I want to use an uncommon font...

how can I give visitors the option to download it?

[UdderJuice]

So I have this website I designed for my World of Widgets guild.

I used a really cool looking font called Calligrapher. The problem is that if you don't have the font you get basic New Times Roman. MEH.

I want to set it up so that visitors will get a pop-up that says, "This site uses a special font. To enjoy this site to the fullest extent possible you need this font. Would you like to download the Windows font Calligrapher?" And then give them yes or no buttons.

Anyone have any suggestions on how to do this or can you point to a site that would explain it?

Thanks

[edited by: UdderJuice at 7:33 pm (utc) on Dec. 8, 2004]

[edited by: trillianjedi at 8:00 pm (utc) on Dec. 8, 2004]
[edit reason] Widgetised.... [/edit]

[txbakers]

Just put a link on your home page to the font. If the visitor wants it, they will down load it.

And you should remove your URL as the TOS doesn't allow personal URLs.

[encyclo]

Welcome to WebmasterWorld [webmasterworld.com], UdderJuice. You might want to review the terms of service [webmasterworld.com] for the forum which forbids the posting of personal URLs.

Unfortunately, as most fonts are covered by copyright restrictions, it is not usually possible to legally offer such a font for download. There are some mechanisms which were in place in certain browsers which allowed you to specify the font face as a downloadable file, but that support is limited and disappearing fast.

For text which needs to be in a particular font, you are obliged to use an image. For the rest of the site, it is best to stick to a commonly available font choice such as Verdana, Arial or Times New Roman. You can specify alternative fonts if your first choice in unavailable.

[whoisgregg]

If you use a font which is freely (and legally) available from the web then you can link to the site which offers the download. Just remember that very, very few people will want to do this so the site ought to still be usable with the users fonts.

[ControlEngineer]

Many people fear (quite correctly) downloading from the web. How bad does your site look in New Times Roman? That's the way most people will see it.

It would be better to plan your site using a standard font. You may not like it as much as you would using Calligrapher, but most people will not download a font just to see your site.

You can put small amounts of text on your site using images, but to use many images (or large images) will slow down the site, turning away many visitors.

[vkaryl]

Or, if a huge majority of your traffic accesses your site through IE only, you can try WEFT. It sometimes can be a workable solution.

[Terabytes]

WEFT...is the way to go...I've used it a couple of times on client sites...

However, you're better off sticking with standard fonts, it alleviates any problems with cross browser issues...

[vkaryl]

Entirely true, Terabytes. The only sites I still use WEFT on are a couple where in the last 5 YEARS I've had less than 10 accesses apiece (TOTAL - not per year!) with anything other than IE.

[dyn4mik3]

Use sifr - google mike davidson sifr...its a flash replacement technique for fonts