About Text

The words on the page look the way they do because of the fonts you use when you type the text in your software program. Fonts are sets of characters (uppercase and lowercase letters, numerals, and punctuation marks) with a particular design or look to them. Each font has a name, such as Times New Roman or Creepy.

Choosing Fonts

When you’re choosing fonts, you can think of them in these groups:

■Serif fonts have tags (tails) on the letters, which lead your eye from one character to the next. Serif fonts are good for blocks of text.

■Sans serif fonts have no tags. Their clean lines make them ideal for headlines and other large text.

■Special-purpose fonts. These include decorative and script fonts usually used as special effects for small amounts of text in large sizes.

Serif

Sans serif

Special purpose

Handy Hints

SOME LETTERS LOOK LIKE PICTURES

Wingdings are symbol (or picture) fonts that you type using the letter or number keys on your keyboard. You format them like text—you can add color, change their size, and so on.

But how do you know which letter or number to type for a picture?

Make a chart! Simply type every letter and number on your keyboard twice, on two lines, one beneath the other. Make all the text big enough so the pictures will be clear— 30-point text works well. Then highlight every other line and format it as Wingdings.

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