Typeface & Fonts

The style of the characters used to print a book is called a typeface. Most typefaces have three different versions: roman, bold and italics. Each of these has a specific use in typesetting.

The size of typeface should be no smaller than 12 point and no larger than 14. This is to accommodate thinner typefaces such as Times.

Typefaces with serifs such as Times, Bookman or Courier are much easier to read and are preferred. The serifs trick the eye into seeing a line where none exists, guiding it towards the next word. Compare the next two sentences, the first with serifs, the second sans serif.
The quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog.
The quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog.

Sans serif typefaces are mainly used in advertising or as an eye catching device. One proper use is in dictionaries where entries are in a sans serif typeface, sometimes bold, to make them stand out from the text. Some people prefer sans serif fonts for their division titles (as is the case in this manual).

Italics, not bold, not capitals, not quotation marks nor underlining should be used to emphasize a word. Emphasis should be used sparingly and only when the correct meaning could be misinterpreted or an unexpected or foreign word is used. Fowler [7] gives this example: ``It would be an ultimate benefit to the cause of morality to prove that honesty was the worst policy.''

The use of boldface type in the main matter is rare and should be restricted to headings, mathematical equations (see Chapter 9) and book indices. The last use is only to note page numbers where a concept is first defined.