4 ms·

> I chose the lozenge as the command character because a) it appears in almost every font, b) it’s barely used in ordinary typesetting, c) it’s not used in any

> I chose the lozenge as the command character because a) it appears in almost every font, b) it’s barely used in ordinary typesetting, c) it’s not used in any programming language that I know of, and d) its shape and color allow it to stand out easily in code without being distracting. > If you’re using DrRacket, you can use the Insert Command Char button at the top of the editing window to — you guessed it — insert the command character. > If you’re using a different editor, here’s how you type it: > Mac: Option + Shift + V > Windows: holding down Alt, type 9674 on the num pad > GNU/Linux, BSD: Type Ctrl + Shift + U, then 25CA, then Enter > For more information on entering arbitrary Unicode glyphs, see Wikipedia. Jesus Christ that's a terrible design.

wodenokoto 9y ago
He also advocate not using underline to denote links. In his practical typography book he practically hides all hyperlinks. I also find his redesigns of documentation pages uninviting to read. I find Butterick to be a passionate, opinionated, hard working, but ultimately a poor designer.
- paulriddle 9y ago
  I agree. His book Practical Typography is very hard on the eyes, even looking at the text is uncomfortable. I think he fell into a trap of overdoing things. Like some people when they learn about what you can do with javascript and css add all sorts of annoying visual effects with no unified theme to the whole. They just enter some sort of trance and keep adding.
  - deleted 9y ago
    [deleted]
- munificent 9y ago
  > He also advocate not using underline to denote links. >In his practical typography book he practically hides all hyperlinks. I think that's a fine, defensible stylistic choice. When reading a paragraph of prose, I find it INTERRUPTS MY FLOW if there is a jarring style change in the middle of a sentence, as in this one. The visual style of a hyperlink is only relevant to the point that you know the hyperlink is there and can find it when you want to click on it. Most of the time, that's not a goal, so you want it to fade into the background unless the user has indicated that is their goal. So my preferred style for hyperlinks in prose is a color that's right at the just-noticeable difference [1] relative the normal text. When you mouse over the paragraph, which indicates you are intending to click, the contrast increases. [1]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Just-noticeable_difference https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Just-noticeable_difference
  - vanderZwan 9y ago
    > When you mouse over the paragraph, which indicates you are intending to click, the contrast increases. What would you suggest in the case of touchscreens? Increased contrast while scrolling with a slow fade-out afterwards?
    - munificent 9y ago
      Ooh, that's a great question. I haven't thought about that (though I do generally try to make my designs responsive and mobile-friendly). I like your idea of a slow fade after scroll.
      - arantius 9y ago
        > I like your idea of a slow fade after scroll. Things blinking/fading/shifting/changing when I'm taking completely unrelated actions (or, worse, all on their own) is one of the most unreadable/unusable design decisions I regularly face. It's a good way to get me to close a tab, regardless of any other factors.
  - dspillett 9y ago
    > hyperlinks in prose is a color that's right at the just-noticeable difference The problem with trying to achieve JND for online publishing formats is that you have to account for variable monitor settings and lighting conditions. What stands out on my monitors at home might be barely noticeable on the crap displays at the office or my laptop under some lighting conditions or when I have it set to low power. On top of technological differences, you also need to contend with variances in people's eye-sight. Underlining is far simpler and more reliable. Perhaps highlighting with an underline as the link is drawn or scrolls into view, and fading the underline out soon after, to be drawn again if the pointer hovers over the paragraph or the page scrolls, would work?
yorwba 9y ago
GNU/Linux, (freebsd?) with https://fcitx-im.org https://fcitx-im.org : Type Ctrl+Shift+Alt+U, Begin typing "lozenge", select the character with Alt-2 after "loz". ◊ Same for "black lozenge" ⧫, "rightwards two-headed triple dash arrow" ⤐, "islamic ligature bismillah ar-rahman ar-raheem" ﷽. Unicode input can be easy if you have an input method with fuzzy search and aliases (e.g. "up tack" ⊥ shows up when you search for "bottom")
Semiapies 9y ago
It's perfectly fine if and only if you're on a Mac. It gets bad on every other platform.
- jacobolus 9y ago
  If you actually need to use this seriously there are ways of customizing keyboard layouts and text input on every platform and every reasonable text editor.
  - setr 9y ago
    You can also change the lozenge operator to a different character. Its just convenient to pick one you won't ever have to escape
    - Ygg2 9y ago
      That is until you find an obscure enough example that uses it.
      - IshKebab 9y ago
        I've never seen a vaguely popular programming language use ¬ and that is available on all keyboards (for some weird reason).
        pathsjs 9y ago
        It surely is not avaiable on mine. Maybe it's a local thing?
        yathern 9y ago
        I believe UK keyboards? I say this because when installing a new OS and it defaults to en-UK locale, some of my buttons on the right side of the keyboard do unexpected things (US here), and I always have to look up where exactly the single-quote button is. I believe sometimes that angle pops up.

