Xante Colour ScreenWriter, User Manual

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A-14 Application Notes and Page Design bb _____________________
A font is one size of a typeface and includes all the available
characters of that typeface.
Serif, Sans Serif, and Miscellaneous Typefaces
Typefaces fall into three categories of styles: serif, sans serif, and
miscellaneous. A serif is an extra flourish or decoration added to the
end of a main line forming a letter, character, or symbol.
PostScript
PostScript
Serif (Times Roman) Sans Serif (Helvetica)
ΠοστΣχριπτ
Miscellaneous (Symbol)
Fig. A.2 Serif, Sans Serif, and Miscellaneous Typefaces
Serif typefaces include extra flourishes such as the small circle at
the top of the a or the small tails hanging down on each end of the
cross bar in the T in Times Roman (fig. A.2).
Sans Serif typefaces lack the decorations. Sans means without, and
these typefaces have very clean, plain lines such as those found in
the Helvetica typeface (fig. A.2).
Miscellaneous typefaces include those with combinations of serif
and sans serif designs as well as graphic type characters such as
arrows, hearts, squares, or Greek symbols (fig. A.2).
Each typeface category lends itself to particular areas of page design.
For example, the small detailed lines on a serif typeface help draw a
reader’s eye across a line of text. This makes it well suited for body
text such as the Times Roman font used in this manual.
Clean, sharp lines of a sans serif typeface make it excellent for short
headlines or signs. Lack of detail makes it easier for the eye to group
several words into a short phrase, grasping the meaning at a glance.
However, it lacks the drawing effect of details which make long text
blocks easier to read.