Fonts are software - and should be updated from time to time. "We always work with the latest versions," the technical managers proudly state when asked about the software used. And the fonts? They either "slipped into the company" with orders or come from the font library that a former employee procured years ago. What about keeping them up to date? Fonts are software too - and need to be updated from time to time! Type 1 - the original animal
The first qualitatively usable PC fonts were the PostScript Type 1 fonts - commonly known as PostScript fonts. Adobe developed this font format at the beginning of the 1980s. These PostScript fonts always consist of an outline and font metrics file for output as well as for display on the screen. With this generation of fonts, WYSIWYG (what you see is what you get) was introduced to computers. Unfortunately, the operating systems were not inherently capable of handling this font format. This required the Type Manager (ATM) developed by Adobe.
Today, the operating systems Mac OS X and Windows (since Windows 2000) handle these fonts without any problems - even without ATM. However, with almost twenty years under its belt, this font format no longer meets today's requirements.
TrueType - the challenger
Adobe did not disclose the specifications of Type 1 for a long time. This is probably why the competition (Apple and Microsoft) launched their own font format, TrueType, on the market - with full support in their own operating systems, of course. In contrast to Type 1, a TrueType font only requires one file. The number of glyphs (appearance; see box "Glyphs") is also not limited to 1 byte (= 28 = 256 possibilities/glyphs) - TrueType fonts can contain up to 6000 glyphs.
Unfortunately, this format had the disadvantage that the first PostScript-based output computers (Rips) did not directly support TrueType. It was only with PostScript version Level 2 that Adobe introduced the TrueType rasterizer and thus solved the output problem. TrueType has had a bad reputation ever since, and wrongly so.
OpenType - the best of both worlds
Complicated handling, limited number of glyphs, poor output support: Adobe and Microsoft recognized these shortcomings and introduced the OpenType font format in 1996. The development goal was to create a font format that combines all the advantages of previous font formats and is also platform-neutral. From a technical point of view, OpenType fonts can carry a TrueType or Type 1 outline internally.
However, the spread of OpenType still leaves a lot to be desired. Yet OpenType offers many advantages:
- up to 65536 glyphs per font
- Platform neutrality (run under Mac and Windows operating systems without conversion)
- One font per file is sufficient
- ATM no longer necessary
- Unicode as a basis (see under "Unicode - and everyone understands each other")
- many typographic functions (ligatures, breaks etc.)
Adobe itself has converted its entire font library into OpenType. Linotype, which belongs to the printing press manufacturer Heidelberg, also offers a large collection of OpenType fonts. Other font companies are also gradually offering OpenType versions of their fonts.
OpenType in practical use
Adobe InDesign was the first application with full OpenType support. This means that not only can an OpenType font be used for typesetting, but OpenType font functions can also be accessed. A popular function here are the "real" fractions. Fraction digits are simply given a different ID and they are set typographically correct. Even "real" small caps are no problem in this way. Figures for tables and running text are impressive and/or have long been missed by former lead typesetters. Thanks to OpenType, numerals with ascenders and descenders (oldstyle numerals) are available again on request.
To select and access the characters, Adobe has built a glyph palette into InDesign and Illustrator. Double-clicking on the desired glyph inserts it at the text cursor position. The situation with the QuarkXpress layout program is still bleak. Although Xpress "sees" the first 256 glyphs of an OpenType font thanks to the operating system, the software is blind to the functions as such. Nevertheless, the use of OpenType is also recommended under Xpress.
Unicode - and everyone understands each other
In the case of Type 1 fonts, for example, the so-called ASCII code was responsible for encoding the characters. However, this encoding has the disadvantage that it is platform-dependent. This has changed with the Unicode encoding, which assigns a unique code to every character in every written language. Apple and Microsoft support Unicode - and since OpenType is based on Unicode, this font format is also platform-independent. Anyone who also wants to keep their data ready for future applications (multiple data use) should definitely look into Unicode now.
Manage fonts
If you only manage a few fonts under Mac OS X and Windows XP today, the font directories of the operating systems are sufficient. These support fonts in Type 1, TrueType and OpenType format. If you reach the limits of this software, you should use professional font management programs.
Software provider Extensis offers two tools, Suitcase and Fontreserve: Suitcase should, however, be used with caution according to current knowledge - especially if the auto-activation plug-in is activated, as this is responsible for various system problems. Extensis Fontreserve is recommended for large environments. The font management program Fontagent Pro from Insider Software is very popular and reliable under Mac OS X.
The glyph palette in InDesign and Illustrator helps when dealing with many glyphs.
Adobe InDesign gets everything from the OpenType fonts, even "real" fractions are no problem. The functions that are not in square brackets are accessible for each font.
Adobe delivers over 100 OpenType styles with the Creative Suite. This makes it easier to get started in the new font world.
Glyphs p charactersGlyphs and characters are not the same thing. With OpenType you have to be aware of this. For example, the characters f + i can be set as capitals, as ligatures or as lowercase letters. The characters are then the same, but the glyphs (the appearance) are not. The glyph is therefore the current appearance of a character.
Each glyph form has a unique identification, the glyph ID - not to be confused with the Unicode value of the character. An OpenType function is now based on changing the glyph ID. In InDesign, the functions are accessible in the palette menu of the control element. Depending on the font, there are more or less implemented OpenType functions; functions that are not accessible are marked with square brackets in Adobe applications.
"Special fonts"
CID fonts: CID fonts became known with Adobe InDesign. This font format is used for direct PDF export from Illustrator and InDesign. However, older rips (raster image processors) do not support this format, which requires updates.
.dfont: Unfortunately, this Apple font format is used as the system font under Mac OS X. The output works well with the "data fork fonts", but documents cannot be output directly when switching platforms. (hu)
Haeme Ulrich

