Tip-Top Typography For All

If you’ve used the Internet in the past, like, three years, you’ve probably noticed something: Fonts are looking good these days. Custom web typography is huge, and it’s a trend that’s here to stay. Here’s why.

• It’s insanely easy to implement. Plenty of free services can help you get beautiful fonts up and running on your site. Typekit and Google Web Fonts are great online apps. You can also use CSS3’s @font-face query, which lets you upload custom fonts to your site’s server. Even visitors who don’t have the font installed will be able to view the font in all of its typographic glory.
• It doesn’t limit designers’ creativity. Quite the contrary. Advanced typography multiplies what web designers can do. For us at Atomic, it allows us to create more beautiful websites, and better represent our clients’ brands.
• It’ll only get better with time. Back in the day (you know, 2008), if you wanted to use a special font, you had to apply a Flash plugin. But Flash is no good on mobile devices, and now there are easier ways to flaunt your fonts. Plus, font libraries will continue to grow, and fonts themselves will become more standardized. As a designer, that’s a lot to look forward to.

But there’s a catch: even as gadgets and programming languages surge ahead, advanced fonts can still mess with layout on older browsers. That’s where responsive web design comes in. Programs like Modernizr can sniff out compatibility issues, and input queries to tell a site to switch the font based on screen size, browser version, and so on.

Custom typography is making the web more beautiful. And it can really add value to your site. It’ll set you apart from the rest—and look awesome while doing it.

Still stuck in a Times New Roman time warp? Contact Atomic and we’ll get you up to speed.