How eleven students (of HEAD Geneva) created a type specimen book in 5 days, featuring 200+ libre and open source fonts.
View on Vimeo: https://vimeo.com/68202369
1. a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z
designing
a*libre*font*
specimen*book
Manuel Schmalstieg
greyscalepress.com
Libre Graphics Meeting
April 12 2013
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 ( ; : ? ! $ ¢ £ ¥ & * ) { ö ü å ø ç }
2. a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 ( ; : ? ! $ ¢ £ ¥ & * ) { ö ü å ø ç }
3. a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z
designing
a*libre*font*
specimen*book
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 ( ; : ? ! $ ¢ £ ¥ & * ) { ö ü å ø ç }
4. a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z
specimen
books?
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 ( ; : ? ! $ ¢ £ ¥ & * ) { ö ü å ø ç }
5. a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 ( ; : ? ! $ ¢ £ ¥ & * ) { ö ü å ø ç }
6. a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 ( ; : ? ! $ ¢ £ ¥ & * ) { ö ü å ø ç }
7. a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 ( ; : ? ! $ ¢ £ ¥ & * ) { ö ü å ø ç }
8. a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 ( ; : ? ! $ ¢ £ ¥ & * ) { ö ü å ø ç }
9. a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 ( ; : ? ! $ ¢ £ ¥ & * ) { ö ü å ø ç }
10. a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 ( ; : ? ! $ ¢ £ ¥ & * ) { ö ü å ø ç }
11. a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 ( ; : ? ! $ ¢ £ ¥ & * ) { ö ü å ø ç }
12. a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 ( ; : ? ! $ ¢ £ ¥ & * ) { ö ü å ø ç }
13. a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 ( ; : ? ! $ ¢ £ ¥ & * ) { ö ü å ø ç }
14. a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z
(+) many fonts
(-) too little space
(-) boilerplate text
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 ( ; : ? ! $ ¢ £ ¥ & * ) { ö ü å ø ç }
15. a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 ( ; : ? ! $ ¢ £ ¥ & * ) { ö ü å ø ç }
16. a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 ( ; : ? ! $ ¢ £ ¥ & * ) { ö ü å ø ç }
17. a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 ( ; : ? ! $ ¢ £ ¥ & * ) { ö ü å ø ç }
18. a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 ( ; : ? ! $ ¢ £ ¥ & * ) { ö ü å ø ç }
19. a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 ( ; : ? ! $ ¢ £ ¥ & * ) { ö ü å ø ç }
20. a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 ( ; : ? ! $ ¢ £ ¥ & * ) { ö ü å ø ç }
21. a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z
(+) lots of space
(+) LARGE TYPE
(-) few examples at
paragraph size
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 ( ; : ? ! $ ¢ £ ¥ & * ) { ö ü å ø ç }
22. a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z
what we have:
* great libre fonts
* print on demand
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 ( ; : ? ! $ ¢ £ ¥ & * ) { ö ü å ø ç }
23. a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z
do it!
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 ( ; : ? ! $ ¢ £ ¥ & * ) { ö ü å ø ç }
24.
25. a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z
feb. 18-22 2013:
* first implementation
at HEAD Geneva
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 ( ; : ? ! $ ¢ £ ¥ & * ) { ö ü å ø ç }
26. a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 ( ; : ? ! $ ¢ £ ¥ & * ) { ö ü å ø ç }
27. a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z
rules:
* use libre fonts
* focus: body text
* make an open book
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 ( ; : ? ! $ ¢ £ ¥ & * ) { ö ü å ø ç }
28. a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z
searching
for a
layout
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 ( ; : ? ! $ ¢ £ ¥ & * ) { ö ü å ø ç }
29. a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 ( ; : ? ! $ ¢ £ ¥ & * ) { ö ü å ø ç }
30.
31.
32.
33.
34.
35.
36.
37. a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z
searching
for a
source text
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 ( ; : ? ! $ ¢ £ ¥ & * ) { ö ü å ø ç }
38. a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 ( ; : ? ! $ ¢ £ ¥ & * ) { ö ü å ø ç }
39. a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 ( ; : ? ! $ ¢ £ ¥ & * ) { ö ü å ø ç }
40. a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 ( ; : ? ! $ ¢ £ ¥ & * ) { ö ü å ø ç }
41. a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 ( ; : ? ! $ ¢ £ ¥ & * ) { ö ü å ø ç }
42. a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z
«Dialogues
françois
pour jeunes
enfants»
Christophe
Plantin
(1567)
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 ( ; : ? ! $ ¢ £ ¥ & * ) { ö ü å ø ç }
43. a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z
find:
* a real text
* in the public domain
* in french
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 ( ; : ? ! $ ¢ £ ¥ & * ) { ö ü å ø ç }
44. a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z
l’ève
future
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 ( ; : ? ! $ ¢ £ ¥ & * ) { ö ü å ø ç }
45. a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z
l’ève
future
(1886)
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 ( ; : ? ! $ ¢ £ ¥ & * ) { ö ü å ø ç }
46. a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z
Auguste de
Villiers de
L'Isle-Adam
(1838-1889)
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 ( ; : ? ! $ ¢ £ ¥ & * ) { ö ü å ø ç }
47. a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z
Thomas
Alva
Edison
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 ( ; : ? ! $ ¢ £ ¥ & * ) { ö ü å ø ç }
48. a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 ( ; : ? ! $ ¢ £ ¥ & * ) { ö ü å ø ç }
49. a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 ( ; : ? ! $ ¢ £ ¥ & * ) { ö ü å ø ç }
50. a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z
published: 1886
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 ( ; : ? ! $ ¢ £ ¥ & * ) { ö ü å ø ç }
51. a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z
published: 1886
author †: 1889
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 ( ; : ? ! $ ¢ £ ¥ & * ) { ö ü å ø ç }
52. a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z
published: 1886
author †: 1889
public domain: √
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 ( ; : ? ! $ ¢ £ ¥ & * ) { ö ü å ø ç }
53. a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 ( ; : ? ! $ ¢ £ ¥ & * ) { ö ü å ø ç }
54. a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z
word count:
85’388
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 ( ; : ? ! $ ¢ £ ¥ & * ) { ö ü å ø ç }
55. a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z
word count:
85’388
/12
= 7115 words/pers.
