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Comic Sans as a font needs no defense. Just like a good band with bad fans, we don't balk at Comic Sans, we balk at the people who use comic sans for inappropr

Comic Sans as a font needs no defense. Just like a good band with bad fans, we don't balk at Comic Sans, we balk at the people who use comic sans for inappropriate things. (Or to use a more computery analogy, there's nothing wrong with capital letters or all-caps, but some users use them inappropriately). City memo minutes should not be distributed in Comic Sans. Wedding invitations should probably not be in Comic Sans. The Surrey police should not have released a memo on rape and sexual assault in Comic Sans[1]. There are times when you do not want to be unserious and insincere, and some people are, and its embarrassing. Comic Sans is just a vector for that, but if you find fault with it, its still the people who are at fault. [1] http://i.imgur.com/C6QY1yp.jpg http://i.imgur.com/C6QY1yp.jpg (The Surrey Police strike again! http://i.imgur.com/Kn68ubk.jpg http://i.imgur.com/Kn68ubk.jpg) (the compulsive designers in us will notice the logo at the top of that one is off-center, too)

NoPiece 14y ago
There is definitely an internet lynch mob mentality on this even though the inappropriate use critique is spot on. You'd have to be a brave designer to use it, even in an befitting way. Apps like Balsamiq have dropped it and subbed in look-a-likes just so people have cover to say it isn't Comic Sans. http://www.balsamiq.com/products/mockups/font http://www.balsamiq.com/products/mockups/font
- wfunction 14y ago
  My professors used it on many lecture slides... very few people until it was pointed out to them, and once that happened then they couldn't focus!
- TheAnimus 14y ago
  It's a bit of a craze to mock things, we like to be pack animals feasting on the fresh carcus afterall. Just search Nickleback on Reddit. However it's bizzarely useful in a way. Say you've got a trail version of an application, you can have a penalty of users who run the app for more than a month without a purchase. Simply flick the font in to Comic Sans. You gain geek credit, even some free blog advertising under the Comic Sans lol bandwagon. That then creates more posative feedback, people like to read things they are already vaugely familiar with, so you get that natural circle of hate.
supercanuck 14y ago
You can add the Pope's official commemorative photobook as another bad example. (http://www.vatican.va/bxvi/omaggio/index_en.html http://www.vatican.va/bxvi/omaggio/index_en.html)
- pbhjpbhj 14y ago
  Which font would you have used?
  - jammmuel 14y ago
    Something with more gravitas. Palatino?
    - eksith 14y ago
      Too "Romanesque", I would have gone with Webdings.
    - pbhjpbhj 14y ago
      Zapf makes a mean font. IIRC I used his Chancery on my wedding invitations. Pity Sistina is all-caps otherwise that would have been apposite.
    - fusiongyro 14y ago
      How about Trajan, the Movie Font? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t87QKdOJNv8 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t87QKdOJNv8
gegenschall 14y ago
> Just like a good band with bad fans Actually, as a band you have a certain say in which fans you'll going to have.
- jQueryIsAwesome 14y ago
  Depends on what you mean by "say"; if you mean gender I think is true. But if you consider people who like just one music genre and can stay motivated and loyal only because of that then you don't have too much say about who will be your fans, if you like trash metal it doesn't matter if you have a PHD from Harvard and your social circle is mostly composed by honored students, because the genre you may appel to a very wide range of people for which you have little to none control (unless you are wealthy and can create your own music label, gigs scenary and location, publicity and media exposure in general.
  - digitalengineer 14y ago
    Kurt Cobain sure did. By cross-dressing he made Nirvana have a lot less appeal for the heavy metal fans.
    - factorizer 14y ago
      also the atrocious guitar playing and constant mumbling helped a lot in that department. but we digress. on the topic: i like comic sans. it looks friendly. there, i said it.
      - PerryCox 14y ago
        > also the atrocious guitar playing You're joking right? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BoiUpe7N3D0 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BoiUpe7N3D0
        factorizer 14y ago
        alright, i was (kinda) joking. but i don't think that the guitar playing was the unique selling value of nirvana. the song writing was stellar though.
egeozcan 14y ago
