Periodic

I designed the original Periodic as a pixel font on Fontstruct. As I played with the design, the more I fell in love with it. I like the idea of using the exposed pixel as a design element. Over the past few months, I’ve been tweaking it so that it would work better in print. And I’m using Periodic on my new business cards.

For the final version, I’ve connected the corners and broken the strict pixel grid for some of the special characters. The entire design is monospaced with old style numerals. I’ve also added an oblique version. It’s very readable at small sizes and distinct at display sizes. Get SbB Periodic from the “Download Fonts” section.

Pixels in Print

I’ve been wanting to get Sketchbook B business cards for a while. And I wanted to use my own fonts for the identity system. I’ve played around with several different looks, but never pulled the trigger and ordered them. Finally, my new cards are printed and they use two typefaces that started life on Fontstruct: SbB Dradis Alpha and Periodic.

I just released the SbB Dradis family. It’s an odd experimental display typeface that can be used without spaces in between the letters. I’ve updated the masthead on the site with a new Sketchbook B logo in Dradis.

Periodic is a monospaced, pixel font with old style numerals that I designed to be used in print. For most designs, visible pixels are a no-no, but I think they add some texture and interest. I’m using a version of Periodic that I’m still tweaking. It’s a refined version of the one I quietly released on FontStruct. Once I finish polishing Periodic, I’ll release it here.

FontStruct on iPad

I love my iPad. And I really don't care about the fact that iOS doesn't support Flash. With one exception... I'd like to run FontStruct on my iPad.

The other day, I found iSwifter for the iPad. It's essentially an alternate browser that allows you to open websites with Flash. It's "free" to try, but if you want to use it for more than a few minutes you have to pay $0.99.

And using it, I was able to open FontStruct on my iPad and create a typeface. It's slow - really slow - but it works. The real problem is that FontStruct isn't designed for a touch interface. The controls are too small. And it's very hard to be precise. After creating a few characters, I gave up. For FontStruct to work well on iOS - or any tablet - it's going to need an interface redesign. It's more than simply supporting Flash.

So I'm still waiting for FontStruct on my iPad (and I'm very willing to pay for an iOS app.)