Google Fonts Blog
News and updates from the Google Fonts team
Navigate the font directory more easily and submit your fonts
Thursday, October 28, 2010
To make it easier for you to navigate all the tools and documentation that are part of the Font API we have created a unified navigation for the directory.
The directory pages now show a new dropdown menu at the top that takes you to our
documentation pages
,
blog
,
previewer
and other tools very quickly. Don’t forget to check out our new
chrome extension
as well.
Submit your
font or
tell us where you have used the Font API
In the new navigation you will also find two new forms we have created for you. If you are a font designer and would like to see your font as part of the directory
fill out our font submission form
and tell us about it.
Have you created a website and used the Font API in a creative way? We would love to
hear about that
, too.
We are working hard to improve our service and the directory. If you have any suggestions you can always give us feedback on our
moderator page
.
By Marc Tobias Kunisch, Webmaster for the Font API Team
Interview with Danh Hong, designer of Hanuman
Tuesday, October 26, 2010
As you may know, the Google Font team recently launched a small handful of non-latin fonts in the
Google Font Directory
, including
Cyrillic
,
Greek
and
Khmer
. We recently got a hold of Khmer font designer, Danh Hong, to describe his Cambodian font
Hanuman
and what went into and motivated its creation.
Q: What inspired you to create the
Hanuman
font?
It comes from my inspiration to have high quality Khmer fonts for both computers and mobile devices. My Khmer language is complex, and the typeface is rich. So I thought the new font technology we have today can help people to use the Khmer language on their computers and devices, and can save Khmer culture in digital age. Windows ships with a Khmer font, but it is small and hard to read. However, Mac OS X and the iPhone don’t ship with a Khmer font yet, and these products are getting usage in the Cambodian market.
Q: Did you try to accomplish something specific with this font, and did you succeed?
The challenge with Khmer is that it has many levels (above and below) so Khmer paragraph’s take up more vertical space than the same paragraph in English. My goal was to compress the Khmer letters so they would be compatible or similar to the metrics of English characters. I also wanted to merge OpenType and AAT together, so this behavior works with all Windows, Linux and Mac OS X devices.
Q: What kinds of documents are most appropriate for this font?
Because it is similar size to English text, it is best for scenarios that have a mix of Khmer and English text. I think it is good for books, daily newspapers and dictionaries. And because it is serif, it looks good for formal letters as well.
Q: Designing a new font is a long journey. What inspires you to keep motivated throughout all the different stages?
The creativity makes me feel happy. I always feel good when I can do new things, and my life is meaningful.
Q: What is your favourite part of the type design process, and why?
This is a difficult question! My favorite part is always changing. For old TrueType fonts, creating new typeface is interesting, but for OpenType, the “smart” behavior embedded into fonts is my favorite. I also enjoy hinting, because it can make the text clear to read.
Q: Can you recommend how other type designers can learn the skills involved in making Khmer fonts?
I recommend that potential Khmer type designers to learn Khmer art and old text, in addition to western typography. New things sometime come from mix between the traditional and modern technology.
Q: What are your favourite fonts, and why?
My favorites are handwriting fonts, because they are very natural.
Q: What do you think could be improved about the type design process?
Hinting is always hard work. Right now, there doesn’t exist an auto hinting tool that can do better than hand, but I think it is possible in the future.
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