Actually there are better alternatives which can replace Comic Sans entirely but to the newbie wannabe designer who wants to get something out, if you argue this, you get a response as if you've recommended ruby to a php developer (Ok, maybe not that strong). The activism against them look quite similar: http://www.sitepoint.com/friends-dont-let-friends-use-comic-sans/ http://www.sitepoint.com/friends-dont-let-friends-use-comic-... vs http://me.veekun.com/blog/2012/04/09/php-a-fractal-of-bad-design/ http://me.veekun.com/blog/2012/04/09/php-a-fractal-of-bad-de... </stereotyping>
Samuel_Michon 14y ago
"Comic Sans as a font needs no defense." I disagree, it's just not a good font. It has zero contrast (not suitable for display text and print), no harmony (not suitable for body text), and it's poorly hinted (not suitable for screen text). It looks more like finger painting than comic lettering [1]. It's not even a true sans serif; in the article, the author admits to cheating. There are way better fonts that Microsoft could've licensed for MS Bob, like Helvetica Rounded [2] or Dom Casual [3]. [1] http://www.myfonts.com/fonts/hanoded/inky-fingers/ http://www.myfonts.com/fonts/hanoded/inky-fingers/ [2] http://www.myfonts.com/fonts/adobe/helvetica-rounded/ http://www.myfonts.com/fonts/adobe/helvetica-rounded/ [3] http://www.myfonts.com/fonts/paratype/dom-casual/ http://www.myfonts.com/fonts/paratype/dom-casual/
- coldtea 14y ago
  >I disagree, it's just not a good font. It has zero contrast (not suitable for display text and print), no harmony (not suitable for body text), and it's poorly hinted (not suitable for screen text). Which is beside the point. It wasn't supposed to be used for body text or print in small sizes. And it doesn't have to be hinted because it's not meant to be used for long form screen text. Would you call a title font "bad" because it's not suitable for body text? As for it "not even being a true sans serif", there are several fonts that cross those boundaries while being perfectly fine. Not being a true "sans/serif" is not some badge of dishonour. Comic Sans is a good font because it is perfectly suited to convey the message people use it for: child-like, friendliness, common folk-syness etc. As such it's great for personal posters, party invitations, signs, yard sales, elementary school signs, etc. Notice that even if that wasn't the usage intended by its creators, it's still a good font, because it found it's own niche.
  - lloeki 14y ago
    I found the last example pretty convincing: I did not recognise Chalkboard, and the first part seemed readable to me to the point I said myself "Well, Comic Sans is not so bad finally"... and then the last line instantly jumped at me due to kerning and baseline. Comic Sans glyphs seem to each stand on their own, unable to keep themselves together to form a word. Chalkboard is far from perfect (see k-e kern) but it is way more readable, even for small text or stand-alone words. The case against Comic Sans in undue context is due to the funny glyphs, while the case against Comic Sans vs other comic fonts is due not to the glyphs but to the whitespace around them.
JDGM 14y ago
"There are times when you do not want to be unserious and insincere, and some people are, and its embarrassing. Comic Sans is just a vector for that, but if you find fault with it, its still the people who are at fault." I don't understand what this means, could you clarify please? I love your Surrey Police links and comments. I'm not sure if it's in poor taste to laugh, but frankly I find them hysterical!
derleth 14y ago
> there's nothing wrong with capital letters or all-caps In the transportation world, all-caps is known to be harder to read than mixed-case in fixed-message signs: http://skeptics.stackexchange.com/questions/5892/is-all-caps-hard-to-read http://skeptics.stackexchange.com/questions/5892/is-all-caps... All-caps is also generally less legible than all-lower-case: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/All_caps http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/All_caps (in particular reference 7, Tinker, Miles A. (1963). Legibility of Print. Ames, Iowa: Iowa State University Press. p. 65. ISBN 6316674.) My point is that it isn't just a matter of taste. There are known, quantified ways in which all-caps is worse. Ditto Comic Sans, if you read another response to your post.
- joezydeco 14y ago
  Re: transportation, there's a lot of interesting data collected on the design of Clearview, the new typeface for the US interstate road system: http://clearviewhwy.com/ResearchAndDesign/legibilityStudies.php http://clearviewhwy.com/ResearchAndDesign/legibilityStudies....
lucian303 14y ago
That's just one interpretation. The font in and of itself conveys nothing. It does not convey seriousness or non-seriousness. That's simply _your_ opinion. If people like the font, they should use it. The people who bash it for the sake of bashing are wasting this planet's air doing so.

