Linotype.com with new web font features

Yesterday, we released a technical update of Linotype.com that will come very handy for those who want to use Linotype fonts on the web. The standard licencse we sell on Linotype.com doesn’t cover web font use, but with our partner, fonts.com web fonts, we are able to offer Linotype fonts with web font licenses through Fonts.com Web Font Service.

With the new features you can simply browse Linotype.com for inspiration, or search for your favorite typeface. Everything regarding web fonts is branded in a dark blue. We offer three ways to get your web font:

  1. Search for fonts, and click on blue web font button
  2. Browse Linotype.com, select font family, and click on blue Web Font tab next to Details & Background Information
  3. On a font weight detail page, click on blue Web Font Option button

All three options will result in a dialog box opening up, explaining that you will get Linotype web fonts through the web font service provided by Fonts.com. Click on the Get Web Font button and you are taken to the exact match on Fonts.com

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Re:Publica 12 and the Twitter Wall

I just came back home from re:publica 12, a fantastic event bringing together bloggers, self-acclaimed internet rebels, internet marketeers, social web rock stars and designers. In the center of attention at this year’s congress was the analog Twitter wall conceived by precious design studio.

Complete view of the wall

Complete view of the wall

The idea centered at bringing back the Action to digital communication, including hard work and dirty hands. Instead of everyone staring at their screens, captured in computer-based communication, event attendees met at the analog twitter wall, chatted face-to-face, created trans-media experiences by taking photos of printed out tweets and posting them to the Web. The Action team, called Actionists, who had printer’s ink and glue on their hands, plastered tweets onto the wall. A cleverly designed algorithm programmed by precious captured the amount of tweets send per minute, trend topics, and set the top tweets in larger point size and a special fonts chosen from Font.com’s web font portfolio.

For creating a good contrast to re:publica’s CI typeface and to capture the spirit of the event, we choose rounded and serif typefaces, such as the flirty serif typeface Adelle by TypeTogether, the soft rounded version of Memphis, and many more fonts.

The crowd fell in love instantly…

Mixing glue

Preparation....

Picture of the first tweets being plastered on the wall

The first tweets are plastered

Tweet set in Memphis Soft Rounded Bold

Tweet set in Memphis Soft Rounded Bold

Tweet set in Adelle Extra Bold

Tweet set in Adelle Extra Bold

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All the characteristics of a debut work:
Levato by Felix Bonge

At this point, I would like to use the opportunity to draw your attention to a particular typeface. Levato, which has only recently been made available at Linotype.com, is a font family with a large repertoire that was developed on the basis of experiments undertaken by Felix Bonge while participating in a type design course held by Professor Jovica Veljović. After subsequently attending a calligraphy seminar, Bonge completely reworked his concept and achieved this impressive result. Levato is graceful, dynamic and versatile all at the same time. There are five weights with the corresponding genuine italic versions. The suite of glyphs thus covers all potential options: the four character sets, small caps, numerous ligatures, ornamental and swash character variants mean the Levato can be used in headlines, to design magazine layouts and to set continuous text.

For more information on this typeface, ideas for possible applications and the opportunity to purchase the Levato family for your own use, and for reading an interview with Felix Bonge, go to Linotype.com.

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Helvetica now available in Thai

Helvetica has also learned to speak Thai: the Thai font designer Anuthin Wongsunkakon has created Thai versions of the classic typefaces Helvetica and Neue Helvetica. These versions are available in the weights Light, Regular and Bold, with the corresponding italic variants. Helvetica Thai harmonises perfectly with its Latin original and these two can thus happily be used in combination. With its pared-down and simplified form, Helvetica Thai replicates the appearance of modern Thai calligraphy.

Those who would like more information on this subject will find two interesting articles at Linotype.com. In the one, Anuthin Wongsunkakon describes the conversion process that resulted in the creation of Helvetica Thai. The other is an interview with the designer, in which he talks about various aspects of typography and typeface design.

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Typecasting carries on in Darmstadt

The last months have been very critical of the continued existence of the type casting department in the Darmstadt Museum “Haus der Industriekultur.” The owner of the production and distribution company “Schriftenservice Stempel” has dissolved the company end of 2011.

Rainer Gerstenberg, who operates the machines for over 25 years in Darmstadt, has taken over all the machines and matrices and can now cast and distribute the lead types, stamping types and short types under the name “Druckerei Gerstenberg”.

The range of hotmetal typefaces is very large. He can cast and deliver the faces from the former D. Stempel AG, Nebiolo, Deberny & Peignot, Olive, Klingspor and Haas.

Contact:

Druckerei Gerstenberg

1. Wartegässchen 41
60598 Frankfurt/Main

Fon 069 / 68 16 10
Fax 069 / 65 00 70 08
Mobil 01 60/7 00 64 49
gerstenbergdruck@aol.com

New and notable typography app

This app allows you to take pictures of type in use and share it on Fontli’s network, on Twitter, or on Facebook. Also, you can geotag the picture, spot up to three typefaces and comment on the typeface in use. Social Proofing is given by the community who can correct/comment wrongly spotted typefaces.

The app is available on the iTunes app store.

Fontli app screenshots

Fontli

Anniversary for Font Aid V: Made For Japan

Just to remind you that there is still help needed in Japan. You can support them with purchasing this font. The revenue goes directly to this charity.

Here are more details:
In March of 2011, the Society of Typographic Aficionados began organizing a collaborative project which united the typographic and design communities. The goal of Font Aid V: Made For Japan was to raise funds to expedite relief efforts after the devastating earthquake and tsunami in Japan. Nearly 300 contributors from 45 countries sent in over 500 glyphs in a single week.

Behind the scenes, volunteers Neil Summerour, Silas Dilworth, Delve Withrington, and Grant Hutchinson were working hard to assemble the typeface in Adobe Illustrator and Fontlab. The sheer number of submissions coupled with the complexity of some of the designs caused unforeseen delays in completing the typeface. The team not only managed the immense influx of submissions, they also had several technical hurdles to overcome and multiple content reviews to mitigate before the final version of the font could be produced. Several months after the project was initiated, Font Aid V: Made For Japan was finally ready for distribution.

With the help of Sogo Japan, all profits from sales of this typeface will be delivered directly to organizations in Japan, such as Second Hand and AMDA International (Association of Medical Doctors of Asia). Sogo Japan strives to help circumvent regular international charity channels and the inefficiencies associated with them.

You can purchase your support copy here

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