[IxDA Discuss] Arial vs Vernada?

[Michael Micheletti]

On Jan 7, 2008 8:43 AM, Benoît Meunier <meunier.benoit at gmail.com> wrote:

> - If Arial is smaller than Verdana, why do we use arial for the majority
> of
> web apps?
>

Hi Benoît,

Many websites have screen real-estate issues. Arial is a narrower font than
Verdana, so using Arial permits a greater number of characters in the same
area width at the same font size. Arial is also something of a habit for
many web developers so simple inertia carries it. Consider also Tahoma and
Geneva if you are searching for a readable sans-serif font.

One of the more challenging things to do in web typography is to trust your
eyes. There are so many opinions out there. When creating a site template or
stylesheet, try it out with several of the different browser fonts and see
which looks best. Ask others to evaluate which of two or three well-realized
choices they prefer.

This page is a good resource of which fonts are currently available on
common operating systems and browsers:
http://www.ampsoft.net/webdesign-l/WindowsMacFonts.html

Whichever font is prefered, be sure and use CSS callouts that include
secondary and default fonts. That will make sure that site visitors with
various operating systems see something agreeable. For instance:

p.lovely {font: normal 1em Tahoma, Geneva, sans-serif;}

I hope this is helpful. All the best,

Michael Micheletti