NoPiece 14y ago

There is definitely an internet lynch mob mentality on this even though the inappropriate use critique is spot on. You'd have to be a brave designer to use it, even in an befitting way. Apps like Balsamiq have dropped it and subbed in look-a-likes just so people have cover to say it isn't Comic Sans. http://www.balsamiq.com/products/mockups/font http://www.balsamiq.com/products/mockups/font

wfunction 14y ago
My professors used it on many lecture slides... very few people until it was pointed out to them, and once that happened then they couldn't focus!
TheAnimus 14y ago
It's a bit of a craze to mock things, we like to be pack animals feasting on the fresh carcus afterall. Just search Nickleback on Reddit. However it's bizzarely useful in a way. Say you've got a trail version of an application, you can have a penalty of users who run the app for more than a month without a purchase. Simply flick the font in to Comic Sans. You gain geek credit, even some free blog advertising under the Comic Sans lol bandwagon. That then creates more posative feedback, people like to read things they are already vaugely familiar with, so you get that natural circle of hate.

supercanuck 14y ago

You can add the Pope's official commemorative photobook as another bad example. (http://www.vatican.va/bxvi/omaggio/index_en.html http://www.vatican.va/bxvi/omaggio/index_en.html)

pbhjpbhj 14y ago
Which font would you have used?
- jammmuel 14y ago
  Something with more gravitas. Palatino?
  - eksith 14y ago
    Too "Romanesque", I would have gone with Webdings.
  - pbhjpbhj 14y ago
    Zapf makes a mean font. IIRC I used his Chancery on my wedding invitations. Pity Sistina is all-caps otherwise that would have been apposite.
  - fusiongyro 14y ago
    How about Trajan, the Movie Font? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t87QKdOJNv8 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t87QKdOJNv8

gegenschall 14y ago

> Just like a good band with bad fans Actually, as a band you have a certain say in which fans you'll going to have.

jQueryIsAwesome 14y ago
Depends on what you mean by "say"; if you mean gender I think is true. But if you consider people who like just one music genre and can stay motivated and loyal only because of that then you don't have too much say about who will be your fans, if you like trash metal it doesn't matter if you have a PHD from Harvard and your social circle is mostly composed by honored students, because the genre you may appel to a very wide range of people for which you have little to none control (unless you are wealthy and can create your own music label, gigs scenary and location, publicity and media exposure in general.
- digitalengineer 14y ago
  Kurt Cobain sure did. By cross-dressing he made Nirvana have a lot less appeal for the heavy metal fans.
  - factorizer 14y ago
    also the atrocious guitar playing and constant mumbling helped a lot in that department. but we digress. on the topic: i like comic sans. it looks friendly. there, i said it.
    - PerryCox 14y ago
      > also the atrocious guitar playing You're joking right? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BoiUpe7N3D0 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BoiUpe7N3D0
      - factorizer 14y ago
        alright, i was (kinda) joking. but i don't think that the guitar playing was the unique selling value of nirvana. the song writing was stellar though.

egeozcan 14y ago

Actually there are better alternatives which can replace Comic Sans entirely but to the newbie wannabe designer who wants to get something out, if you argue this, you get a response as if you've recommended ruby to a php developer (Ok, maybe not that strong). The activism against them look quite similar: http://www.sitepoint.com/friends-dont-let-friends-use-comic-sans/ http://www.sitepoint.com/friends-dont-let-friends-use-comic-... vs http://me.veekun.com/blog/2012/04/09/php-a-fractal-of-bad-design/ http://me.veekun.com/blog/2012/04/09/php-a-fractal-of-bad-de... </stereotyping>

