Posted by Alan J. Flavell on 09/30/05 02:24

On Thu, 29 Sep 2005, Matt Silberstein wrote:

> On Wed, 28 Sep 2005 21:43:27 +0100, in alt.www.webmaster , "Alan J.
> Flavell" <flavell@physics.gla.ac.uk> in
> <Pine.WNT.4.63.0509282131430.1636@ZORIN> wrote:
>
> >As it happens, I usually configure my browsers to default to a sans
> >font (in fact, one with a good character repertoire, which is rather
> >more important to me than cosmetics): but if all those readers choose
> >a vendor who chooses a serif font for them - and at the "wrong" size
> >too, by your standards - who are we to argue? There might be
> >something in it.
[...]
> >But maybe your readers have their own opinions. The more discerning
> >ones have already chosen the font and body size that they prefer.
> >Maybe you don't care about discerning readers?
>
> Seriously, why would someone decide before looking at the text which
> kind of font to you? I can understand liking larger or smaller, I
> suppose, but serif fonts have a different affect than sans in
> different situations. The look of a headline is different than regular
> text.

Sorry, I don't seem to have made it clear that I was talking about
"body text". Naturally there will be snippets of text on the page
(such as headings) which don't need to be read as solid paragraphs of
text - will typically be larger and/or bolder than body text - and to
which these considerations of user choice and reading comfort
(whichever side of the argument you finally come down on in respect of
body text) apply much less strongly.

I'm only trying to present both sides of the argument. What you do in
the end is your decision (or your customer's), after all.

I just resent the apparent attitude of many authors that readers are
just passive cattle with no kind of choices of their own, and
completely incapable of manipulating their own browser. Just how they
managed to navigate their way to the author's precious pages, under
these conditions, seems to remain a mystery.

all the best

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