So…last week I mentioned here that I love typography.
While Internet Explorer (IE) has supported the @font-face rule since v4.0. support was limited to embedded Open-Type fonts. While restricting browser support to embedded Open-Type fonts put limits on it’s use, the method of rendering a typeface on a web page by linking to a font file stored on the web was far-sighted. This allowed the font file to download to the user just like others file on the web site, rather than requiring that the font be installed on the user’s computer.
Three major browsers, including FireFox(FF), Opera and Safari, embraced the @font-face rule and eventually included support for rendering both Open-Type and True-Type formats without embedding, but copyright issues still caused controversy. All the cool fonts had licensing restrictions!
Developers and designers longed for the ability to utilize this rule without stepping on the proprietary rights of font designers and type foundries. Developers and designers who were now used to open source applications, began asking themselves: why can’t we have cool open source web fonts, too?
If you’re browsing this post in current versions of FireFox, Opera or Safari, the text of this paragraph is rendered in TrueType format of nicely flowing script by Typadelic called BlackJack. In Internet Explorer the text in this paragraph looks the same as other paragraphs in this post, only larger.
Slowly, the idea of open source typeface for use in web design took hold. Ahhh, sweetness!
While FFv3.5 included the @font-face rule for linking to either True-Type of Open-Type font files, of my favorite browser version 3.6 released on January 21st supports a revolution in web typography:
On January 21st Mozilla Foundation released version 3.6 of my favorite browser that included long-awaited support of a sweet type: the CSS @font-face rule for linking to WOFF.
Other rebel designers chose to support the Open Source Type Movement.
