Logotacular Fontasticness

[denny]

Today we will mostly be trying to decide between almost identical fonts. Help?


1.

2.

3.

4.

4b. See comments :)

5.


ETA: We seem to have acquired an option #4b - see image in the comments, and I guess vote for 4 if you think 4b is the winnar. :)

Poll #670 Fontastic

Open to: Registered Users, detailed results viewable to: All, participants: 15

View Respondents

The version I like bestest is...

View Answers

#1
5 (33.3%)

#2
2 (13.3%)

#3
2 (13.3%)

#4
4 (26.7%)

#5
2 (13.3%)

Helen says to tell everyone that she is still working on the atom thingy and hence it is not yet to be criticised :) Personally I think it looks cool.

Comments

[simont]

The curves in #1 are a bit too square (especially the s). The d in #2 is just a bit too silly. #3's letters are a bit too big for their spacing, or too close together for their size, and the low ratio of ascender to x-height doesn't help matters. #4 feels a bit too heavy, and as much as anything else, the curl on the right of the a doesn't fit the otherwise generally no-serifs-here aesthetic of the rest.

That leaves #5, and although something about the curve of the y isn't sitting quite right with me, it isn't making me feel as much wrongness as the other four.

[denny]

Very detailed analysis, thank you :)

We hadn't actually noticed that the 'a' in #3 and #4 was (for no apparent reason) serif, but you're entirely right. Helen has just made a fixed version of #4 with a sans-serif 'a' (constructed from a copy of the 'd'), and we're quite fond of that - what do you think?

[simont]

Not bad. I think I still slightly prefer #5 due to the lighter weight, but this new one definitely beats the other four for me.

[pooloftrees.livejournal.com]

Personally I don't like this 'd', and consequently the 'a', but the text does have the shininess that was lacking or not clear in #2 and #3 and I find it preferable to #4.

[dakeyras]

It has to be #1 for me - I have an innate preference for a curvy y over the straight (it looks too much like a v with a bit tacked on as an afterthought) but in #2 the tail seems somewhat atrophied!

[denny]

The bottom of the S, Y and E all seem a bit short-changed in that font, yeah.

[(Anonymous)]

hmmm a replacement y could be made from an h and a bit of s probably... would that fix 4b for you?

[pooloftrees.livejournal.com]

I agree - #1 is what I voted for too, but I find the 's' too square and don't like the 'a', nor the 'd' (but I don't like the 'd' in any of the logos). I think hythloday has explained better than I can what makes me dislike those.

Overall though - great concept - I feel the writing definitely needs to be noticeably shiny, although perhaps not as far as Apple's 'Aqua'.

[hythloday]

I'm afraid I don't like any of them.

1. The join of the bowl and the stem on the h, a and d is too thick for the gradient. The a looks like the stem is curved because the counter is so large! As Simon noted, the s is extremely distracting.

2. Here the s is too fragile, and the tail of the y too short and squared. The lower join on the d is too violent, and the e and a aren't sympathetic to each other and draw the eye too much.

3. I find the a and s quite jarring next to each other, and the bowl of the a protrudes a little too far. I also don't really like its attempt at serifs.

4. The eye is a fraction too large and the counter in the d is too large (the stem of the d looks curved again). The apertures in the n and h, and d overpower the other letters.

5. The stem of the y slopes away unpleasantly from the atom (not the fault of the typeface), but the attempt at a serif on the n and d is rather ugly. The s is too understated compared to the h and n, though it looks good next to the e and a. The e is too flat on the bottom and a is too slouched.

If I absolutely had to choose one I'd go for 2, as it has the most character.

[sevenhelz]

1 or 5 are both good - i was drawn to 1, but is ideas meant to look bigger and bolder than shiny? it irks me because it feels asymmetrical. same problem with 4. 5 is more balanced, though i agree as above, i'm not sure about the tail of the y.
x

[katieastrophe]

Voted 4 to mean 4b, except for one thing: the tittle should be the same size on both the i characters.