Trade press It is as well-known among lawyers as the cult among advertisers: the bimonthly magazine for law and politics Plädoyer, for which publisher René Schuhmacher commissioned the Zurich agency Hesskiss for the subscription campaign. Their simple yet unusual basic idea: to encourage celebrities who have come into conflict with the law to use Plädoyer. The first motif is aimed at the Basel financial juggler Dieter Behring, who receives a free trial number with the rather cheeky question: Who can actually afford not to subscribe to Plädoyer? At the time of going to press, it had not yet been decided who would be allowed to answer this question after Behring.

Column The 1960s are a thing of the past, but the spectre of manipulation through subliminal advertising continues to haunt many minds. During my studies, I was deeply impressed by American advertiser Vance Packard's bestseller "Hidden Persuaders". Among other things, he told the story of James Vicary's "research". In 1956, in a movie theater in Fort Lee, New Jersey, he infiltrated the Kim Novak film "Picnic" with messages every five seconds that flashed so briefly that they could not be consciously perceived. The quasi-commands were "Drink Coca-Cola" and "Eat popcorn". Allegedly, sales of Coke rose by 18 percent and those of popcorn by 58 percent.politicians responded to this challenge. The German Interstate Broadcasting Treaty states: "No subliminal techniques may be used in advertising". In the United States, subliminal advertising has been banned since 1974. There was the famous rat case. During the 2000 election campaign, the word "rats" appeared for a fraction of a second in a Republican commercial. Naturally, the Democratic candidate Al Gore sued. It eventually turned out that a snippet of the word "bureaucrats" had accidentally been left over during editing. The case was dropped.
But steps have also been taken against subliminal TV advertising in the new Russia. There is a broadcasting ministry there that has specially developed a complicated apparatus to detect such advertising. One broadcaster in Yekaterinburg has already been convicted as a result. The consequence: license revocation.
As you can see: Political leaders are taking action - on both sides. Occasionally, however, because of real problems rather than mere myths. The embarrassing thing is that the aforementioned James Vicary admitted in an interview with Advertising Age in 1962 that the original experiment described by Packard never actually took place. However, the well-invented story is still being perpetuated.
This does not mean that feelings cannot be subliminally influenced at all. A Swedish researcher alternately preceded portraits of beautiful women with images of spiders, snakes or another beautiful woman. The result: the test subjects found those women in front of whom reptiles and insects were shown for a few milliseconds to be more attractive.
less beautiful.
However, this controversial method cannot be used for commercial communication. The German magazine Psychologie heute recently published all the empirical research findings on this subject. "Unconscious stimuli are only processed if they match our intentions", Bielefeld psychologists have discovered. Subliminal advertising messages - whether for popcorn or alcopops - should be effective precisely when the moviegoer or television viewer has no
has a specific plan of action. The usability of subliminal stimuli for advertising purposes is therefore simply a myth.
However, he fitted into an era in which people claimed and believed that they did not live, but were lived. From Sigmund Freud and his sorcerer's apprentices, more and more otherwise intelligent contemporaries believe they have to learn that man is not master in his own house, but that he is controlled by unconscious and unconsciously controlled people.
is controlled by instincts. Cultural scientists can develop the most fantastic theories based on this thesis. Advertisers, on the other hand, who are supposed to provide verifiable services for the economy, should also remain sober and rational in this matter.
> Peter Glotz is a publicist and Professor Emeritus of Media Management at the University of St. Gallen.

