WHAT IS ……. ECOFONT ?

[Anonymous]

http://thefutureofthings.com/pod/6764/ecofont-cuts-ink-by-20.html
Ecofont Cuts Ink by 20%
The
Dutch company SPRANQ has released a new environmentally friendly, free
to use font called “Ecofont.” The idea behind Ecofont is to use small
circular holes in the letters, cutting ink usage by 20%. Using the new
font can reduce operating costs and the company hopes it will also help
spread environmental awareness.SPRANQ’s earlier font design included
zebra-like stripes and using thin or partial letters. “It turns out
that it’s necessary to preserve the size and outline of letters to keep
them readable,” company co-founder Gerjon Zomer says. However, with
plenty of testing, the team established that the Swiss-cheese design
was the most efficient. After extensive trials, the company found out
that the Ecofont is most effective at the sizes of 9 or 10 on paper.
 
SPRANQ
provides Ecofont free for home users and for businesses, and there is
also a sans serif Verdana version that would be suitable for internal
company printing. By using the new font companies and individuals can
cut up to one fifth of their ink costs with minimal effort. The
team at SPRANQ also hopes that the font will increase environmental
awareness, giving a few tips such as to mention that home users should
only print when necessary and use a modern, efficient printer with
unbleached paper. Graphic designers should use advanced colour
separation techniques to prevent pointless ink wastage. People should
try to use plant-based ink and to avoid conventional laser techniques
that make ink inseparable from the paper.Not only is the font is a
free, but is also open-source and the company is inviting developers to
enhance the Ecofont further. Zomer says Arabic and Hebrew versions are
already under development.
 
TFOT has previously written about
“Printing in Green,” which is the world’s first “green” laser toner
that is derived from soybeans. You can also check out our article about
a green computing study and practice of efficient and eco-friendly
computing resources, and Xerox’s Inkless Printer which does not require
ink of any kind.

[Author]

April 3, 2009 at 12:37 PM