fonts that piss me off
If you’re addicted to type and letters as I am, then you know how easy it is to be affected by them. Some fonts make me happy, some sad, while others just piss me off. “How?” you ask. Well just look at them. I guess it’s really not their fault; they didn’t set out to be bad type and ligatures. It was the poor execution of the designers and hobos that thought they’d take a stab at desktop publishing that did them in.
Overused, missused and missunderstood these are just a few of the fonts that piss me off:
Apple Chancery- the poor man’s “fancy font.” It looks cheap.
Arial Narrow- the Helvetica knock off. Don’t waste time trying immitate the most perfect font (Helvetica, that is).
Comic Sans- the casual and “fun font.” This doesn’t even look good in comic strips.
Papyrus- sorely overused, it was the first of its kind that was organic and a little rough around the edges.
Zapfino- Completely misunderstood, this has been overused in just about every market. And it’s awkward to work with.
So what did them in? Well, mostly their availability through Microsoft and in turn the general public; and people who don’t understand that fonts have a time and a place.
Please, let these fonts rest in peace. You can do better!!
Tags: apple chancery, arial narrow, comic sans, Design, desktop publishing, fonts, fonts that piss me off, microsoft, papyrus, zapfino
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January 26th, 2009 at 11:48 am
I had a ton of fonts on my (hold your breath) PC. (exhale, it will be ok) Some I downloaded, others were just there. I’ve moved to a Mac (so now maybe we can be friends) but the fonts are limited on here. So where would you suggest I find some good fonts. Thanks!
January 26th, 2009 at 11:53 am
http://www.dafont.com is a good place to get trendy free fonts. If you’re looking for classics or more long-standing “Standards” then go to http://www.veer.com, http://www.fontshop.com, or http://www.myfonts.com. You’ll have to pay for them there, but they’re better quality. DaFont can be hit or miss, but that’s where I go most often for something fresh and quick. Good luck and welcome to the good (Mac) side!
January 26th, 2009 at 12:31 pm
Any font smaller than 12 enrages me!
January 26th, 2009 at 3:43 pm
OOPS!! My bad! These are my favs!
March 4th, 2009 at 9:51 am
Great call! Yes, these annoy me as well. I use none of them on my MAC!
March 9th, 2009 at 10:36 am
http://www.bancomicsans.com
May 30th, 2009 at 10:48 am
nice short list. i would have to add freestyle script and mistral to my list.