45 ms·
Get the Font
- deleted 8y ago[deleted]
- Epskampie 8y agoTried it with montserrat (open free font). It gave me “something went wrong!” error.
- pinewurst 8y agoLooks like one just has to retry when that happens. It took me three tries but it did come back with a pointer to that font.
- dvh 8y agoGet the proper hosting
- dang 8y agoPlease don't be a jerk in HN comments.
- dorianm 8y ago"Server internal error" from the API on any search request, even when retrying
- hkai 8y agoIt worked for me. So does it basically search GitHub for the font and gives you a GitHub link?
- system2 8y agoSuggestions would be helpful. Some fonts are really hard to type.
- deltron3030 8y agoAnother trick is to append a typeface- before the font name when searching NPM, e.g. here: https://npms.io https://npms.io The creator of the Gatsby static site generator has a "typeface.js" repo where he uploads and prepares free Google and Fontsquirrel fonts for NPM, including the css. It makes the self hosting of fonts really easy if you use webpack. https://github.com/KyleAMathews/typefaces https://github.com/KyleAMathews/typefaces
- amenghra 8y agohttps://fonts.google.com/ https://fonts.google.com/ lets you search fonts, see a preview and then download a zip file (or get a link if you don't want/need to host the font).
- tofof 8y agoTried it on the most recent font I've needed, DilleniaUPC (the font used by youtuber SovietWomble, if anyone's familiar). Not only did it not recognize my initial misspelling (DilenniaUPC), it doesn't find anything for .ttf of that font. Admittedly, DillenniaUPC is a Microsoft font included on windows 2000/XP/Vista/7/8, not legally available for download elsewhere. Practically, there are many locations offering this font for download. In either case, recognizing the font name and reporting the unavailability of free download for this font would be far superior to the "Nothing found, sorry!" result. As is, it's unclear why I should ever choose this tool over typing the name of the font and the desired extension into google.
- _RPM 8y agoAnd what great enthusiasm with the “!” they have
- tobr 8y agoWhat is this, accidental pirating?
- 2bitencryption 8y ago"Please only download fonts for which you have the rights." Doesn't really seem like "safe harbor" to me if the host is the one who curated the selection of downloads...
- zhte415 8y agoDoesn't seem curated, seems like Github was scanned for any file ending in .otf .ttf .woff .woff2 .eot and the link's directly to that Github hosted file. Overall this doesn't sound like great news for someone that decided they'd distribute a fee-able font on Github without realising it. Helvetica on old Mac, or Calibri on Windows, for example.
- tptacek 8y agoSo this is basically a search engine for font piracy? There are already good databases for free fonts.
- chris_wot 8y agoYou are looking at this the wrong way. This is a great way of locating font pirates.
- vtesucks 8y agoIs there a crash course in typography I can get somewhere? I have trouble deciding whether slim fonts are better or wide fonts are for legibility. And what other factors matter more.
- grzm 8y agohttps://practicaltypography.com https://practicaltypography.com > "I have trouble deciding whether slim fonts are better or wide fonts are for legibility." There are quite a few additional aspects you need to consider with respect to legibility as well, including size, use (such as for body text or headlines), and media (e.g., web versus print).
- aasasd 8y agoI recommend http://practicaltypography.com http://practicaltypography.com, though it won't answer your question (iirc). By ‘slim’ fonts, do you mean lighter lines? If so, afaik it's not a matter of prescriptive typography, and in addition, heaviness may vary with the font. For headings and short inscriptions, light fonts are alright (personally I often outright prefer them for headings), but for body text, you should check legibility of the chosen font on non-hidpi displays, and preferably ask someone with older and more tired eyes—as light fonts tend to cause strain for people with worse eyesight. Generally, of course, the ‘regular’ weight is the recommended one, since it's tailored for setting main text in the first place. The current fashion of using light fonts is brought about by graphic designers, not typesetters. If you mean condensed fonts instead, those are only suited for short runs of text, since the lines become too dense.