Real estate Cavegnwerbung has realized the first TV spots for the Zurich construction business Robert Spleiss AG.Spleiss builds on Cavegnwerbung. "The Zurich construction company Robert Spleiss AG not only builds with heart and mind. It also advertises that way," Markus Cavegn puts it. The advertiser in Zurich's West End was asked by the young company boss Christian R. Spleiss whether he could create a new type of advertising for his well-known family business. In three formally surprising TV spots, Spleiss now shows in a witty and memorable way that even in construction you don't have to do without happy endings, special effects and skillful stunts. With written panels like the old silent movie, each strip begins with the announcement: "Spleiss presents its latest commercial". As a "special effect" you can then see how a sinker finds its straight line within seconds, accompanied by the text: "We stand up for our quality at all times." The film "Happy End" shows two bricks being joined together. The claim: "For connections that last forever." In the stunt film, a shovel full of bricks flies into the air.
plaster through the air and lands precisely on a construction trowel. Accompanied by the text: "We only build with the best ingredients."
Pure image advertising
Of course, Christian R. Spleiss doesn't believe that he can bring in concrete orders with these spots. "This is pure image advertising. I want to dust off the industry with ideas like this," says the master builder, whose company has so far only been involved with brochures or information events for engineers or other
re has recruited prospective builders. Spleiss is convinced that these
spots now unmistakably manifest "mark in a displacement market". The construction company employs 400 people and is active in the greater Zurich area in building construction, mainly residential.
The three TV spots will run on TeleZüri from April. Solid & Hallerfilm supervised the production for Cavegn. Werner Haltinner was the director.
The construction company Robert Spleiss AG not only builds with heart and mind - recently it has also been advertising like this.
Andreas Panzeri

