Typography

Member lesson

Open source type

Lesson 26 of 34 in Typography.

The Open Font License, purpose, achievements, future · River Valley Technologies
Lesson

There is now a large body of genuinely good open source type, much of it funded by large companies and distributed without charge. Some of it is excellent, some is thin in weights or language coverage, and the quality varies more than a curated shop's catalogue does.

.glyphs · sourceotfprint · desktopttfdesktop · appswoff2web · smallestthe licence, not the file, decides where it may go
One source file exported to the formats print and web each need.
An open box of letter shapes with an open padlock, a hand redrawing one shape, and the redrawn shape wearing a different coloured tag from the original.
A hand takes letters from an open box, redraws one and ties a new coloured tag to it. Open source fonts are free to use and change, but a changed version needs a new name.
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Members answer these 3 questions and keep the ticket for this lesson. Every lesson has one.

  1. Question 1, locked

    Which of these words means this? “The most widely used licence for free fonts. Permits use, modification and redistribution.”

    • Open font licence
    • Readability
    • cpl
    • River
  2. Question 2, locked

    Which of these words means this? “A clause requiring a modified version to be renamed.”

    • Calligraphy
    • Conjunct
    • Reserved font name
    • Matra
  3. Question 3, locked

    Which of these words means this? “Free to use and to change, rather than merely free of charge.”

    • Libre
    • Logotype
    • Bidirectional text
    • Vertical metrics

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