wodenokoto 9y ago

He also advocate not using underline to denote links. In his practical typography book he practically hides all hyperlinks. I also find his redesigns of documentation pages uninviting to read. I find Butterick to be a passionate, opinionated, hard working, but ultimately a poor designer.

paulriddle 9y ago
I agree. His book Practical Typography is very hard on the eyes, even looking at the text is uncomfortable. I think he fell into a trap of overdoing things. Like some people when they learn about what you can do with javascript and css add all sorts of annoying visual effects with no unified theme to the whole. They just enter some sort of trance and keep adding.
- deleted 9y ago
  [deleted]
munificent 9y ago
> He also advocate not using underline to denote links. >In his practical typography book he practically hides all hyperlinks. I think that's a fine, defensible stylistic choice. When reading a paragraph of prose, I find it INTERRUPTS MY FLOW if there is a jarring style change in the middle of a sentence, as in this one. The visual style of a hyperlink is only relevant to the point that you know the hyperlink is there and can find it when you want to click on it. Most of the time, that's not a goal, so you want it to fade into the background unless the user has indicated that is their goal. So my preferred style for hyperlinks in prose is a color that's right at the just-noticeable difference [1] relative the normal text. When you mouse over the paragraph, which indicates you are intending to click, the contrast increases. [1]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Just-noticeable_difference https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Just-noticeable_difference
- vanderZwan 9y ago
  > When you mouse over the paragraph, which indicates you are intending to click, the contrast increases. What would you suggest in the case of touchscreens? Increased contrast while scrolling with a slow fade-out afterwards?
  - munificent 9y ago
    Ooh, that's a great question. I haven't thought about that (though I do generally try to make my designs responsive and mobile-friendly). I like your idea of a slow fade after scroll.
    - arantius 9y ago
      > I like your idea of a slow fade after scroll. Things blinking/fading/shifting/changing when I'm taking completely unrelated actions (or, worse, all on their own) is one of the most unreadable/unusable design decisions I regularly face. It's a good way to get me to close a tab, regardless of any other factors.
- dspillett 9y ago
  > hyperlinks in prose is a color that's right at the just-noticeable difference The problem with trying to achieve JND for online publishing formats is that you have to account for variable monitor settings and lighting conditions. What stands out on my monitors at home might be barely noticeable on the crap displays at the office or my laptop under some lighting conditions or when I have it set to low power. On top of technological differences, you also need to contend with variances in people's eye-sight. Underlining is far simpler and more reliable. Perhaps highlighting with an underline as the link is drawn or scrolls into view, and fading the underline out soon after, to be drawn again if the pointer hovers over the paragraph or the page scrolls, would work?

yorwba 9y ago

GNU/Linux, (freebsd?) with https://fcitx-im.org https://fcitx-im.org : Type Ctrl+Shift+Alt+U, Begin typing "lozenge", select the character with Alt-2 after "loz". ◊ Same for "black lozenge" ⧫, "rightwards two-headed triple dash arrow" ⤐, "islamic ligature bismillah ar-rahman ar-raheem" ﷽. Unicode input can be easy if you have an input method with fuzzy search and aliases (e.g. "up tack" ⊥ shows up when you search for "bottom")

Semiapies 9y ago

It's perfectly fine if and only if you're on a Mac. It gets bad on every other platform.

jacobolus 9y ago
If you actually need to use this seriously there are ways of customizing keyboard layouts and text input on every platform and every reasonable text editor.
- setr 9y ago
  You can also change the lozenge operator to a different character. Its just convenient to pick one you won't ever have to escape
  - Ygg2 9y ago
    That is until you find an obscure enough example that uses it.
    - IshKebab 9y ago
      I've never seen a vaguely popular programming language use ¬ and that is available on all keyboards (for some weird reason).
      - pathsjs 9y ago
        It surely is not avaiable on mine. Maybe it's a local thing?
        yathern 9y ago
        I believe UK keyboards? I say this because when installing a new OS and it defaults to en-UK locale, some of my buttons on the right side of the keyboard do unexpected things (US here), and I always have to look up where exactly the single-quote button is. I believe sometimes that angle pops up.