Using Those Special Keyboard Options
Carl Shank • October 8, 2022
Have you ever wondered what those special characters are that you can access on a standard keyboard? Or, how you can use them in a document or layout or program? Robert Bringhurst in The Elements of Typographic Style (Hartley & Marks, 1992) provides some needed background and definition to these special characters we know are there, but often are never used in regular work. The chart below gives you the character, the Macintosh keystroke, and the description of what the character is and how to use it appropriately. Enjoy!
Successful Layout & Design
AI & Typography: A Christian-Theistic Present Look Monotype Corporation recently released their 2025 Report concerning Artificial Intelligence and Typography called Re-Vision (See https://bit.ly/4aEUePf ). This eReport looks at the various typographical, social and cultural issues surrounding AI and how it affects and impacts the craft and science of typography. A selected summary of the Report is available below.
Variable Fonts: An Introduction History & Use “Variable fonts are a single font file that behaves like multiple fonts.” (John Hudson) The technology behind variable fonts has been around for a while. Starting in the 1990s, interpolation and extrapolation have been used to create different masters, and weights in typefaces. For example, by designing a regular and bold weight a semibold could be interpolated from the two masters.
