420 Design Blog
Sans-Serif and Serif Typefaces Today
16 Jul 2006 | Angie H
Seth Godin has posted a great little article on typefaces over on his blog. I agree with just about everything he lists as his rules of thumb. Except for this:
In print, your body copy ought to have serifs, which are those little thingies on the edges of the letters in a font like Times (and missing in Helvetica). They make books look like books.
Don't get me wrong – there is some definite truth to that. The serifs on serif fonts make things easier to read. During the days of letterpress, (WAY) before computers and advanced typesetting machinery, this was especially crucial. But today, computers and design software (when used correctly) make readability of professionally designed typefaces much easier.
So while Seth is partly right, he's also partly incorrect. Using the right sans-serif typeface, print materials can still look great and read well. And there's one last thing to consider. A serif typeface is not always appropriate for the message, or it may not fit in with the branding of the company or individual.