#goobyfont — Public Fediverse posts
Live and recent posts from across the Fediverse tagged #goobyfont, aggregated by home.social.
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The coursework flier on instagram, Gooby amongst my callmates work, i love Joke's Verruct and Jesse's Splenderific.
https://www.instagram.com/p/DXfKlY2FFHp/?img_index=12&igsh=dXIxOWIwNGZmdjVt -
My 2nd Bold Sketch is looking much better. The first sket h didn't make words 'stand-out as bold in a wall of text. So it felt more of a 500 weight in text than a 700 weight. I think thisone may be ready for design crit!
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My first bold sketch is not looking too bad.
Unfortunately, I found lots of 'messy' points while making the bold - so it is the Midwest of all versions. Still in Robofont, fir speed before last review office hours session on Wednesday. Then I'll have time to sort out the software.
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It's so easy to use my font on a personal computer, instead of a work managed desktop (Apple) or my Samsung Notebook which has gotten relegated to TV remote.
I'm putting together a before/after specimen sample for the course to add in an Instagram reel of everyone's efforts - some really nice work in the class.
It's fascinating using PowerPoint again. Very little UI has noticably changed in the 2 years since I left. I'm so glad they kept the ribbon.
Suggestion for a specimen profile typography / layout encouraged - point me to fabulous examples!
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I care about these looking similar - part of a system - while also easy to distinguish. Still some changes to make before I'm ready to draft a 700 weight
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My homework changes to glyphs passed review in class. I also got some great new advice to tackle the things that still irritate me (k K, R), and new advice about typical ways of doing things that I didn't know. It's good to know. A great last class.
My favourite quote from the last class was "the whole course has been worth it just for that g"
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Ended up doing my homework on the work supplied Apple again. I'm fond of the way the B & D have evolved. But the last comma update is perhaps a step too far
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4/n
From Instagram photo annotation typefaces. Interesting that they mix them with the storied æ in the more formal tyestyles.
#Goobyfont looking....
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3/n
I will try some other approaches - Aiming at maintaining original lowercase letters forms...
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2/n
I have no idea how the ligatures that use 'a' affect cognitively diverse readers in the languages that use them.
In my ignorance, I have considered them frippery, fun for designers and readers, that saves space and makes cheeky little design statements.
As a reading researcher, I suspect (untested) that they crowd the text and reduce legibility. They should probably be avoided in a typeface for people at the edges of the normal readership.
Tutor feedback on my course pointed out that my æ looked really bad in lowercase with a single storey a. I agree. I love the almost mirror-butterfly-esqueness of the normal æ. I can't let-go of consistently using the single-storey 'a' too easily.
Today I've made a couple of explorations, heres the best:
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After watching videos, seeing my tutor refine point positions on my lowercase s, I've spent most of Sunday tidying points. Changed letters in blue, dont look so different - but they are
#GoobyFont -
Changes this weekend for Wednesday's class. Mainly adding musical tones for Yoruba, changing some weights and making baseline flatter.
I enjoyed making the 'schwa', 'esh' and the 'integration' symbol.
It looks better with every change update. But still a long way to go.
#GoobyFont -
Close up of a photograoh of my screen showing gooby at '60' demonstrating light seepage, or haleation, which is the way I experience most fonts on large screens. Larger sizes feel more 'crisp' because the fuzz' doesn't merge them.
A test of readability might be the gradual degradation in comfort as a font reduces in size (design changes) or increases in fuzziness (simulate macro degeneration changes)
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4 more hours and uppercase, numerals are completd. V2.0 is ready to compile for the proofing template.
Then I'll catch the shared videos on point placement. I know, I did that in the wrong order....
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4hrs on Saturday to adjust circa 2 terminals per lowercase character, and I'm too close to really see the improvement. The z has changed, but I suspect its retained its monster status. I prefer the t and j. I suspect the class may lobby me to remove the tilt.
You'll notice I've added some 'gaps' to : d,e,g,p,q
Thos is in keeping with the 'open' hugs theme and shouldn't (but might) compromise low (fuzzy) vision users because the fuzzy will join up the gaps.
#goobyfont -
Another rule to guide my student behaviour. Proofs are delivered in light mode - white background dark text. The astute people amongst you will have noticed that I prefer dark mode. I suspect the mode that you review-in will influence the designs you make. I will switch between modes, working in Dark and showing proofs in light as requested.
I think this is a little of what it feels like to mask - when your comfortable, authentic self is not accepted because of some historically determined (paper is white, printing will be dark text on white) is taken to a place where it isn't needed - Gooby is for digital use, not printing, for the light sensitive.
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Robofont warns 'Complex curve' in low-luminance-contrast yellow text.
I feel like there should be SIRENS sounding & flashing lights.
It seems like design tools are set up to warn you of anything that might deviate from well trodden systems, emotionally blackmailing you into a continuous regression to the mode, at the expense of evolution. Also they reduce novice errors. Everyone's first typeface design should be Arial or Helvetica, by another name, with a subtle variation that only the designer knows.
Deviance is warned out of existence.
Of course I'm overreacting. Thats what I'm here for. The outrage at a complex curve.
Do you like my lowercase d?
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This will be a shift from V1 to V2. I'm considering starting from scratch and getting great point-placement applied when I do this. Just need to understand great point placement before I start editing.
Its possible that the easiest way to do this is to learn to program. Are there any tools that kw you draw visual templates and put them together like a jigsaw puzzle? This is essentially how I'm seeing the type design process process, tweaking things across characters using templates shapes, regions, curves.
