© 1994 Lawrence I. Charters
Washington Apple Pi Journal, Vol. 16, no. 8, August 1994, p. 27.
A few months ago the Journal published an interview discussing font management. The article received lots of favorable comment. But all that is passe, now: Robin Williams has published the ultimate font guide, How to Boss Your Fonts Around.
Aside from the cover, which should be in the running for “most wretched cover ever made,” the book is (ahem) letter perfect. Created with Williams’ usual exquisite sense of design, it is a masterpiece of page layout, and a showcase for intelligent typography – a good thing, considering the topic. (And no, she didn’t design the cover. It is so bad I had to check.)
Don’t know the difference between a bitmapped font and a downloadable font? Williams explains all, an expose that covers, clearly and concisely, screen fonts, TrueType fonts, PostScript fonts, and virtually all the ways in which they interact. Her legendary spare text is, as always, illustrated with screen shots, sample printouts, icons and other graphics designed to illuminate the subject rather than pointlessly prettify.
Topics covered range from the general (how to download fonts to a PostScript printer) to the specific: what are Adobe Type Manager, Suitcase, Master Juggler, etc., and how and why should you use these programs. If any of you have ever listened to the Question and Answer session at a Pi General Meeting, virtually every font question ever asked is answered in this one slim book.
Not surprisingly, the emphasis is on scalable fonts (TrueType and PostScript), and on things specific to System 7. While the Mac’s original claim to fame was the staggering wealth of bit-mapped fonts, such fonts hold little or no interest to a user in 1994. Why have blocky bitmaps when you can have smooth scalable fonts, on screen and on paper?
Similarly, the breadth of font options in System 7 makes it both easier and, at the same time, more complex when it comes to fonts. The options are limitless, and so are the opportunities for confusion.
Some of the information may seem a bit exotic. I couldn’t quite understand why she has a chapter on Fontographer, an expensive program for creating and editing fonts. Yet her suggestions are very clearly sensible, and now Fontographer doesn’t seem nearly as exotic anymore. Wait till you see how she changes the gender of a character with Fontographer…
Closing the book is a superb illustrated glossary of font and typographic terminology, and an index! Even better, a good index! There must be a special place in heaven awaiting authors courteous enough to insist on a good index.
How to Boss Your Fonts Around is highly recommended, for novices and experts alike. Finding the book in stores should be easy. Just look for a font book with an ugly neon pink, yellow and green cover.
Robin Williams, How to Boss Your Fonts Around. Peachpit Press, 1994. 152 pp. $12.95. ISBN 1-56609-102-0.
Peachpit Press has a generous user group discount program, and even a one book order qualifies for a discount. To take advantage of this, call Peachpit at 800-283-9444, credit card in hand, and identify yourself as a member of Washington Apple Pi. Overseas callers should try 510-548-4393.