GDS Chapter 3

Question 1

What is a typeface?

Answer 1

The design of a single set of characters unified by consistent visual properties.

Question 2

How is height measured?

Answer 2

In points.

Question 3

How is width measured?

Answer 3

In picas.

Question 4

What are em units?

Answer 4

The width of the uppercase M in the parent face and point size.

Question 5

What is the baseline?

Answer 5

The bottom of letters, excluding descenders.

Question 6

What is a character?

Answer 6

A letterform, numeral, punctuation mark, or any single unit in a font.

Question 7

What is a counter?

Answer 7

The space enclosed by the strokes of a letter.

Question 8

Describe a serif.

Answer 8

A small stroke added to the upper or lower end of the main stroke of a character.

Question 9

What is the x-height?

Answer 9

The height of a lowercase letter, excluding ascenders and descenders.

Question 10

Explain type family.

Answer 10

A type family includes many style variations of a single typeface.

Question 11

Before choosing a typeface, what should you consider?

Answer 11

The audience, the tone, personality, and attitude of what you are communicating, as well as historical and aesthetic meaning.

Question 12

Define readability vs legibility.

Answer 12

Readability is the ease in which text is read; legibility is how easily a person can recognize the letters in a typeface.

Question 13

Rules for typeface pairing.

Answer 13

Limit mixing and select for contrast and variation, pair complementary typefaces, pair typefaces with different textures, and choose within type family, extended family, or super family.

Question 14

What is typographic texture?

Answer 14

The overall density or tonal quality of a mass of type on a field.

Question 15

What is letterspacing?

Answer 15

The spatial interval between letters. Adjusting this is called kerning.

Question 16

What is line spacing?

Answer 16

The spatial interval between two lines of type measured vertically from baseline to baseline, which is traditionally called leading.

Question 17

In regards to spacing, check for…

Answer 17

…word spacing, line length, unevenness, and widows and orphans.

Question 18

What is a widow?

Answer 18

A very short line of text or a word that appears at the end of a paragraph.

Question 19

What is an orphan?

Answer 19

A very short line of text or a word that appears at the beginning or end of a column that is separated from the rest of the paragraph.

Question 20

How can you make content more appealing?

Answer 20

Break it into modules.

Question 21

What arrangement of text is best for screen-based communication?

Answer 21

Chunks.

Question 22

What does pacing involve?

Answer 22

Creating a visual sense of rhythm, creating variation and allowing the reader’s eyes to rest somewhere in the text.

Question 23

What do margins do?

Answer 23

Allow the reader to focus in on the text.

Question 24

How are type size and leading indicated?

Answer 24

By placing type size over point leading.

Question 25

What kind of typefaces should you choose for a text heavy design?

Answer 25

Typefaces that are very readable and part of an extended family.

Question 26

What kind of typefaces should you choose for a nearly equal volume of text and images?

Answer 26

Highly readable typeface that fits the purpose and aesthetic of the images.

Question 27

What kind of typefaces should you choose for image heavy design?

Answer 27

Content and design concept should drive the selection.

Question 28

What kind of typefaces should you choose for caption heavy design?

Answer 28

Typeface that is readable at smaller point size.

Question 29

How do you improve readability?

Answer 29

Use left-justification or justified alignment, break text into manageable chunks, use strong contrast between type and background, keep line lengths a bit shorter, and use typefaces with larger x-heights.

Question 30

What impedes readability?

Answer 30

Long line lengths, very small point sizes, and extreme raggedness, widows, and orphans.

Question 31

To use variation and contrast to aid reading…

Answer 31

…use a pull quote, an image, an initial cap or drop initial, and/or color.

Question 32

What are some ways to achieve emphasis with an entire composition using typography?

Answer 32

Isolation, placement, scale, and contrast.

Question 33

What are some ways to achieve emphasis in text type?

Answer 33

Size, color, boldface, and italics.

Question 34

How can you improve legibility?

Answer 34

Select typefaces for x-height, open counters, modest stroke contrast, and simple shapes.

Question 35

What should you keep in mind when designing for voice or brand?

Answer 35

Typeface should be appropriate for the brand and any display typeface should support the logo, not fight with it for attention.

Question 36

How can you include variety in your text type?

Answer 36

Use a family, extended family, or super family as that will offer a variety of weights and widths.

Question 37

Case Study: Balthazar Restaurant

Answer 37

Design, even the typography, should communicate something about the brand. Be thorough, weave the design into every aspect of the brand. Do allow for variety, though.

Question 38

Case Study: Minneapolis Institute of Art

Answer 38

Bear in mind how design will translate through various outputs and plan for versatility.