Comic Sans is a great typeface: Here are 2 reasons that may change the way you look at this typeface.
If you were a student in the 90s, You’re aware of Comic Sans, If you’re not, it’s the typeface that shipped with your copy of Windows 95.
What about this typeface made it so reviled amongst the design community?
My Theory: Mis-Use
The accessibility of Comic Sans made this typeface the go-to of office professionals, I’m guessing it’s because :
1. It came with the operating system and
2. It looked like handwriting.
Comic sans came in at a time when computers were’nt the standard, So typefaces that looked like it was hand written were embraced and when comic sans hit, we all wanted our text to look like handwritten text, not typed by a machine.
So everyone used this, and with overuse came saturation.
Give Comic Sans a Break
The hate for Comic sans began when it was misused for office announcements, ‘serious’ office memorandum, letters from the CEO etc.
But the typeface wasn’t intended to be used this way, so why the hate?so popular as it did. After some surfing, I found out that Comic Sans was designed for 1 particular use case: To be the accompanying typeface for Microsoft’s Assistant Mr. Paperclip! It’s a typeface that’s based on Comic book lettering!
But that’s not all Comic Sans can be used for
Further reading led me to this wikipedia article on the typeface:
1. It’s highly readable — you may not like how it’s designed, but if your words are getting read by dyslexic people, you’ve got yourself a win.
2. The forms and design doesn’t feel imposing. — My previous essay I talk about typography and how it can influence tone. It’s impossible to read angry when typeset in Comic Sans. (and that can be a good thing)
Usefulness is in the eye of the beholder
Who’da thought that a typeface that’s hated by designers can be loved by another profession altogether
A typefaces are software and like software, they’re designed for a use case. Misuse shouldn’t determine of something is ugly or not. You don’t judge a fish by its ability to climb a tree, that would be insane.
So why do you judge a typeface by how it looks?
What do you think about Comic Sans? Do you love it? Hate it? why?
This post was created with Typeshare
