Slashes & Dashes

Carl Shank • September 7, 2022

Slashes & Dashes. In old typewriter days, we used a stoke (-) for a hyphen and a double stroke (--) for a dash. Those days are gone. The typewriter has given way to computer keyboards and word or layout programs. And so, it is appropriate that we discuss the three commonly used dashes in the computer and layout world — the em-dash, the en-dash, the hyphen. There are other kinds of dashes, such as the subtraction dash, which may or may not be the same length as the en-dash, and the figure dash (equal to the width of a standard numeral).


The shortest in length of the three, the hyphen is used to divide words that break at end of lines, or to connect compound words, such as non-believer. It is easily found on the keyboard to the right of the numeral zero. The longest of the three, the em-dash (— [Shift + option + - on a Mac]) is used in sentences that involve a break in thought or action, such as "There were the days—actually seeming longer than most—that tried men's souls."


The mid-sized en-dash is often used to indicate a range of values or a span of time or numerical quantities, such as 9–5 or Wednesday–Friday, similar to using the words "to" or "from." However, a figure dash may be more pleasing to the eye in numerical quantities. (See Sample Below) Bringhurst notes — "The hyphen is too short to serve this function, and in some faces the en dash (which is tradition­ally prescribed) appears too long. A three-to-em (M/3) dash is often the best choice. Three-to-em dashes are missing from many type fonts, but they are easily made on digital equipment, by condensing or shortening an en dash.") (Robert Bringhurst, The Elements of Typographic Style, Hartley & Marks, 1992, 78)


Normally, there is no space break between the beginning and the end of an em-dash. However, in some quarters, it is thought that a small space or even a regular space at the beginning and end of an em-dash makes the text more readable and flows better. And others prefer to use en-dashes instead of the longer em-dashes in a book or document. The key is always consistency of use, whatever dashes are used with whatever spacing. Whatever we do, we need to avoid the double hyphen approach (--) when seeking to use a dash in a sentence or phrase. The old typewriter days are gone and should be gone in our writing and typesetting.

Successful Layout & Design

Font Restoration Mechanics

By Carl Shank • May 13, 2025
Font Restoration Mechanics. Let me begin by giving an example from the world of theology, my first love and profession. Many people, even many non-Christian people, know that we are saved “by faith.” But faith in what or who? Well, faith in God. But this is imprecise. It is faith in Jesus Christ the Bible tells us. But once again, this too can be mistaken as just an intellectual nod of the mind toward Jesus without a real life change or transformation. More detailed biblical discussion, with appropriate distinctions, must be made so that we don’t make “faith” a human, works-based activity we do to please God. Or some existential “experience” with no definable qualities. Digging even deeper, faith saves no one, though it is absolutely necessary for salvation. It is Jesus Christ who saves. Faith becomes an “instrument” of salvation. Theologians have been unpacking this salvation “by faith alone” for centuries. Books and “how-to” sermons have been written and preached and taught here. Do you see the tremendous amount of refinement that “faith” requires? Precise typography claims similar distinctions and refinements in letter development and typeface creation. CARE Typography has been able to restore older hand-drawn fonts from various sources to modern digital typefaces. One of those most prolific sources has been from Alphabets Old and New — For The Use of Craftsmen, With An Introductory Essay on ‘Art in the Alphabet’” by Lewis F. Day, London, 1910.There is a wealth of older fonts shown by Day, one of them being a Roman Forum font from an old Roman Forum engraving. It might be thought that to copy and paste the letters and import them into a font design program, like FontLab’s Fontographer, is simple and rather straight-forward. Not so. From a font designer’s work, the transfer from a screenshot of an old book to a clear and professional open type font (SEE my Blog on “Open Type Fonts” in “More About Fonts” March 9, 2021) takes care and lots of work. It is both tedious and time intensive. The details of such work are often overlooked. Here’s an inside look at such work.

Wide Is Beautiful

By Carl Shank • March 15, 2025
Wide Is Beautiful What makes a typeface beautiful? Aesthetically pleasing fonts or typefaces have differing qualities that make them suitable and beautiful in different contexts and uses. I have chosen six (6) wide or "extended" font faces to highlight the inherent beauty and usability of such type. The samples chosen range from well used Adobe fonts to a specialty antique wide font CARE Typography crafted from an old fashioned type book published by Frederick Nelson Phillips, Inc of New York back in 1945.
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