#GoobyFont -
150 terminals checked and most of them will be changed to a system of 5 options. The overall impact keeps the intent and theme of the typeface intact - so I'm very happy. I suspect it will also look subtly, much higher quality. How to do this with minimal effort is beyond me, at the moment. Suggestions welcomed.
The Capitol G and lowercase q have unique terminals. The uppercase T top will be flat. I might introduce some gaps: A, H, B, D, P, R
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Sketching a restricted set of character terminals by picking the intended template, copy-paste and screen grab and overlaying to get a picture of what the whole thing will look like if I make these changes.
Maybe the next step is starting from scratch with a 'Version 2' and use these as the templates, being careful about point placement to be at widest part of the curve and maintain measurements precisely.
I'll be going to the couse office hours next week to talk strategy...
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The first photograph is my current lowercase with two tips (in green circles) identified for standardisation. The 2nd photograph shows the copy-paste of these tips onto my proof slide - to assess if this is the right direction before I start fiddling with points and measuring things in Robofont. It looks good to me.
I think I'll also apply the tail of the z to the bases of the x.
Someone mentioned 'components' in the class yesterday... I wonder how I make & use components.
Thats my thinking done. Phew. I'll leave it there to ferment overnight.
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Homework to be reviewed in a fortnight:
1) be more systematic with your terminals - too much variation.
2) use the measurement tool to ensure your line widths are systematic.
3) remove the eyes in the Capitol M W because they are too unique to those 2 characters.
(1) and (2) will take more than 2 weeks to fix and I'll get feedback on progress, which is a motivator to actually do it! I love being in a class.
My ideal retirement is to be a forever student on consecutive PhD courses, that produce public knowledge that gets used to do good things. I didn't enjoy my 1st doctorate as much as I will my next one.
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I've been reading academic research on 'letter flipping', apparently its part of the normal developmental process that children experience. There are studies that show it is not more prevalent in adults diagnosed with/without Dyslexia during reading. I haven't looked at writing. The other key thing Academics lean towards is that this is not a visual processing problem, its a cognitive processing that is heavily influenced by the auditory properties of the character pronunciations. Interesting. I'm playing with using letter flipping as something that an individual reader, writer, may spot more easily with distinctive character design, so I tried this:
#Goobyfont -
I just noticed Playfair Display uses x-height numerals. For display fonts, it creates a very elegant, subtle statement—perfect for subtle, text aligned page numbers or pricing.
Other serif designs use different techniques to avoid the "Ally/a11y" misreading, but given the context and cultural usage, it’s rarely a functional issue. I’m wondering, if, and how, to use this for variations in Gooby. 🎨✨
#goobyfont
#Typography #TypeDesign #PlayfairDisplay #VariableFonts #a11y #DesignThinking -
I just noticed Playfair Display uses x-height numerals. For display fonts, it creates a very elegant, subtle statement—perfect for subtle, text aligned page numbers or pricing.
Other serif designs use different techniques to avoid the "Ally/a11y" misreading, but given the context and cultural usage, it’s rarely a functional issue. I’m wondering, if, and how, to use this for variations in Gooby. 🎨✨
#goobyfont
#Typography #TypeDesign #PlayfairDisplay #VariableFonts #a11y #DesignThinking -
I just noticed Playfair Display uses x-height numerals. For display fonts, it creates a very elegant, subtle statement—perfect for subtle, text aligned page numbers or pricing.
Other serif designs use different techniques to avoid the "Ally/a11y" misreading, but given the context and cultural usage, it’s rarely a functional issue. I’m wondering, if, and how, to use this for variations in Gooby. 🎨✨
#goobyfont
#Typography #TypeDesign #PlayfairDisplay #VariableFonts #a11y #DesignThinking -
I just noticed Playfair Display uses x-height numerals. For display fonts, it creates a very elegant, subtle statement—perfect for subtle, text aligned page numbers or pricing.
Other serif designs use different techniques to avoid the "Ally/a11y" misreading, but given the context and cultural usage, it’s rarely a functional issue. I’m wondering, if, and how, to use this for variations in Gooby. 🎨✨
#goobyfont
#Typography #TypeDesign #PlayfairDisplay #VariableFonts #a11y #DesignThinking -
Updated my /k /K inspired by a typeface designed to support children learning to write non-cursive https://fonts.google.com/specimen/Playwrite+DE+Grund
Added a lang ij ligature inspired by a series of photos from @henk
#GoobyFont -
A few tweaks. Mainly
- taking the h and n second downstrokes to below the baseline
- shortening the e's tail
- cleaning up the points in these letters by (a) making sure they are placed at the extreme points, and (b) removing superfluous points. -
I think all the point suggestions and comments on widths and curve overlaps are the 'Glyph Nanny' Robofont extension. i like knowing what rules I'm breaking and having an expert companion point these out to me, so this extension is my favourite for a quality improvement review. Just me and Glyph Nanny now that my course has completed
#Goobyfont -
Decided to rename the font I'm working on from "Kawalambic" (original inspiration sources) to "Mushy" which represents the direction its evolving and my intentions for the variable weight axis
#GoobyFont -
Feedback from the course tutor on progress made my day. I'm beginning to dare to think that this might be publishable when complete, after several waves of tweaking. This version includes tweaks based on course tutors' feedback about improvements & why they will work. I love that power loaded feedback!
#GoobyFont