3 ms·

Why do hardware companies release fonts? It’s not snark, I am legitimately curious. Is it marketing, branding, something else?

bee_rider 3y ago
Do they in general? Intel produces and awful lot of software; they clearly are hardware-first, not hardware only.
slater 3y ago
Ownership - they don't want to pay font licensing fees forever.
cratermoon 3y ago
Many kinds of hardware have a display of some kind. Microwave ovens, home entertainment, lab equipment, printers, oscilloscope, circuit testers, etc. Even the ones that don't have a display may have printing on them, from part numbers and serial numbers to instructions and warnings.
jdub 3y ago
One factor is that licensing fonts can be extremely expensive. So, make one: pay a higher upfront cost, create something unique to represent your brand, and never pay another cent.
- TylerE 3y ago
  But there are already tons of great fonts available under open licenses.
  - jdub 3y ago
    But do they represent the Intel brand? Did Papyrus represent the Avatar brand? DID PAPYRUS?!
    - glogla 3y ago
      As long as Sans is around.
    - ly3xqhl8g9 3y ago
      "He just highlighted Avatar, he clicked the drop down menu, and then he randomly selected Papyrus, like a thoughtless child just wandering by a garden yanking leaves along the way." [1] As iconic a moment as the creation of the first sans serif font [2]. [1] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jVhlJNJopOQ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jVhlJNJopOQ [2] "The earliest printing typefaces which omitted serifs were not intended to render contemporary texts, but to represent inscriptions in Ancient Greek and Etruscan. Thus, Thomas Dempster's De Etruria regali libri VII (1723), used special types intended for the representation of Etruscan epigraphy, and in c. 1745, the Caslon foundry made Etruscan types for pamphlets written by Etruscan scholar John Swinton." https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sans-serif#:~:text=The%20earliest%20printing,John%20Swinton https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sans-serif#:~:text=The%20earli....
      - consumer451 3y ago
        I have watched that skit at least a dozen times. It hits me deep. Gosling really sold it. This thread made me finally look up its origins which are a bit interesting. https://ew.com/tv/2017/12/19/snl-writer-julio-torres-avatar-sketch/ https://ew.com/tv/2017/12/19/snl-writer-julio-torres-avatar-...
dcdc123 3y ago
Intel produces more software than most software companies.
helmholtz 3y ago
Not what your point is, but I'm all for it. I love Cascadia Code, Jetbrains Mono, JuliaMono. I love IBM Plex Sans, I love Source Serif and Source Sans. I love Cooper Hewitt. We live in truly the golden age of reading text on screen.
throwawaylinux 3y ago
Do you know why any company releases fonts? If so, probably largely the same reasons. Also not snark.
precompute 3y ago
Not being mean, but once you have a "taste" for how the written word is written, fonts start mattering a LOT.

bee_rider 3y ago

Do they in general? Intel produces and awful lot of software; they clearly are hardware-first, not hardware only.

slater 3y ago

Ownership - they don't want to pay font licensing fees forever.

cratermoon 3y ago

Many kinds of hardware have a display of some kind. Microwave ovens, home entertainment, lab equipment, printers, oscilloscope, circuit testers, etc. Even the ones that don't have a display may have printing on them, from part numbers and serial numbers to instructions and warnings.

jdub 3y ago

One factor is that licensing fonts can be extremely expensive. So, make one: pay a higher upfront cost, create something unique to represent your brand, and never pay another cent.

TylerE 3y ago
But there are already tons of great fonts available under open licenses.
- jdub 3y ago
  But do they represent the Intel brand? Did Papyrus represent the Avatar brand? DID PAPYRUS?!
  - glogla 3y ago
    As long as Sans is around.
  - ly3xqhl8g9 3y ago
    "He just highlighted Avatar, he clicked the drop down menu, and then he randomly selected Papyrus, like a thoughtless child just wandering by a garden yanking leaves along the way." [1] As iconic a moment as the creation of the first sans serif font [2]. [1] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jVhlJNJopOQ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jVhlJNJopOQ [2] "The earliest printing typefaces which omitted serifs were not intended to render contemporary texts, but to represent inscriptions in Ancient Greek and Etruscan. Thus, Thomas Dempster's De Etruria regali libri VII (1723), used special types intended for the representation of Etruscan epigraphy, and in c. 1745, the Caslon foundry made Etruscan types for pamphlets written by Etruscan scholar John Swinton." https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sans-serif#:~:text=The%20earliest%20printing,John%20Swinton https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sans-serif#:~:text=The%20earli....
    - consumer451 3y ago
      I have watched that skit at least a dozen times. It hits me deep. Gosling really sold it. This thread made me finally look up its origins which are a bit interesting. https://ew.com/tv/2017/12/19/snl-writer-julio-torres-avatar-sketch/ https://ew.com/tv/2017/12/19/snl-writer-julio-torres-avatar-...

dcdc123 3y ago

Intel produces more software than most software companies.

helmholtz 3y ago

Not what your point is, but I'm all for it. I love Cascadia Code, Jetbrains Mono, JuliaMono. I love IBM Plex Sans, I love Source Serif and Source Sans. I love Cooper Hewitt. We live in truly the golden age of reading text on screen.

throwawaylinux 3y ago

Do you know why any company releases fonts? If so, probably largely the same reasons. Also not snark.

precompute 3y ago

Not being mean, but once you have a "taste" for how the written word is written, fonts start mattering a LOT.