dingbats. Nobody can read this easily. window seat, well, I hope you didn't have an appointment to keep. Because your bus is being rerouted straight to hell. #6. Sitting Too Close Science has told us that people generally ”But! But! But!” I hear you mewling. “I have prefer it when everyone else stays at least a to get off at the next stop, and don’t want to couple feet away from them. Obviously, that's have to climb over anyone to get out! Welp!” not always going to be practical when we're riding the loser cruiser, which means that we Good typeface: Helvetica. Easy to read. If you Text in black: Helvetica. can’t read this, you have problems and should Text in red: Franklin Gothic Book. probably seek help. Can you easily tell the difference? I didn’t think so. Rule 1 Rule 2 Rule 3 For optimum legibility, Be mindful not to use too Avoid combining typefaces choose classical, time-tested many different typefaces at that are too similar in typefaces. These typefaces any one time. The main reason appearance. If the reason for should be drawn and crafted for using more than one combining typefaces is to with consistency among typeface is to create emphasis create emphasis, characters, and exhibit highly or to separate one part of the it is important to avoid legible proportions. Examples text from another. When too the ambiguity caused by include: Baskerville, Bembo, many different typefaces are combining types that are too Bodoni, Caslon, Centaur, used, the reader is unable to similar in appearance. Franklin Gothic, Frutiger, determine what is and what is Futura, Garamond, Gill Sans, not important. Goudy Old Style, Helvetica, News Gothic, Palatino, Perpetua, Sabon, Times New Roman, and Univers. 3 Rule 4 #4. LETTING EVERYONE ELSE HEAR What I do see, or rather, hear, are crappy THEIR CRAPPY MUSIC earbud headphones that leak BASED ON MY STUDY OF 1980S MOVIES, approximately 100 percent of their sound LOUD MUSIC ON THE BUS AND out the back, to the point where I wonder if SUBWAY USED TO BE A BIGGER they might work better if they were PROBLEM IN THE 1980S, WHEN THE inserted backward. The (old) stock Apple ONLY WAY TO LISTEN TO MUSIC headphones were pretty bad for this; I could WAS BY GHETTO BLASTER. THAT be half a bus away from a set of those and DOESN’T APPEAR TO BE THE CASE still pick up lyrics. ANYMORE, ALTHOUGH I WILL ADMIT TO NOT LIVING VERY CLOSE TO ANY GHETTOS. Text with a mix of upper and lowercase is much more appealing to the eye and that much easier to read. All capital text is very difficult to read. Don’t do it. Rule 4 Rule 5 Rule 6 Text set in all capital letters For text type, use sizes that, Avoid using too many severely retards reading. according to legibility different type sizes Use upper and lower case studies, prove most readable. and weights at the same time. letter for optimum readability. These sizes generally range Some experts recommend Ascender and descenders from 8 to 12 points for using no more than two sizes, provide the necessary visual text that is read from an one for display titles and cues to make text more average distance of 12 to 14 one for text type. readable. Text set entirely inches. Be sure to remember in upper-case letters form that sizes (based on the monotonous, rectangular x-height of letters) appear shapes. Upper-case letters different from one typeface can successfully be used in to another. display type (headlines; type above 16 points). 4 Rule 8 #3. Standing in the Wrong Place place where there’s the three cubic feet you can squeeze There aren’t many great places to stand on yourself into, in which case, fine, stand by the doors. But just a bus or train; by the time you’re forced to know that you’re going to be getting on and off to make room stand, the thing’s going to be packed enough at every stop. that no matter where you position yourself, 2) Don’t Lean on Poles you’ll be in someone’s way. The only thing Those poles are for multiple people to grab on to, necessary you can do is minimize the number of people for keeping buses from becoming mosh pits/American you’re inconveniencing with your big standing ass. And there are a few simple rules for doing that: Gladiator events. When you lean 1) Don’t Stand in Front of the Doors on or hug one of these poles, If you’re nowhere near your stop, you should your back and ass are taking up be nowhere near the door. The back of the valuable grabbing space. According bus or the middle of the train car are best. to Transit Law, anyone who sees you Unless it’s packed, and the doors are the only doing this is allowed to grab on to you for support. Using a typeface with a medium width is so much Use a typeface that consists of already made easier on the eye. condensed and extended versions. Rule 7 Rule 8 Use text types of book weight. Use typefaces of medium Avoid typefaces appearing width. Avoid typefaces too heavy or too light. that appear extremely wide Text typefaces that are or narrow in width. Rather too light cannot easily be than distorting text by distinguished from their stretching or squeezing backgrounds. In typefaces that the text width, use type are too heavy, counter families that include forms diminish in size, making condensed and extended them less legible. faces that fall within accepted proportional norms. 5 Rule 9 #2. Waving Bags A r o u n d #2. Waving Bags Around H a v i n g a bag at all on mass transit is Having a bag at all on mass transit is already already a pretty big nuisance for everyone, so a pretty big nuisance for everyone, so if if you can avoid it, please do. But I get that you can avoid it, please do. But I get that you’ve got a meeting, or a class, or a you’ve got a m e e t i n g ,or a class,or a shitty shitty hostel to get to, and you’ll need some h o s t e l to get to, and you’ll need some stuff when you get there. stuff when you get there. The problem with baggage is pretty The problem with baggage is pretty obvious: It takes up space. Space that could obvious: It takes up space. Space that could be used by other people, or be used by other people, or worse, space worse, space that is already being used by that is already being used by other people. When other people. When you hit someone you hit someone with your bag, you are with your bag, you are committing a hate c o m m i t t i n g a hate crime, one that’s been crime, one that’s been perpetrated by perpetrated by the bag-having against the the bag-having against the bagless for too bagless for too fucking long. fucking long. With a consistent spacing between words and lines, inconsistent spacing. It’s a lot of work too. reading is much easier. It is extremely difficult to read something that has Rule 9 Rule 10 For text type, use consistent Use appropriate line lengths. letter and word spacing Lines that are too short to produce an even, or too long disrupt the uninterrupted texture.