Editing 1015: Kerning
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| − | ==Explanation== | + | == Explanation == |
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| − | + | In typography, {{w|kerning}} refers to the spacing between consecutive letters in printed material or the process of adjusting said spacing. Examples of bad kerning include text that's almost unreadable: adding so much space between letters of one word that it appears to be two words. Or, there might be so little space between letters that you can't tell what those letters should be ("r" and "n" together might look like "m" or "A" and "V" might have their slanting sides overlap). Extreme examples of bad kerning can lead to humorous or inappropriate text. | |
Kerning has been an issue in typography since the early era of printing presses and movable type but has taken on new challenges with digital printing. Typical non-designers using basic word processing software don't pay much attention to kerning. A good graphic designer, however, can compensate for bad kerning by individually adjusting the spacing between problem letters. People who specialize in graphic design or layout (and, thus, who are exposed to digital text on a regular basis) can become hyper-sensitive to bad kerning, seeing it in signs or other printed materials prepared by people without such sensitivity to bad kerning. | Kerning has been an issue in typography since the early era of printing presses and movable type but has taken on new challenges with digital printing. Typical non-designers using basic word processing software don't pay much attention to kerning. A good graphic designer, however, can compensate for bad kerning by individually adjusting the spacing between problem letters. People who specialize in graphic design or layout (and, thus, who are exposed to digital text on a regular basis) can become hyper-sensitive to bad kerning, seeing it in signs or other printed materials prepared by people without such sensitivity to bad kerning. | ||
| − | In the comic, the kerning in the sign is badly done: the spacing between C and I (in "City") | + | In the comic, the kerning in the sign is badly done: the spacing between C and I (in "City") and between C and E (in "Offices") is inconsistent. The space between the C and E is almost as wide as the space between the words. One character is clearly frustrated while the other character doesn't notice the problem at all. |
| − | The comic explains that once a person learns what good kerning is, | + | The comic explains that once a person learns what good kerning is, he or she will get irritated by shoddy kerning in the future. Unfortunately, the comic itself has also taught us to be annoyed. <span style="letter-spacing: -1px;">Th<span style="letter-spacing: 1px;">a</span>nks, <span style="letter-spacing: 1.5px;">R</span>an<span style="letter-spacing: 1px;">da</span>ll.</span> |
| − | + | The title text is written by Randall explaining that as he was writing this comic about kerning, he was very self-conscious of his own handwriting. The act of thinking about kerning (and likely, the act of drawing an example of such bad kerning) made him aware of it in his own writing. | |
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| − | The title text is written by Randall explaining that as he was writing this comic about kerning, he was very self-conscious of his own handwriting. The act of thinking about kerning (and likely, the act of drawing an example of such bad kerning) made him aware of it in his own writing | ||
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== Transcript == | == Transcript == | ||
| − | :[There is a poorly-kerned sign on the side of a building. Two | + | :[There is a poorly-kerned sign on the side of a building labeled "CITY OFFICES". Two people are standing in front of it.] |
| − | : | + | :Person 1: ''Argh!'' |
| − | + | :Person 2: what? | |
| − | : | + | :If you really hate someone, teach them to recognize bad kerning. |
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| − | :If you really hate someone, teach | ||
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{{comic discussion}} | {{comic discussion}} | ||
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]] | [[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]] | ||
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