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 ( ; : ? ! $ ¢ £ ¥ & * ) { ö ü å ø ç }
56. a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z
at 500 words /
specimen
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 ( ; : ? ! $ ¢ £ ¥ & * ) { ö ü å ø ç }
57. a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z
at 500 words /
specimen
= 15 specimens p.
person
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 ( ; : ? ! $ ¢ £ ¥ & * ) { ö ü å ø ç }
58. a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z
doable!
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 ( ; : ? ! $ ¢ £ ¥ & * ) { ö ü å ø ç }
59. a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 ( ; : ? ! $ ¢ £ ¥ & * ) { ö ü å ø ç }
60. a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 ( ; : ? ! $ ¢ £ ¥ & * ) { ö ü å ø ç }
61. a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 ( ; : ? ! $ ¢ £ ¥ & * ) { ö ü å ø ç }
62. a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 ( ; : ? ! $ ¢ £ ¥ & * ) { ö ü å ø ç }
63. a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 ( ; : ? ! $ ¢ £ ¥ & * ) { ö ü å ø ç }
64. a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 ( ; : ? ! $ ¢ £ ¥ & * ) { ö ü å ø ç }
65. a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 ( ; : ? ! $ ¢ £ ¥ & * ) { ö ü å ø ç }
66. a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 ( ; : ? ! $ ¢ £ ¥ & * ) { ö ü å ø ç }
67. a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 ( ; : ? ! $ ¢ £ ¥ & * ) { ö ü å ø ç }
68. a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z
* * *
what
worked
* * *
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 ( ; : ? ! $ ¢ £ ¥ & * ) { ö ü å ø ç }
69. a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z
* we did the book
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 ( ; : ? ! $ ¢ £ ¥ & * ) { ö ü å ø ç }
70. a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 ( ; : ? ! $ ¢ £ ¥ & * ) { ö ü å ø ç }
71. a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 ( ; : ? ! $ ¢ £ ¥ & * ) { ö ü å ø ç }
72. a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 ( ; : ? ! $ ¢ £ ¥ & * ) { ö ü å ø ç }
73. a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 ( ; : ? ! $ ¢ £ ¥ & * ) { ö ü å ø ç }
74. a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 ( ; : ? ! $ ¢ £ ¥ & * ) { ö ü å ø ç }
75. a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z
* we shared the
sources
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 ( ; : ? ! $ ¢ £ ¥ & * ) { ö ü å ø ç }
76.
77.
78. a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z
* direct
communication
with type
designers
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 ( ; : ? ! $ ¢ £ ¥ & * ) { ö ü å ø ç }
79.
80. a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z
* engaged the
school into
a debate on
open licencing
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 ( ; : ? ! $ ¢ £ ¥ & * ) { ö ü å ø ç }
81. a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z
* * *
what
didn’t
work
* * *
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 ( ; : ? ! $ ¢ £ ¥ & * ) { ö ü å ø ç }
82. a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z
* proprietary
workflow and
file format
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 ( ; : ? ! $ ¢ £ ¥ & * ) { ö ü å ø ç }
83. a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z
wrong assumption:
* we can switch
tools along the way
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 ( ; : ? ! $ ¢ £ ¥ & * ) { ö ü å ø ç }
84. a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z
actually:
* it won’t happen
* time pressure
will cause lock-in
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 ( ; : ? ! $ ¢ £ ¥ & * ) { ö ü å ø ç }
85. a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z
lesson:
* define tools and
workflow from
day one !!
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 ( ; : ? ! $ ¢ £ ¥ & * ) { ö ü å ø ç }
86. a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 ( ; : ? ! $ ¢ £ ¥ & * ) { ö ü å ø ç }
87. a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z
* * *
conclusions
* * *
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 ( ; : ? ! $ ¢ £ ¥ & * ) { ö ü å ø ç }
88. a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z
* get the book
* replicate
* improve
* collaborate
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 ( ; : ? ! $ ¢ £ ¥ & * ) { ö ü å ø ç }
89. a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z
to-do:
*new iterations
*more languages
*different focus
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 ( ; : ? ! $ ¢ £ ¥ & * ) { ö ü å ø ç }
90. a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z
¡ muchas
gracias !
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 ( ; : ? ! $ ¢ £ ¥ & * ) { ö ü å ø ç }