Writing helps us to communicate - in the past, today and in the future.writing can convey feelings, evoke moods or attitudes to life in us. A chalkboard for "Fresh vegetables" is simply more credible than a marble plaque advertising fresh vegetables in Roman letters. A restaurant sign designed in English cursive promises us a different culinary experience than one written in Fraktur. Could we trust a daily newspaper printed in the childish-looking handwriting of the editor-in-chief? As we want and need to make our messages ever more precise, we need ever new and diversified message carriers, i.e. typefaces. There should be at least as many different fonts as there are feelings and moods - in other words, an infinite number. as long as we communicate by means of language and need or want to convey texts in some form, we will need new fonts. Only on the day when we are able to communicate telepathically will we no longer need new scripts. However, nobody can say today how telepathic communication will work in the future. Perhaps this will also happen by means of written or pictorial characters, in which case someone will have to design these characters too. But typography will always exist.
Tools for font designersFont-Studio - the old-timer from Letraset - is still popular because the program is very stable and fast. Unfortunately, the program is no longer distributed and no longer maintained.
Fontographer from Macromedia is probably the most widely used workhorse for font design. It is also quite robust, but unfortunately does not run under Mac OS X, but only under the Classic emulation. Fontographer is still sold, but is no longer maintained, which is really unfortunate.
FontLab is the latest font software with very extensive options. The training period is correspondingly longer. It is possible to develop OpenType fonts in FontLab. This makes the program the best investment for the future.
All programs exist in versions for different operating systems. All three programs can (unfortunately) be used to open and (illegally) modify existing fonts. There are also other font design programs, but these are intended more for professional use. For the sake of completeness, it should also be mentioned that there are semi-automatic font scanning programs and similar kerning programs.
Script
... is the generic term for all writings that attempt to imitate handwriting. Before book printing was invented, scribes laboriously copied books by hand in so-called "scriptoria". This made books a luxury item and prevented the masses from acquiring education and knowledge.
Legal matters
Anyone who buys a font does not acquire the design, but only the limited right of use. As a rule, the font may only be
be used on a computer. It may neither be used free of charge nor
be redistributed for a fee. As a rule, the document may only be passed on to a repro house in order to carry out the current order. The person who passes on the document for this purpose must ensure that the copy is destroyed again after use.
Note: A type designer has to design over 250 characters per typeface. Assuming an average working time of just one hour per character, that's 32 working days or six weeks. For a normal set of four fonts, we are talking about half a year's work. Anyone who uses fonts without paying for them should always bear this amount of work in mind. (gw)
Gert Wiescher

Forecast The professional register of the Swiss Public Relations Association has published details of its annual member survey for the first time. 77 of the 250 registered professionals have given their assessment of the industry's development in 2005. 36.4 percent expect PR budgets to rise, slightly more than in 2004. Only 2.6 percent expect budgets to fall, compared to 23.5 percent in the previous year.

Ethics The Swiss Press Association warns: More mixing of editorial and commercial content. Take 20 Minuten, for example.20 Minuten has often made its cover pages available for advertising. On April 5, however, the day after the soft relaunch, the commuter newspaper came up with an innovation: For the first time, a company, in this specific case Orange, was able to design the third and fourth cover pages upside down so that they came across as the front page and page 2 of the commuter paper - headlines, "News" and pictures only for Orange. Only when you turned the newspaper over did you see the editorial front page. In some places (perhaps everywhere?), however, the sheets were placed in the boxes so that the wrong front was facing upwards. The whole thing also had a flaw: neither of the two orange pages was labeled as an advertisement.Rolf Bollmann, Managing Director of the Tamedia title 20 Minuten, confirms "the mistake". However, the declaration had not been deliberately omitted and the newspapers had not been placed upside down. "It wasn't a requirement from Orange either," he says to the major customer. As proof, he points to the past: "So far, we have always declared it properly."
A piquant fact: just a few days earlier, the Ethics Department of the Swiss Press Association (VSP) had pointed out the frequent lack of differentiation between editorial services and commercial advertising. This was the first statement ever (!) from the department, which has been in existence for three and a half years. In it, it refers to Principle 3.12 of the Swiss Commission on Fair Trading, which requires a clear and visible separation and labeling of editorial and advertising. The department also calls for transparency. "The primary and non-negotiable requirement is always: no deception of the reader must be permitted."
There was no single, immediate reason for this warning, says department head Guido Weber on request. "However, there has been a general increase in misunderstandings, which are the most important problem in our department. We are also receiving more and more inquiries from our members," says Weber.
There are other indications that the issue is topical: The Fairness Commission recently demanded that a title separate editorial and paid content more clearly. Specifically, it concerned publicity reports that were labeled as such in the newspaper in question, but were published in the same layout as editorial articles (see WW 9/05). The same case is still pending before the Press Council.
A conference of the Swiss Society for Communication and Media Studies (SGKM) will also be held in Winterthur on April 8 and 9. Among other things, the conference will focus on the relationship of tension and dependency between PR and journalistic quality. Information at www.iam.zhwin.ch/sgkm/.
Second front: The Orange ad looks exactly like 20 minutes.
Markus Knöpfli

