4 ms·

So... automatic bad kerning? (I try to avoid cheap low-brow dismissals here, I know it's lame, but the word "kern" isn't on the page, nor in these comments as

So... automatic bad kerning? (I try to avoid cheap low-brow dismissals here, I know it's lame, but the word "kern" isn't on the page, nor in these comments as I write this, so somebody was going to say it first, and today I guess it had to be me.) Seriously though, it seems to me like your thin text is too far apart and the thick text too close, no?

leephillips 6y ago
Of course. This is an obvious tradeoff. For just this reason, I don’t think these typefaces are ideal for regular text, but can be an improvement for labels, buttons, numbers in tables, etc.
- jfk13 6y ago
  Alternatively, choose UI design ideas that don't involve changing the font weight on hover. What's wrong with changing the colour and/or background instead? Or (for an element like a button) give the element a fixed width that is sufficient for either weight of the text. Sometimes, if a design idea turns out to cause problems, maybe it's time to reconsider the design.
  - carlmr 6y ago
    >What's wrong with changing the colour and/or background instead? As mentioned in the article, accessibility for the color blind. Which are a sizeable percentage of the population. Color should always only be one of at least two differentiators.
    - jfk13 6y ago
      This is a pretty weak justification for what seems like it'd usually be a design gimmick. It's perfectly possible for a colour change to be accessible for the colour blind, if you do more than just modify the hue. (Extreme case: change white-on-black to black-on-white. Or more generally, swapping foreground and background colours would usually be adequate, unless there's a serious lack of contrast in the first place.) Or add an underline, or a border around the element. Point is, there are safer options than font-weight; changing weight is pretty fragile unless you tightly control other aspects of the design/content.

leephillips 6y ago

Of course. This is an obvious tradeoff. For just this reason, I don’t think these typefaces are ideal for regular text, but can be an improvement for labels, buttons, numbers in tables, etc.

jfk13 6y ago
Alternatively, choose UI design ideas that don't involve changing the font weight on hover. What's wrong with changing the colour and/or background instead? Or (for an element like a button) give the element a fixed width that is sufficient for either weight of the text. Sometimes, if a design idea turns out to cause problems, maybe it's time to reconsider the design.
- carlmr 6y ago
  >What's wrong with changing the colour and/or background instead? As mentioned in the article, accessibility for the color blind. Which are a sizeable percentage of the population. Color should always only be one of at least two differentiators.
  - jfk13 6y ago
    This is a pretty weak justification for what seems like it'd usually be a design gimmick. It's perfectly possible for a colour change to be accessible for the colour blind, if you do more than just modify the hue. (Extreme case: change white-on-black to black-on-white. Or more generally, swapping foreground and background colours would usually be adequate, unless there's a serious lack of contrast in the first place.) Or add an underline, or a border around the element. Point is, there are safer options than font-weight; changing weight is pretty fragile unless you tightly control other aspects of the design/content.