You cannot select more than 25 topics Topics must start with a letter or number, can include dashes ('-') and can be up to 35 characters long.
This repo is archived. You can view files and clone it, but cannot push or open issues/pull-requests.
pollen-tfl/helvetica-alternatives.html.pm

27 lines
1.8 KiB
Perl

#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: Its bland. Its overused. Its inapt for most projects. All true statements.
Yet they sort of miss the point. Its 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? Its 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.
}