Typography Tuesday
This week we make a little nostalgic visit to 1983 (this is really just nostalgic for our department head Max, who was completing his undergraduate degree at the time, but we’ll play along), with this helpful manual, Typeface Classification, put out by Compugraphic Corporation. Produced for its customers, Compugraphic states:
The building of a strongly competitive, working type library is one of the most important decisions a customer has to make. To assist you in getting the best results from your type, please review this booklet of basic tips and considerations for ordering type. . . . you always have Compugraphic quality and attention to detail behind each and every type order.
The manual proceeds to offer definitions, the difference between text and display, an explanation of x-heights, various type categories, the mixing of typeface families, the concept of complements, and the use of kerning and compensation. And remember, “Revision D software and a minimum of 256K memory are required to operate kerning.”
Compugraphic Corporation (cg) was founded in 1960 in Wilmington, Massachusetts, as a major producer of typesetting systems and phototypesetting equipment. Five years after this manual was published, the company was no more, being acquired and absorbed by the European multinational corporation Agfa-Gevaert.
Typeface Classification is yet another fine donation from our friend and benefactor Jerry Buff.
View our other Typography Tuesday posts.
