In late 2010 we switched on the FontsInUse.com domain and published the first batch of articles. The idea was simple: document interesting design and identify the typefaces used. 20 months and over 70 reviews later, the project has grown into a rich record of design, with reports on a variety of things typographic, from the first major tablet newspaper, to the controversial rebranding of a cable network, from the world’s finest edition of “Moby Dick” to the monotony of American retail. We’re proud of what we’ve built, but a handful of type geeks can only shed light on a narrow slice of the vast design landscape. From the very beginning we promised the blog was the prologue to a broader vision.
Today we introduce the Collection, a much larger archive of typographic design open to public contributions. With this new site, our visitors become collectors. Submit your own work or other examples of typography you admire. Build a page of your contributions, a reflection of your typographic taste, headlined with your profile and bio. For example, here’s Nick’s profile, Indra’s, and mine.
Uploading images and adding typeface tags is painless thanks to the work of our new developer, Rob Meek, whose simple but capable submission form reflects the site’s layout. There’s a bookmarklet, too, for quickly adding stuff you find on the web. Learn more about contributing to the Collection.
As you can see by the numbers at right, we’ve seeded the Collection with hundreds of new Uses. Browse the entries by paging through the gallery on the homepage or picking an Industry, Format, or Typeface from the new navigation menu. The search is new, too. It groups results by matches in category, tags, or title and description. Learn more about browsing the Collection.
Fonts In Use is now something bigger than its founders, but it hasn’t lost their voice. The reviews and analysis of our editorial staff will continue in the new, dedicated Blog. We’ll also call out the best of the Collection via Staff Picks which let you limit your view to the most notable examples of a typeface, category, or search results.
Questions? You might find your answer in the FAQ. Otherwise, please contact us with any comments or problems. Your input is welcome and vital.
The site you see now is the site we always wanted Fonts In Use to be: a living resource that is useful to anyone who uses type — whatever their field or experience. I’ve already learned some interesting things from the Uses contributed by our beta testers and I’ll write more about that soon. In the meantime, join us! Create an account and add a Use.
