to hate people who defend C*m*c S*ans with no facts

[tokyonambu]

So, the BBC have another article, linking to bancomicsans, giving the highlights of the objections to the typographic cancer of our times. In the comments, Louise, a teacher from the West Midlands (hi!) writes:

As a teacher Comic Sans is an easy to read font, especially for pupils with learning difficulties as it is the only font to use a 'hand writing style' letter a.

(My bold).

The only font, eh? Well, I'm not sure why an "a" with a simple downstroke is the sine qua non of easy reading, nor that you shouldn't aim for people to be able to read common fonts. But it's not true anyway: Century Gothic, or, if we want something everyone has seen Futura. Which is now used for Ikea catalogues, hence its ubiquity.

There are plenty of reasons to ignore Comic Sans snobs, although I confess there was a time when I had my email filters set to automatically discard any message that used it on the grounds that it was probably from an idiot. But please, find a better excuse than "I think fonts should have this magic property and it's the only one".

TNR lovers = uptight conformists

so - - just caught up with the thread

Is Tahoma 11pt ok to use for the church newsletter.......Verdana is just too long at the same size.

Times New Roman is just old and nasty now imo.

Comic sands is one of the few fonts recommended for people with dyslexia as it is easier to read.

since reading this thread I have realised that one of my close friends also uses comic sans

She is a YR1 TA if that makes a difference......

Comic Sans walks into a bar.

The barman says: we don't serve your type in 'ere...

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!

For the record, I hate comic sans, but I used to like setting books in Book Antigua. And I did used to over-use Franklin Gothic Book.

I am now a Tahoma person.

Oh wonderful. I had no idea that fonts mattered!

I often use Georgia. Does this make me an arse?

I. Had. No. Idea -- I am definitely a fan of serifs though...

Times New Roman for me. Or Utopia, Cambria, Constantia.

I got a letter from the midwife in comic sans. Horror upon horror. Do I really want to trust the birth of my first child to someone who uses such an unprofessional and immature typeface?

No matter how well trained you are, image is everything, from font to clothing. Would you turn up to a job interview in tracksuit bottoms? I think not. You'd look like an eejit, even if your CV was littered with PhDs from Oxbridge and Harvard. Same applies to comic sans. The teenage tracksuit bottoms of the typeface world.

There is no such thing as a bad typeface, just bad typography. For example using a typeface designed to solve one problem for another unrelated problem. Comic sans was designed to be a screen font to appear only for one partcular programme, but has since taken over the world for the reasons mentioned above.

Ikea have ditched futura (as if anyone cares) and are using - I think - verdana.

Am very pleased this thread is still going, was feeling rather despondent after reading the 'is my port cullis bigger than yours thread'.
The dashes in my earlier post were em dashes. I held the hyphen key down for too long! I love the fact that my iPhone gives me that option.

Loving your work slightly

I love this thread.

Oh joy, have just re joined mn for this thread alone! As a massive type geek I take great pleasure in joining you as I utterly detest comic sans with a passion. I tell all my year 12 graphics students that should I ever catch them even considering to use the font in their design work then I shall not only fail them instantly but will probably also beat them with a 1996 letraset catalogue. Oh and I do judge people who use it and I'm not ashamed to admit it.

Wingdings is right out and courier looks rubbish-lets hear it for Arial!

Oh WHY did I miss this thread yesterday.

I love it so much.

I loathe Comic Sans. It really is the font of fools.

(I am slightly gutted that one of my favourite MNers Bucharest has come out on the side of CS but I am sure I can let it slide).

I JUDGE adults who choose to use this font. I agree with baloon slayer that it is a font equivalent of the circular slow handwriting that travel 'consultants' use, and the thick girls in fifth form who put circles above the i's.

I use Tahoma myself.

Or Arial.

I remember when I moved to Cheltenham and I was looking for junior schools, and one of the ones I visited had a sign outside saying 'St Mary's Primary School', Headteacher Mrs Mandy Forbes in COMIC SANS. What the bloody hell is all that about? How can you have an Oustanding Ofsted with that monstrosity in the car park?

I have also just rejoined for this thread :) DH is a primary school teacher and his school use it as default font for everything. We have had 'discussions' about this - even if you're a primary school teacher it looks inappropriately infantile, IMO, when you're emailing the local paper or the DFE. I changed his email settings but all the rest of them still merrily use it.

Meanwhile, I'm writing a book and normally use Helvetica on my screen but, having read the thread and tried out a few new ones, I've switched to Verdana which I'm loving. Thanks, font people :)

"Comic sands is one of the few fonts recommended for people with dyslexia as it is easier to read."

Yes, I always think that clowns on the beach make a summer holiday.

And inability to spell sans aside, do you have the slightest evidence for the Comic Sans / Dyslexia link? It's received wisdom in primary schools, but I'm not aware of any remotely credible studies showing it's true.

Tell me this thread isn't going to kick off ? I was so happy here...

how spiteful

Oh and Getorf - a headmistress called Mandy is just plain WRONG.

Comic Sans incites violence. I'm sure of it, it's possibly responsible for the increase of bad behaviour in our schools. There was no besd until comic sans was used so freely in our primary schools.

What font does mumsnet use?

Please don't mention clowns, they are scary.