Type and Fonts

I recently completed a "lunch and learn" for a client about using fonts for online media. I was talking about using PowerPoint to make effective presentations, but the principles are the same since presentations are normally projected at screen resolution using either a VGA projector or monitor. To summarize the advice, I asserted that sans-serif fonts are best for online use because modern fonts such as Calibri, Helvetica, Verdana, Century Gothic, Tahoma and a whole host of fonts from Adobe that are delivered in their Technical Communications and Creative Suites are designed to be presented and look good (and readable) at lower resolutions. Serif fonts are fine for body type at printer resolutions (say 300 dpi and up), but sans fonts are better for screen resolutions typically below 100 dpi. Traditional wisdom is that serifs, or type "hints," aid in readability, especially in font sets that do not have other distinguishing characteristics for differences such as lower case "L" versus upper case "i." In many sans-serif variations, they look the same. However, modern readers are able to distinguish these differences in context. After all, we are all becoming speed readers, gleaning meaning from a quick scan rather than a leisurely word-by-word interpretation. Such is the case for help systems. Modern help systems use sans-serif fonts for both body and headings. This is a trend based on today's reader preferences. I see no reason to buck that trend. I recommend the font sets I mentioned above, or any like them. They should be crisp and clear, without ornamentation or needless curlicues. They should not look crowded or densely packed in the help topic. Don't use type smaller than 8 points for most typefaces. Distinguish your headings with larger and bolder type, typically set in the CSS and managed by the HAT.