![]() ![]() I realize that this might be scoffed at, given the sorta-libertarian tendency here in regards to copyright, the love of free and open-source programs, etc. There's a lot out there which is just bad, which is illegally copied or distributed, or which just doesn't work. Yes, type designers and type experts have vested interests in you paying for fonts, but that also means you get a complete font that is beautifully designed, containing all of the characters that you need, that you get it legally, and that you can get updates, assistance, etc. I'm not a professional typographer this is a hobby for me, but "one generally needs to pay to get quality fonts" is not really just a matter of opinion. Plus, it just looks so flat, which is a problem with a lot of modern digital faces. That's a good thing, but I wouldn't use it for anything where I wouldn't use TNR, which is to say most things, and Linux Libertine is exactly the same. Liberation is a replacement for TNR to break the stranglehold of system fonts and particularly Microsoft and Monotype, with the TNR-Arial-Calibri triumvirate. As I said, I really like EB Garamond, at least in theory, but the reality shows the shortcomings of free fonts. The fonts which would be legal to include with Gregorio on the web are thus limited, as you can't violate the license, and if it's not impossible to use a professional font in Gregorio on a computer (via BasicTeX or TeXLive and so on), then it'd be really, really difficult.Īll free fonts, whether you need to pay to get good fonts these days is also a matter of opinion. Why? Those faces were actually used for authentic Gregorian chant and look good. This is another reason why I'm not convinced that throwing our eggs in the Gregorio basket as such is good, not without a substantial grant to study Granjon, Plantin, and other early printers and finish the EB Garamond project, revive actual Plantin work (not the early twentieth century fonts inspired by his typefaces), and to digitize the type used by Solesmes and its associated printers. A professional font will also have a properly done "fi" ligature, which shows up often enough, even in lowercase when it's not in reference to the Son of God. The punctuation is too colorful, even though the letters are quite nice, it has small caps, and it has "ct" and "st" ligatures which make liturgical typesetting look just conservative enough without being hard to read, as much as I am a fan of the long initial and medial s that was supplanted by the "st" ligature. The ampersand, the quotation marks (including guillemets depending on how you typeset Latin), and the double punctuation marks (exclamation and question marks, colon, semi-colon) merit consideration ironically, this rules out Hoefler's Requiem font. Do you like the punctuation? It shouldn't stand out in a liturgical booklet, but it shouldn't be shockingly ugly, and the dagger and start need to be (at least) serviceable, else you'll be borrowing it from another font, which is just ridiculous considering the number of times that you'll use it. 4 (in old style figures) would make for a very elegant presentation of the introit for the Mass of Jesus Christ Eternal High Priest. Do you have old-style proportional figures, which can be used as a contrast to Roman numerals? For example, Ps CIX, v. Real small caps are generally de rigueur with professional fonts it's hit and miss with free fonts. ![]() The kerning, that is, the letter spacing, is set by the designer in a way that won't be entirely subject to the whim of your program and your OS's handling of type EB Garamond has this problem. ![]() Now, some free Google fonts have decent paid work behind them, but the reality is that free fonts tend to pale in comparison to professional fonts. That's not free, which is what upsets people, but you now have this font for a long, long time, if not for "life." You might need one display weight, which brings you out to 200€, and non-EU customers can get the VAT refunded apparently. Anything above that would now be included customarily, but it's inauthentic to traditional typography before the nineteenth century, so one can certainly do without. One need not purchase all of the weights text regular, italic and maybe medium are all that one would ordinarily need. There are only so many hours in a day, and things languish or are not seen as necessary, and when they are discovered, they take forever to insert. It is free and open-source, meaning that it is a pure labor of love, but with no financial incentive of any kind, it's not the designers' actual job. ![]()
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