3 ms·

>I see no reason to honor the so-called “default line-height”. It’s basically a font designer’s personal preference, imposed on every user of the font in every

by andjd 6y ago

>I see no reason to honor the so-called “default line-height”. It’s basically a font designer’s personal preference, imposed on every user of the font in every viewing condition. Erm... To a large extent, these details of a font _are_ the the designer's -personal-preference- professional judgement, and that's the point. We use different fonts because they have a distinct feel or quality, and how much spacing they have between lines is one of the many little details that add up to the gestalt of a font. If you don't like the line spacing of a font, don't use it. Or tweak it if you like. But don't pretend that declaring that all fonts should have a line spacing of 200% of their cap height isn't similarly trying to impose your personal aesthetic preferences on everyone else as well.

goodells 6y ago
The problem seems to be that, should you want to change the font size or line height of text in a given font, it's currently difficult to get a consistent baseline and character size between different fonts. Having some default line height for a font is fine. Making it impossible to align the tops and bottoms of capital letters between different fonts in a sane way is not great.
- mcguire 6y ago
  Going down this road, you are about to discover that visual weights, slopes, and assorted other minutia also differ, leading inexorably to the ransom note effect. Some fonts are designed to work together; those that aren't, don't. Visual height is the tip of the iceberg.
  - goodells 6y ago
    Sure, this isn't meant to make it impossible to shoot yourself in the foot design-wise if you intermingle fonts. It's more of a layout concern. If I change the font in an app or website, it _always_ leads to tweaking all the font sizes and adjusting vertical padding on things like buttons. All to get the baseline and vertical height at roughly the same spots between fonts. The author's proposal of a "cap height" (I don't like that term, though) would make that tweaking a thing of the past.
    - mcguire 6y ago
      "The author's proposal of a "cap height" (I don't like that term, though) would make that tweaking a thing of the past." Maybe, but that's not how I'd put my money. :-)

by andjd 6y ago

goodells 6y ago

The problem seems to be that, should you want to change the font size or line height of text in a given font, it's currently difficult to get a consistent baseline and character size between different fonts. Having some default line height for a font is fine. Making it impossible to align the tops and bottoms of capital letters between different fonts in a sane way is not great.

mcguire 6y ago
Going down this road, you are about to discover that visual weights, slopes, and assorted other minutia also differ, leading inexorably to the ransom note effect. Some fonts are designed to work together; those that aren't, don't. Visual height is the tip of the iceberg.
- goodells 6y ago
  Sure, this isn't meant to make it impossible to shoot yourself in the foot design-wise if you intermingle fonts. It's more of a layout concern. If I change the font in an app or website, it _always_ leads to tweaking all the font sizes and adjusting vertical padding on things like buttons. All to get the baseline and vertical height at roughly the same spots between fonts. The author's proposal of a "cap height" (I don't like that term, though) would make that tweaking a thing of the past.
  - mcguire 6y ago
    "The author's proposal of a "cap height" (I don't like that term, though) would make that tweaking a thing of the past." Maybe, but that's not how I'd put my money. :-)