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Subject:Font usage in manuals From:Emily Skarzenski <eskarzenski -at- DTTUS -dot- COM> Date:Mon, 15 Jan 1996 10:11:31 CST
I just read a new book called _Type & Layout_ by Colin Wheildon (ISBN
0-9624891-5-8. 1995, Strathmoor Press). It contains the results of his
nine-year study on the effects of typography and design on readers'
understanding of printed material. This was a scientifically designed
study with a sample size of 224.
He tested things like:
- serif vs. sans serif
- type size
- type attributes (bold, italic)
- headline type styles
- justified vs. ragged margins
- colored type
- the concept of "reading gravity"
Some of his findings were a little surprising. I'll be glad to forward
a copy of the report I wrote for my group (a list of the study's major
conclusions plus a few paragraphs of commentary) to anyone who
requests.
Emily Skarzenski
Deloitte & Touche/ICS - Chadds Ford, PA
eskarzenski -at- dttus -dot- com
