The idea of Google Web Fonts is one of those things
that makes you say “of course!” once you hear about it. Google Web Fonts are stored remotely
and loaded via HTTP for use on your web pages, so you don’t have to wonder about which fonts
are installed on users’ machines. Using a web font is easy: add a <link
rel="stylesheet"> tag to specify the font you want, then add styles to
your CSS that use the font.
Earlier this week, the Web Fonts team launched
an updated site with a three-step process for browsing and choosing fonts. It’s
pretty simple:
In the Choose step, check out the available
fonts and choose from among them by looking at whatever text you want, in any size. You can
search for fonts by name, filter by category or thickness, or look for fonts that support
specific scripts.
After you pick one or more fonts, use the
Review step. This step includes a Test Drive feature to see your chosen fonts in a sample
layout.
Finally, you’ll see a nice speedometer that shows you an estimate
of loading time for your selected fonts, and you’ll also get the necessary code for adding the
fonts to your pages.
Finally, here’s
a tale of danger in space: the crew of the International Space Station temporarily evacuated into docked
capsules this week when a piece of space junk got a little too close to the station.
That’s a story you don’t hear every day; in fact, the last time it happened was in 2009. Stay
safe up there!
Fridaygram posts are lighter than our usual
fare. They're designed for your Friday afternoon and weekend enjoyment. Each Fridaygram item
must pass only one test: it has to be interesting to us nerds.
