Definitions 2

Definitions about Type

1. Absolute Measurement – measurements of fixed values; expressed in finite terms that cannot be altered

2. Relative Measurement – no prescribed or absolute size; it compares to something else in order to obtain a measurement

3. Point – unit of measurement used to measure the type size of a font; height of the type block (not the letter itself)

4. Pica – unit of measurement equal to 12 points that is commonly used for measuring lilnes of type

5. Em – relative unit of measurement used in typesetting to define basic spacing functions; linked to size of type. Increases and decreases correlating to the type size; also used for defining paragraph indents

6. En – unit of relative measurement equal to half of one em; it’s a type of dash (pgs 12-30)

7. Legibility – depends upon the ease with which the eye can identify letters, and distinguish them from one another; this can be relative since an isolated letter could be legible, but a grouping could be unreadable

8. Rag – occur when highly noticeable shapes form by the line ends of text blocks that distract from the reading; exaggerated slopes or noticeable inclines

9. Type Alignments – the arrangement of continuous lines of text - asymmetrical

a. Flush Left – type set to an even left margin, giving an uneven right margin

i. Pros – nearly eliminates margins, more readable, good with columns, word spacing stays constant

ii. Cons – seems informal, asymmetry disturbs balance

b. Flush Right – type set to an even right margin, giving uneven left margin, asymmetrical

i. Pros – good for small bodies of text, also good when left doesn’t work

ii. Cons – reduced readability

c. Centered – type set on a central axis, with even word spacing and ragged left and right margins

i. Pros – effective for single pages in formal context (title pages)

ii. Cons – reduced readability; absence of even left margin makes it hard for the eye to find the next line

d. Justified – space between the words is adjusted in each line, giving even margins both left and right

i. Pros – even margins give a neat rectangular text area

ii. Cons – space between words will vary from one line to the next, requires hyphenation, wide columns and large number of characters

10. Word Spacing – traditionally the spacing has been based upon a space equivalent to the body width of a lowercase i

a. Increases readability, greater continuity, and less interruption of the sentence

11. Rivers – river effect is created where white space gaps align through the text

12. Indent – text lines are moved from the margin by a specific amount; easy entry to a paragraph

13. Leading – the space between lines of text in a text block; increases readability

14. Kerning – automatic adjustments to the spacing of particular letter pairs; VA, Ta

15. Tracking – adjustments of overall space between letters rather than just two characters; creates an airy field

16. Weight – difference in the darkness of type images by width of lines; light, medium, heavy, bold, and black

17. Scale – increases in point size; more than 2 points

18. Typographic Variation – serves to clarify visually for the reader specific emphasis and prioritization

a. Typefaces, weights, sizes, bold, italic, small-cap fonts

19. Orphan – the final one or two lines of a paragraph separated from the main paragraph to form a new column; avoid at all costs

20. Widow – a lone word at the end of the paragraph