#lang pollen

◊title-block{◊topic{Helvetica & Arial alternatives}
◊short-rule{Neutral need not mean dull}}

◊make-font-alternative-list{
Concourse
Atlas
Neue Haas Grotesk
Frutiger}

Criticizing Helvetica is one of the favorite pastimes of typographers: It’s bland. It’s overused. It’s inapt for most projects. All true statements. 

Yet they sort of miss the point. It’s like criticizing ◊em{Star Wars} because the visual effects are unrealistic. Or because the dialogue is wooden. Or because the plot is pinched from ◊em{◊link["http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Hidden_Fortress"]{The Hidden Fortress.}} All true statements. But so what? It’s still ◊em{Star Wars}. And like ◊em{Star Wars}, Helvetica will be with us for the foreseeable future.

Should you use Helvetica? Look, I like Helvetica. Though mostly in the rear-view mirror. Today, we have better options. For Helvetica diehards, there is ◊xref{Neue Haas Grotesk}, a lovely revival of the original Helvetica design. Others can try a font that's neutral without being dull, like my own ◊xref{Concourse}, or the excellent new ◊xref{Atlas}. Even good old ◊xref{Frutiger} would be an improvement.

And don't worry — no matter which alternative you choose, Helvetica will still be with us.


◊btw-list{

As I mentioned in ◊xref{system fonts}, Arial was designed as a clone of Helvetica. Helvetica has earned its place in typographic history honestly. But Arial, only by Microsoft imposing it upon us for 20+ years as the main user-interface font in Windows. That's the only reason you've heard of it. That's the only reason you might consider using it. That's a terrible reason. I try to keep the litmus tests to a minimum, but this must be one: you cannot create good typography with Arial.



}