- What are Adobe Web Fonts?
- Adobe Web Fonts are a subset of the Adobe Type Library, currently over 290 fonts, which have been specifically developed to look great on screens, and are easily deployed on websites. See a list of Adobe Web Fonts here. Adobe Web Fonts provide designers and developers with a way to go well beyond the same old tired set of web-safe fonts and use type that is searchable, easily edited and easily switched to other fonts. With Adobe Web Fonts you no longer have to go through the tedious work of converting type to web formats and uploading to your site. Adobe Web Fonts, along with a selection of many other fonts from leading type foundries, are delivered dynamically to your site by our partners, Typekit and WebINK, resulting in a richer experience for your viewers — often with improved performance.
- What is Typekit?
- Typekit provides a subscription-based font service for web designers and developers. Adobe has chosen Typekit as a partner for web font delivery. With a Typekit account, you have access to library of fonts that you can use on just about any web site. This library features over 290 web fonts from the Adobe Type Library. Visit the Adobe page on the Typekit website here.
- What is WebINK?
- WebINK provides a subscription-based font service for web designers and developers. Adobe has chosen Extensis WebINK as a partner for web font delivery. With a WebINK account, you have access to a library of fonts that you can use on just about any web site. This library features over 290 web fonts from the Adobe Type Library.
- How does the Typekit service work?
- Once you've created an account, you choose the fonts you'd like to use and add two lines of code to your web pages. You can then control the display of those fonts by adding selectors within Typekit, or using Typekit's font-family names in your stylesheets. Typekit handles all the rest, including updating fonts as improvements are made and expanding to new browsers and devices as support for web fonts evolves.
- How does the WebINK Service Work?
- It's simple. Once you've created a WebINK account, create a Type Drawer, select the fonts you'd like to use, and integrate the CSS for the fonts into your site. You have precise control over how the fonts are used on your pages.
- What fonts can I use?
- WebINK and Typekit contain a wide variety of typefaces available from a progressive group of designers and foundries – including Adobe. Pricing with the right selection of fonts and features is available to fit any budget.
- Is this different from Cufon or SiFR?
- These technologies are earlier attempts to bring typography to the web with clever techniques for getting around the lack of browser support. They use either Flash or Javascript to redraw fonts on the page, giving designers some control at the cost of flexibility. Adobe Web Fonts from Typekit and WebINK use CSS's @font-face rule supported by modern browsers. Your pages will be completely text-based, with fonts applied to HTML text the same way standard fonts like Arial or Verdana are. This is great for search engine optimization, accessibility, translations, copy and pasting, and everything else that makes the web work so well.
- What if I hand code my web site?
- With WebINK, web fonts are integrated using the standard CSS @font-face rules. If you are familiar with the basics of CSS, you can easily integrate Adobe Web Fonts into your website with Extensis WebINK. Using Typekit, you include two links to JavaScript code that calls your fonts. With either method, you can include font names directly in your CSS font stacks, or use a default class name anywhere in your markup. You can even use either service when working on your local machine or in your development environment.
- What browsers are supported?
- Adobe Web Fonts work in most browsers that support the CSS @font-face rule. This includes Internet Explorer, Firefox, Safari and Chrome. Mobile browser technology is currently evolving and supported some newer versions. If a browser does not support @font-face technology, the fonts used to display the page fall back to the default fonts defined in your CSS font stacks. For the latest support, see the Typekit and WebINK browser support pages.
- Browser Support
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Browser Typekit WebINK Internet Explorer 6 and higher* experimental support for IE9 beta (see below) 6 and higher* Firefox 3.5 and higher; experimental support for FF4 beta 3.5 and higher Safari 3.1 and higher 3.1 and higher Chrome 4.0.249.4 and higher 4.0.249.4 and higher Opera 10.54 and higher on Windows and Mac OS 11 and higher iPhone & iPad mobile Safari iOS 4.2 and higher iOS 3-4.1**, iOS 4.2 and higher Android 2.2 and higher *Note: though web fonts from either service work in IE6, the websites where you choose and configure fonts do not work in IE6.
**Requires minor CSS code modifications to support SVG font downloads on older versions of iOS 3-4.1.
- Will this slow down my website?
- When you add Adobe Web Fonts to your web site, they'll be hosted on some of the fastest servers on the Internet. Both WebINK and Typekit feature global networks, with fonts hosted in multiple locations across the globe. Response times are constantly monitored and measured down to the millisecond. In most cases, the CSS and fonts served by either service will be faster than your own web pages.
- What if the fonts don't load?
- Adobe Web Fonts are served by Typekit and WebINK from redundant data centers worldwide to ensure fonts will always be available. In the unlikely event of a failure outside our partner's control, your website's text will be rendered with fallback fonts specified in your CSS font stack.
- So all these fonts are legal to use on the web?
- Using Adobe Web Fonts from our service partners, you can be confident that all of the fonts you have access to are licensed for web use.
- What is a "colophon?"
- Every kit in your Typekit account comes with a colophon—an automatically-updated page that shows your users what fonts you've chosen. You can choose to show this from a small, inconspicuous badge in the corner of your site. (The badge is mandatory if you subscribe only to the "Free" Typekit library.) The page displays a specimen of each font you're using, as well as a brief description of both the font and the person that designed it.
- Where can I get more information?
- More information is available directly from Typekit and WebINK. Both sites have a wealth of information on how to get started using dynamic type in your websites.
- Who's behind this?
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Founded in 1982, Adobe Systems Incorporated has developed software and services which have revolutionized the way world engages with ideas and information. Adobe has been a leader in typography and type technologies for over twenty-five years.
Typekit is a San Francisco-based company that has been designing and developing web apps for some time. Over the last few years, the team built Measure Map (acquired by Google), led the redesign of Google Analytics, collaborated with Twitter on user experience and business growth planning, and launched Wikirank -- a trend analysis tool for Wikipedia.
WebINK is brought to you by Extensis, a Celartem company. Extensis is a leading developer of software and services for creative professionals and workgroups. Their solutions streamline workflows, securely manage digital assets and fonts, and control corporate typographic branding. Used by hundreds of Fortune 5000 companies, Extensis’ award-winning server, desktop, and web service products include: Portfolio Server® for digital asset management, Universal Type Server® for server-based font management, Suitcase Fusion® for single-user font management, and the WebINK® web font rental service.
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