Comments on: Short cuts for 2009-03-17 http://blog.frankwales.com/2009/03/17/short-cuts-14/ Thu, 08 Apr 2010 10:17:53 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.com/ By: Frank http://blog.frankwales.com/2009/03/17/short-cuts-14/#comment-209 Frank Wed, 18 Mar 2009 20:22:07 +0000 http://blog.frankwales.com/?p=293#comment-209 I do agree that the "Periodic Table" idea is often massively misunderstood by non-chemists, who just think it's a distinctively-shaped-yet-inscrutible table for stuff, not realizing that its shape is determined by the properties of atoms, and the properties of other things would necessarily make their Periodic Tables different. Of course, if they created a Periodic Table of typefaces properly, it wouldn't look like the PT of elements, and so the visual analogy would be lost. The font table does at least group the fonts by family, and seems to be following the broad groupings found in Mendeleev's table; the positioning of 'Humanist' looks to me to map onto non-metals, for example. But then, I don't think the creator of the table is claiming to be revealing profound insights into how fonts relate to one another; I just included it as an amusing visual trinket. It's like when people focus on the letters ACGT, or a schematic drawing of the double-helix, to mean 'genetics', as if genetics was *about* letters or molecules. Don't even get me started on those who think it makes sense to embed or seek hidden messages in DNA using As, Cs, Gs and Ts. I do agree that the “Periodic Table” idea is often massively misunderstood by non-chemists, who just think it’s a distinctively-shaped-yet-inscrutible table for stuff, not realizing that its shape is determined by the properties of atoms, and the properties of other things would necessarily make their Periodic Tables different.

Of course, if they created a Periodic Table of typefaces properly, it wouldn’t look like the PT of elements, and so the visual analogy would be lost.

The font table does at least group the fonts by family, and seems to be following the broad groupings found in Mendeleev’s table; the positioning of ‘Humanist’ looks to me to map onto non-metals, for example.

But then, I don’t think the creator of the table is claiming to be revealing profound insights into how fonts relate to one another; I just included it as an amusing visual trinket.

It’s like when people focus on the letters ACGT, or a schematic drawing of the double-helix, to mean ‘genetics’, as if genetics was *about* letters or molecules. Don’t even get me started on those who think it makes sense to embed or seek hidden messages in DNA using As, Cs, Gs and Ts.

]]> By: Ian Payton http://blog.frankwales.com/2009/03/17/short-cuts-14/#comment-207 Ian Payton Wed, 18 Mar 2009 17:21:26 +0000 http://blog.frankwales.com/?p=293#comment-207 I can see what they're trying to do with the Periodic Table of Typefaces, but it doesn't really work for me. With the Periodic Table of Elements, there are similarities of characteristics for adjacent elements - especially those that are vertically adjacent. Other than the higher numbered fonts getting in some sense "heavier" towards the end of the table, I don't see how the fonts relate to each other. Perhaps I'm missing something. I'm certainly no font expert. I can see what they’re trying to do with the Periodic Table of Typefaces, but it doesn’t really work for me. With the Periodic Table of Elements, there are similarities of characteristics for adjacent elements – especially those that are vertically adjacent. Other than the higher numbered fonts getting in some sense “heavier” towards the end of the table, I don’t see how the fonts relate to each other. Perhaps I’m missing something. I’m certainly no font expert.

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