- vtesucks 8y agoI mean slender, less width. The latter. I saw that in the Mozilla post about goodbye edgehtml, the headline was in wide font.
- aasasd 8y agoAh, it seems Zilla Slab is indeed rather wide, though not as spaced-apart as e.g. Verdana, partly due to the slabs (which are an idiosyncratic choice for body text). In my experience, wide fonts such as Verdana can be tiring in long texts, as the eye has to move more to consume the same words. However, in the case of Zilla, the letters are still close together, so overall the font is barely wider than more traditional serif ones. Note that it's also very well kerned and there are no irregularities in the type. So, the challenge would be to find a wide font that doesn't put letters too far apart and has good kerning. (Zilla itself is free, btw, like other Mozilla fonts, but again slabs are peculiar―it might remind too much of Mozilla sites if used in headings, but may be ok in body text.) On the other side of the scale, narrower fonts are also ok until a certain point, where they become too dense and are suited only for short inscriptions. Basically, there's an optimal width, and that's what most fonts use. Large deviations are risky, and you need to make sure that the chosen font works well in other aspects―'blackness' and kerning―or the reading experience will begin to fall apart. Note that headings are very forgiving in regard to font experimentation, compared to body text―as the reader will glance over them pretty briefly.
- leowoo91 8y agoWhy is it suggesting names in my contact list when I start typing?
- function_seven 8y agoI’m guessing the field name matches something your browser interprets as autofill-able? Like <input name="fname">?
- leowoo91 8y agoI checked the input field, it doesnt even have a name, my browser is Safari :/
- shadowfacts 8y agoMaybe it checks the placeholder for 'name'
- function_seven 8y agoI don’t have dev tools on mobile, so it was a guess. iOS Safari also prompts for autofill on that page. I think sibling comment is right. The placeholder has “name” in it.
- henning 8y agoTypefaces are an incredibly labor-intensive product to produce. The more complete it is with respect to specialized features like ligatures, old-style figures, international lettering, weight variations, display-sized variants, etc. etc. the more this compounds upon itself. Just think about that before you use this to download Gotham/Proxima Nova/whatever cool font you want to use but don't feel like paying for.
- usaphp 8y agoThe problem is licensing, the prices for licensing is just absurd. Like to get a font to use in your app, you need to pay $5,000+ for any decent looking font. And if you are trying to design something - good luck downloading a font for a desktop to try it out. I am sure this system can be improved to benefit both font authors and font users
- inferiorhuman 8y agoIf you don't like the price feel free to create your own. There are some excellent open source tools available for font creation and manipulation like FontForge. There are also some excellent open source fonts that you can use as a workflow guide. Fonts have historically been expensive because each variant is a significant amount of work, and folks often want ALL THE VARIANTS. You're looking at years for a single variant, and a single family of fonts may be someone's life work. Yes it's non-trivial to create an italic version of a font. Kerning each weight... want fonts optimized for a given size (opticals)? That's a ton more work there too. Of course it costs money. Don't except that a license to redistribute that for a pittance — there's a big difference between a license to create documents that will use a subset of the font and embedding a whole font that your customers could then use for any purpose they see fit essentially bypassing any sort of income. Although I'd argue you'd be best off using system fonts in the vast majority of use cases lest you come off looking like that guy who uses Comic Sans everywhere. That said, while legacy companies have been (and still are) reluctant to embrace newer technology, some are better than others. Most foundaries will let you preview fonts online and offer a wide array of samples to view. Typekit was a great resource where you could license fonts for web use. Of course Adobe bought and mangled the ever living hell out of them. In terms of foundaries, FontShop has been at the forefront of embracing technology (including all the cool things you can do with OpenType) and typically licenses for their excellent FontFont family of fonts are very reasonable. Monotype bought FontShop a few years back so we'll see how long that lasts though. My take on it is that if I'm using something to make money I should pay for it. When I setup my letterhead and business cards I ended up buying licenses for the font variants at around $30-$40 per. It adds up, but it also gets you thinking about whether or not you really need the bold, condensed, italic variant or not. Look -- I had a conversation last night with a friend of mine about the new Nikon mirrorless system. He was a pro photographer for a while. His comments? People don't buy photographs anymore so there's no sense in him investing in a new system. He let the lease run out on the studio this year and bought a boat instead. Here's the key difference between a photographer and a typographer: one finished photo may be the result of a few days or weeks of work[1], one font is going to be an order of magnitude more work. 1: Yes there are ALWAYS exceptions and outliers -- e.g. for the stuff I shoot I spend maybe a few hours in post per shot at the very most and that's pretty extreme for me.
