Font Update: Myndraine
Posted on August 29th, 2007 by BittBox
In case you haven’t noticed, I’m a sucker for fonts. Here’s another good one you shouldn’t miss - Myndraine by Christopher Miller. Not only is it decent looking and clean, Myndraine is a pretty robust font, with tons of extra characters and uncommon glyphs. The download includes both .ttf (true type) and .otf (open type) formats! You may not have a use for this font now, but I always like to keep them in the bag for later. I can picture this font used in a website/blog logo. Also, if you are a font junkie and a BittBox regular, you will notice that “Fonts” is the latest addition to the categories. (p.s. More additions/features coming very soon ;)
Here’s a quick look at the character set:
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Hi, I’m quite new on typography but I really like it.
I’m a Mac user and would like to know (if you were so kind to briefly explain it or share a link) which is the difference between .otf and .ttf and which one is “better” (for me or in any case - in case there was a “better” one) to use.
I’ve been reading a bit both wikipedia articles but I’d prefer the word of someone who (at least I think) knows about the subject.
Thanks, Bernat.
@Sanman
I’m no font expert, just a font junkie, BUT (hopefully someone can correct me if I’m wrong) I think open type is more powerful for reasons that someone new to fonts wouldn’t even need.
TTF is what I generally use(99% of the time), but you can always install both just in-case.
~Bitt
Dang, I made a comment that must have gotten lost in the ether.
Anyway, here’s the short answer: .otf, or Open Type, is better. If you have two versions of a font, use the OpenType version.
The reasons that OpenType are better are numerous, but the two big ones are: 1. It’s platform agnostic (that is, you can use it on either Macs or PCs), and 2. It has a much wider range of available characters. Older font formats (like True Type or Post Script) have a much more limited number of characters available. For example, an Open Type font I was using recently had four different versions of the ampersand (the “&” symbol).
To see what Open Type can do, in Illustrator or InDesign, open the “glyphs” pallette and see what’s available in a given Open Type font. You’ll be surprised.
Also, when it comes to print projects anyway, the font quality pecking order is:
Open Type > Post Script > True Type > Multi Master
If you are working on anything going to a commercial offset printer, avoid the last two if at all possible. For projects on the web, it’s all flattened graphics, so it doesn’t matter as much. But when projects are prepared to go to press, True Type and Multi Master fonts can be a nightmare.
@Chip
Awesome! Thanks for the lesson man! I knew there had to be a font guru out there somewhere!
~Bitt
To really see the power of a good OpenType font (namely Adobe’s house fonts, such as Minion), you’ve gotta try out what InDesign can do.
Make a text box with a bunch of random Lorem Ipsum text, and then also throw in some numbers. Select all the text, open the Character panel, go to the little fly-out menu in the upper right of the panel, and go to OpenType. Then, select all the options like Discretionary Ligatures. And make sure you also hit Proportional Oldstyle. Then look at all the subtle changes to your text. It really makes everything look professionally typeset.
Oh, and a note on PostScript fonts: Try to phase them out, because Microsoft and Apple are looking to completely stop supporting them. Already some applications in Vista won’t use PostScript fonts, and Apple has said they can’t promise to support them after this year is out. I’ve seen issues where I work where PostScript fonts can lead to font cache corruption on Mac OS X. If at all possible, go OpenType. Almost all fonts from real, professional foundries are already making all their faces in OpenType, so it shouldn’t be a big deal. Don’t rely on PostScript fonts longer than you have to.
These are the best comments. EVER!
The knowledge is not only impressive, but very useful.
Thanks all!
~Bitt
Hey thanks for the info guys =) you all rock
[…] un tipo de letra limpio y robusto A través de BITTBOX descubro un tipo de letra que me ha llamado la atención, se trata de Myndraine realizada por […]
It’s nice, but I really do think the kerning still needs some work. For example the “dra” in “Myndraine”, or the “fg” in the character set example look rather unbalanced to be.
If you just want to use the font for a headline or something like that, its no big deal at all to fix those manually, but if you want to typeset your body copy with such a font, it is a real pain to kern everything manually.
Peter @
I agree, the font is uneven and the kerning is definitely off. Another inbalance is the capital S and T.
Agreed, the kerning is slightly off, but for a free font, i’m not going to complain. Great post Bitt, keep em coming! I can definitly see myself using this in a logo down the road. Doubt i’d use it in a body of text, but that’s cause i stick to the old faithful fonts for that stuff…
thanks again..
why is there two Q’s and no upper case W …….? weird Speaking of fonts did anyone see the Helvetica movie yet?
I’m wondering, in general, are there legal restrictions to using a font in a logo? I can’t seem to get a straight answer from the Internet. If anyone knows, please enlighten me. Thanks.
Some people who want to know more about typography may be interested in this blog. I have found it very informative.
http://ilovetypography.com/
Timothy @
I already have it in my feed reader ^_^
Bit & Other “typers” @
Thank you very much for answering and contributing to this really interesting thread.
Chris -
Wow, I didn’t know about the obsolesence of Post Script fonts. Thanks for the heads up!
Lance Fisher @
If your font is the commercial variety, i.e. you paid good $$$ for it, then there are no legal restrictions. This should also apply to the fonts that came with any software. If you paid for the software licence, then you also “paid” for the fonts.
The tricky bit is when you using one of the many freeware/shareware/charityware fonts out there. My experience with this is that you should read the disclaimer that accompanies the font when you download it - the font’s author would have placed guidelines for use there. If in doubt, contact the author and ask him/her for permission to use it in a logo. 9 times out of 10 the answer will be a “yes”.
I’m new to this site, awesome by the way. I’m looking for font tricks, but can’t seem to find any -I’m sure they are here somewhere though…could someone please direct me. Thanks! ebrown913@hotmail.com
very good
When picking fonts, you need to ensure you keep quality fonts in the bag. Otherwise, you can have a million fonts but still only end up using a few.
At any rate, I don’t really like this font. The ‘y’ looks pretty good, but I don’t like the clinks on the ‘a’ letter. Nice font otherwise. I’m just trying to imagine where I would use it, as you say… I don’t think it would be used that often, but it most certainly could be useful at some stage somewhere down the line… for just the right thing.
Your work clearly shows your passion. Where are you getting the inspiration? Iyou’re your work on BIRTH OF A HERO and that one looks excellent, too.