Samuel_Michon 14y ago

"Comic Sans as a font needs no defense." I disagree, it's just not a good font. It has zero contrast (not suitable for display text and print), no harmony (not suitable for body text), and it's poorly hinted (not suitable for screen text). It looks more like finger painting than comic lettering [1]. It's not even a true sans serif; in the article, the author admits to cheating. There are way better fonts that Microsoft could've licensed for MS Bob, like Helvetica Rounded [2] or Dom Casual [3]. [1] http://www.myfonts.com/fonts/hanoded/inky-fingers/ http://www.myfonts.com/fonts/hanoded/inky-fingers/ [2] http://www.myfonts.com/fonts/adobe/helvetica-rounded/ http://www.myfonts.com/fonts/adobe/helvetica-rounded/ [3] http://www.myfonts.com/fonts/paratype/dom-casual/ http://www.myfonts.com/fonts/paratype/dom-casual/

coldtea 14y ago
>I disagree, it's just not a good font. It has zero contrast (not suitable for display text and print), no harmony (not suitable for body text), and it's poorly hinted (not suitable for screen text). Which is beside the point. It wasn't supposed to be used for body text or print in small sizes. And it doesn't have to be hinted because it's not meant to be used for long form screen text. Would you call a title font "bad" because it's not suitable for body text? As for it "not even being a true sans serif", there are several fonts that cross those boundaries while being perfectly fine. Not being a true "sans/serif" is not some badge of dishonour. Comic Sans is a good font because it is perfectly suited to convey the message people use it for: child-like, friendliness, common folk-syness etc. As such it's great for personal posters, party invitations, signs, yard sales, elementary school signs, etc. Notice that even if that wasn't the usage intended by its creators, it's still a good font, because it found it's own niche.
- lloeki 14y ago
  I found the last example pretty convincing: I did not recognise Chalkboard, and the first part seemed readable to me to the point I said myself "Well, Comic Sans is not so bad finally"... and then the last line instantly jumped at me due to kerning and baseline. Comic Sans glyphs seem to each stand on their own, unable to keep themselves together to form a word. Chalkboard is far from perfect (see k-e kern) but it is way more readable, even for small text or stand-alone words. The case against Comic Sans in undue context is due to the funny glyphs, while the case against Comic Sans vs other comic fonts is due not to the glyphs but to the whitespace around them.

JDGM 14y ago

"There are times when you do not want to be unserious and insincere, and some people are, and its embarrassing. Comic Sans is just a vector for that, but if you find fault with it, its still the people who are at fault." I don't understand what this means, could you clarify please? I love your Surrey Police links and comments. I'm not sure if it's in poor taste to laugh, but frankly I find them hysterical!

derleth 14y ago

> there's nothing wrong with capital letters or all-caps In the transportation world, all-caps is known to be harder to read than mixed-case in fixed-message signs: http://skeptics.stackexchange.com/questions/5892/is-all-caps-hard-to-read http://skeptics.stackexchange.com/questions/5892/is-all-caps... All-caps is also generally less legible than all-lower-case: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/All_caps http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/All_caps (in particular reference 7, Tinker, Miles A. (1963). Legibility of Print. Ames, Iowa: Iowa State University Press. p. 65. ISBN 6316674.) My point is that it isn't just a matter of taste. There are known, quantified ways in which all-caps is worse. Ditto Comic Sans, if you read another response to your post.

joezydeco 14y ago
Re: transportation, there's a lot of interesting data collected on the design of Clearview, the new typeface for the US interstate road system: http://clearviewhwy.com/ResearchAndDesign/legibilityStudies.php http://clearviewhwy.com/ResearchAndDesign/legibilityStudies....

lucian303 14y ago

That's just one interpretation. The font in and of itself conveys nothing. It does not convey seriousness or non-seriousness. That's simply _your_ opinion. If people like the font, they should use it. The people who bash it for the sake of bashing are wasting this planet's air doing so.