The Font Mania

At one point of time I was crazy about different type of fonts. I have a collection of more than 10,000 fonts of different style and feel. So today I decided to scribble something about fonts.

What are fonts ?
A complete set of characters of a given size and design.
OR
A font is the software that describes the letterforms and symbols in a typeface.

Without them you would not be able to read this post.

Before the digital age, fonts were made from lead, each character being a separate piece.
Today fonts are software. They can be loaded onto our computer as part of operating systems such as Microsoft, Windows, in software applications such as Adobe Illustrator, or licensed from type designers and font publishers, called foundries. We use fonts everyday - recognize Arial or Times New Roman

Why are there so many typefaces?
Different typefaces are designed for different uses - such as headlines, body text or very small Classified ads. Typefaces are designed to give choice, identity and flexibility in the design of documents and publications. Today, there are thousands to choose from.

You could say that a typeface is a fashion item - think how mundane life would be if every item that we read looked the same. Different typefaces afford individuality and create identity and recognition. When choosing a font of a new typeface, an appropriate license needs to be acquired to use it.

How are fonts licensed?
Fonts are owned by font publishers, called foundries, or independent typeface designers. Most foundries license fonts for use on a set number of workstations and printers. For example, Microsoft’s standard Software Use Agreement licenses a single font for use on a single Workstation.

Collections of fonts can be purchased more competitively as libraries. Licensing standards of each foundry may vary on the number of workstations and printers.

The general rule is not to allow the distribution of fonts beyond the set number of workstations without an additional license.

What is font embedding?
Font embedding is the ability to include font data within a document or Web site providing control over the appearance of text that the reader sees. This is vital if you are forwarding a document to a reader that does not have the font installed on their own computer. If the recipient does not have the font they will not be able to view your document as you intended.

Also, whatever software you use to create a document; maintaining formatting when sharing files with users on different computers is difficult.

For document creators and Web designers embedding fonts ensures that end users see their document or Web site in the desired font, ensuring consistency with a design theme or a corporate brand. Embedding most fonts into documents or Web sites to allow editing by an unlicensed user requires an additional license.
Some font licenses such as the basic Agfa Monotype font software EULA allow the user to embed fonts into documents to preview and print only. However, some EULAs do not - so check your license terms carefully.

Also, embedding fonts into any documents sold commercially, such as eBooks, eMagazines, eReports, etc. usually requires an additional license.

Are some fonts already licensed?
When you pay for your software application license for products such as Microsoft Windows, you license the fonts included within that application for the number of users you have licensed that application for.

Software publishers license fonts from foundries and pass on the royalty to the foundries from your license fee.

This does not give you the right to transfer fonts from that application to unlicensed users or to use those fonts outside the terms of the software license you have.

For information specific to Microsoft applications please see:
http://www.microsoft.com/permission/copyrgt/cop-soft.htm#Fonts