The jury for the "Award Corporate Communications 2005 - Best Practice" has been selected and the organizer Headline (Kommunikationsclub Aargau/Solothurn) has engaged a number of recognized experts: Norbert Winistörfer (Head of the Institute for Corporate Communications at the University of Applied Sciences Solothurn Northwestern Switzerland), Ellen Meyrat-Schlee (Director of the Department of Design at the University of Applied Sciences Aargau Northwestern Switzerland), Roberto Rivola (Head of Communications Bakom), Stefan Nünlist (Head of Communications Swisscom) and Urs Lüthi (Publishing Director Vogt-Schild/Habegger Medien). Headline is launching this award to celebrate its 50th anniversary. Concepts can be submitted until July 31, 2005. They will be judged by the jury on their integrated approach and successful implementation. The award ceremony will take place on September 13.

Award Lowe Direct, Zurich, took bronze at the German Dialog Marketing Award. For the first time in years, a Swiss agency was among the medal winners of the direct marketing competition, to which a total of 468 campaigns were submitted. From Switzerland, 13 agencies sent in 19 entries.
Lowe Direct won bronze with a three-stage mailing for its client Orange Communications SA. The aim of the campaign was to invite as many VIPs, business partners, CEOs and other celebrities as possible to an Orange event on the eve of the Swiss national holiday.
Gregor Juritz (CD/text), Anita Lussmann-Aragao (AD) and Martin Stauch (graphics) achieved this with a cheeky play of colors: von Lowe. They transformed the classic Swiss red of the national flag into Pantone 151, the corporate color of orange. Small flags, lanterns, candles and matches were used as door opener elements and later as decoration - all in orange instead of red.
The new DDV President Dieter Weng praised the Zurich bronze work (gold was not awarded in the International Campaigns category) as "surprising, cheeky and charming". What's more, the Orange campaign worked: the response rate was an impressive 38.5 percent. However, the Swiss winners at the DDV Gala had one negative aspect: Because they had saved the travel costs to Berlin, no one from Lowe was able to accept the trophy. Astonished murmurs among almost 1000 guests. The only one of 44 "Direct Oscars" now has to be sent by post. Incidentally, the winner of the evening was OgilvyOne Worldwide with twelve awards.
The German Direct Marketing Association showed a new sign of life with the gala in Berlin's Kabelwerk. For over a year, the association had been making negative headlines. There were intrigues, lawsuits and dismissals. Today, around 850 DDV members are registered at the Wiesbaden headquarters and President Dieter Weng, who was elected at the end of January, has managed to generate new enthusiasm in the direct marketers' club. The man knows how it works: As Marketing Director at Reemtsma, Dieter Weng put Cigarette West on the road to success via Formula 1.
Orange instead of red: the mailing from Lowe Direct.
Peter Ehm

The Kreuzlingen-based printing and publishing company Bodan AG acquired a majority stake in Werd Verlag at the end of March. Bodan CFO Urban Ruckstuhl and Gregory Zäch, owner of Zurich-based Midas Verlag, are also directly involved. Zäch managed Werd Verlag from September 2004 to the end of February 2005 and is once again taking over the operational management. Bodan AG, which like Thurgauer Tagblatt AG is majority-owned by the Ruckstuhl family, is also acquiring a significant minority stake in Midas Verlag at the same time.

Media policy The Foreign Affairs Committee of the National Council opposes the planned cuts to SRG's foreign service Swissinfo and maintains "the public mandate regarding Swissinfo as a priority task of SRG". The opinion was adopted by 16 votes to 7. In the opinion of the majority of the Commission, the services must be maintained at their current level. It declared itself not responsible for the financial aspects.

Acquisition Creo announces that on March 29, 2005, the company's shareholders approved all proposals submitted to a vote and voted in favor of the proposed acquisition of Creo by Eastman Kodak Company. www.creo.com