- perchard 8y agoThis is enabling the piracy of typefaces. It takes significant skill and time to create a typeface, and creators should be paid for their work. Instead of pirating typefaces, please see: https://fontstand.com/ https://fontstand.com/ https://fonts.adobe.com/ https://fonts.adobe.com/ https://typographica.org/on-typography/my-favorite-font-sources-a-shortlist-of-trusted-foundries-and-retailers/ https://typographica.org/on-typography/my-favorite-font-sour... Many foundries also offer trial versions of their typefaces. For example: https://www.grillitype.com/free_trials https://www.grillitype.com/free_trials If you don't want to pay for a typeface, there are many very good open source options available. For example: https://github.com/IBM/plex https://github.com/IBM/plex http://www.latofonts.com/lato-free-fonts/ http://www.latofonts.com/lato-free-fonts/
- jaxn 8y agoI agree with you, and, it's the people who checked licensed fonts into open source repositories who are really enabling piracy. I am surprised that font foundries aren't already requesting take downs.
- cmroanirgo 8y agoThere's also google's rather excellent Noto font (available in all languages!) https://www.google.com/get/noto/ https://www.google.com/get/noto/ https://github.com/googlei18n/noto-fonts https://github.com/googlei18n/noto-fonts https://github.com/googlei18n/noto-cjk https://github.com/googlei18n/noto-cjk
- Fnoord 8y agoA search engine doesn't enable piracy, it is the inherent property of data that allows it to be copied easily and cheap (zero marginal cost). All a search engine or the Internet does is making it slightly more convenient. But they are just the messenger, the tool. The underlying problem is the property of data. Instead, what those who make a typeface should do is raise a fund after which they set their font free. Pretty much the same way open source fonts are created, but if you don't work for a company you can even found your own and/or use platforms such as Kickstarter or IndieGogo. That typeface authors are unable to adapt to how easily data is distributed (in 2018, no less) isn't my problem. Nor is it the problem of Get The Font or Google.
- Fnoord 8y agoTip: Search for Powerline. It'll get you fonts which work amazingly well with Powerline.
- mrhappyunhappy 8y agoAs a UX UI designer I often download premium typefaces to use on my machine. If I like how things look I may recommend the type to my clients. If I had to pay to every typefaces before I recommend it, I would never do it. In essence, my so called "pirating" is making type designers money. Has it ever occured to anyone that by allowing designers to download premium typefaces, they are making themselves MORE money? Would you rather make a few hundred bucks from me or thousands of dollars from my clients? I mean, it's not like it hard to find a zip file of all the premium typefaces via torrent or one of the many sharing sites, what makes you think getting them from GitHub is such a terrible thing?
- Veen 8y ago> Would you rather make a few hundred bucks from me or thousands of dollars from my clients? They'd rather make many hundreds of thousands of dollars from enterprise font users. The business is not really designed to be convenient to smaller companies.
- kevintb 8y agoGreat site!
- hrbf 8y agoIndeed a great way to find accidentally pirated fonts. Here’s to the countdown of type foundries sending mass takedown requests to GitHub.