Legibility is based on the ease with which one letter can be told from the other.

Readability is the ease with which the eye can absorb the message and move along the line.

J. Ben Lieberman Types of Typefaces

Legibility
a measure of how easy it is to distinguish one letter from another in a given typeface. Legibility describes the design of a typeface. How legible a typeface is designed to be depends on its purpose. Legible typefaces usually have larger closed or open inner spaces (counters). They generally have a larger x-height, though not too large.

Readability
how easy words, phrases, and blocks of text can be read. Readability describes how a typeface is used on the page. Good typography (more readable) encourages a desire to read the copy and reduces the effort required to read and comprehend the type. The reader shouldnt even notice the type. She should simply understand the words.

Individual shapes of letterforms have developed to improve communication process Yet, the basic structure of each letterform must remain the same

Letters can be clustered into four groups

Letterforms with strokes that are vertical,

Letterforms with strokes that are curved,

il

Letterforms with strokes that are a combination of vertical and curved,

acegos

Letterforms with strokes that are oblique

bdfhjmnpqrtu kvwxyz

 The

upper halves of letters provide more visual cues for letter recognition than the lower halves

KOMUNIKASI

PUBLISHING

KOMUNIKASI

PUBLISHING

halves of letters are more recognizable than the left halves

Right

birth clever

birth clever

(letter) has no particular significance until it is employed to form part of a word.

Two important factors in reading process: 1. word shape 2. internal pattern

TEXT SET IN CAPITAL LETTERS SUFFERS A LOSS OF LEGIBILITY, SEVERELY RETARD READING AND USES A SIGNIFICANTLY GREATER AMOUNT OF SPACE. AS MUCH 35 PERCENT MORE SPACE CAN BE CONSUMED WHEN USING ALL CAPITAL LETTERS.

Text set in capital letters suffers a loss of legibility, severely retard reading and uses a significantly greater amount of space. As much 35 percent more space can be consumed when using all capital letters.

Letterform spacing has a significant impact on legibility Needs proper spatial relationships from letters into words, words into lines The spacing of letters, words and lines contribute to typographic texture When texture and spatial relationships between typographic elements are consistent, it create an easily readable text.

As you read this sentence, notice that the

Too much or too little space between letters and words destroys the normal texture intended by the typeface designer.

narrow letter and wordspacing causes words to merge together visually. Likewise, the extremely wide letterspacing of this sentence is also disruptive for the reader.

The combination of these three variables is crucial to spatial harmony and legibility No generalization for which sizes of type should be used, how long lines should be or how much space should be inserted between lines decision based on comparative judgments. Type size: too small or too large reduces legibility. Most legible (normal reading distance: 9 to 12 point).

Line length: an appropriate one must be able to achieve a pleasant reading rhythm, allow reader to relax and concentrate on the content of the words. Interline spacing (leading): proper one will carry the eye naturally from one line to the next; one to four points can be effectively added between lines to increase legibility 9/10, 10/12, 11/14, and 12/16.

Thickness of the strokes of typefaces Too light or too heavy strokes can diminish legibility too light typeface cannot be easily distinguished from background while too heavy has a tendency to lose its internal pattern of counterforms. Use weight to certain emphasize certain typographic elements e.g. titles, headlines and subheads.

Extreme thick and thin strokes within letters of a particular typeface make reading more difficult, preventing smooth transitions from one word or group of words to the next. Thin strokes are less visible, creating confusion with letters of similar shapes. Legibility than decreases significantly.

The width of letters is also an important legibility factor

Condensed typeface might be selected for a narrow page or column. It is, however, more difficult to read using condensed typeface. A narrower letter changes the form/counterform causing letters to

 An

extreme italic slant can slow the reading process and is disliked by many readers. Italics can impede reading. However, italic type can be very effective when used as a means of providing emphasis.

Incorporating colour into type can significantly affect legibility Achieve appropriate contrast between type and its background Consider 3 basic colour properties:
1. Hue colour tone 2. Value the lightness or darkness of a colour 3. Saturation relative brightness of a colour.

Poor combinations that can produce minimal visibility and legibility

Justified typography more family and considered to be more refined

Unjustified typography (flush left and ragged right) promotes greater legibility where it guides the eye smoothly down the page from line to line.
Whereas all lines length. visual promote in justified, are of equal Lacking are cues that easy reading.

Common practice in book, magazine and newspaper designs: to indent each paragraph clear separation of paragraphs in a body of text to clarify content and increase reader comprehension. Typographic practice: not to indent the first paragraph in an article, chapter. Moderate indention: one to three ems.

Serif VS Sans Serif

Serifs are used to increase spacing between letters Spacing is even easier to manipulate with modern computerised typesetting equipment (Sassoon, 1993; Rubinstein, 1988 ).

Serifs are used to increase contrast between different letters to improve identification Well established research has shown that whole words can be recognised just as quickly as letters during an eye fixation and that single letters can be identified quicker when embedded in a word (Reynolds, 1979).

Serifs are used to bind characters into cohesive 'word wholes' The simple Gestalt created by spaces between words would be enough to bind letters into 'wholes'. Furthermore, other features such as character ascenders and descenders should have a much greater effect on word recognition than serifs ( Poulton, 1965 ).

Readers prefer body text set in serif typefaces, so they must be more legible Many studies conducted in the past did indeed find a preference for serif typefaces ( Tinker, 1963 ; Zachrisson, 1965 ).

Serifs are used for body text because sans serif causes fatigue It is often claimed that reading large amounts of body text set in sans serif causes fatigue (Reynolds 1979).

Serifs are just an historical artifact

Serifs

have been around for so long that perceived legibility is very likely to have been affected by familiarity - readers tend to rate as more legible the typefaces they are most used to (Tinker, 1963 ; Zachrisson, 1965 ).

Sans serif is better at small sizes. Sans serif fonts survive reproduction and smearing because of their simple forms. Other factors such as stroke thickness, counter size and x-height are likely to have a far greater effect in preserving the overall identity of a letter form whether it be through smearing or size reduction (Poulton, 1972 ; Reynolds, 1979).

Sans serif is better for children learning to read Books produced for children are often printed with sans serif text as teachers claim that the simplicity of the letter shapes makes them more recognisable (Coghill, 1980) , Walker, 2001).