Why so much gray text on web pages and in PDFs? How to lose it?
AES
gray rather than black fonts for large portions of their text content.
For just one easy-to-reach example, take quick look at
<http://support.apple.com/kb/ht2546>
Why? -- or, putting it more bluntly, "Why the Hell do they do this?!?"
(For many readers, makes it much harder to read, both on screen
and when printed out)
More important, is there an easy way to globally convert all such gray
text to honest black? (especially when exporting or printing)
--When viewing a web page: any Safari setting that can
do this? (globally convert displayed gray text to black)
--When printing a web page to PDF: any global setting in
Preview that will convert gray text to black??
--Viewing and printing a downloaded PDF document: Any
quick and simple command in Preview, Adobe Reader,
Acrobat, GraphicConverter, to do the same?
[Note: In several of the above cases I can
--Select and Copy the entire offending content
--Use Services to put the content into a new Bean document
--Open the Bean doc as an RTF doc; Select All; and use the
Bean Font command (Cmd-T) to globally convert all text
to black.
But, that's a hassle; loses image content, etc.]
Peter Flynn
> More and more web pages and also downloadable PDFs seem to be using
> gray rather than black fonts for large portions of their text content.
> For just one easy-to-reach example, take quick look at
>
> <http://support.apple.com/kb/ht2546>
>
> Why? -- or, putting it more bluntly, "Why the Hell do they do this?!?"
> (For many readers, makes it much harder to read, both on screen
> and when printed out)
It's a Designer thing. It's just the current fad, especially among
not-very-bright designers with no training in Usability or how to use
the web.
Ours wanted all links to be the same colour as the surrounding (grey)
text, without any underline. When we pointed out that this would make
them indiscernable to readers, they simply couldn't understand why that
was a problem: they suggested that readers should wave their cursor
across the page to reveal the links (they had set onmouseover to
highlight them). When we overrode them and made links blue and
underlined (a blue with the same luminosity as the grey, rather than the
saturated default), they complained that it upset the aesthetic balance
of the page. The fact that people read pages to get <gasp/> information,
rather than admire their design, genuinely had not occurred to them.
> More important, is there an easy way to globally convert all such gray
> text to honest black? (especially when exporting or printing)
Copy their CSS to a local file. Edit it to make the greys black. Set
your browser to use the local file instead of theirs.
Or just save the whole page (+images +css) to a local file, edit the
CSS, and then open as a local file.
///Peter
Salmon Egg
AES <sie...@stanford.edu> wrote:
> More and more web pages and also downloadable PDFs seem to be using
> gray rather than black fonts for large portions of their text content.
> For just one easy-to-reach example, take quick look at
>
> <http://support.apple.com/kb/ht2546>
>
> Why? -- or, putting it more bluntly, "Why the Hell do they do this?!?"
> (For many readers, makes it much harder to read, both on screen
> and when printed out)
I hated it even before my vision deteriorated. I end up using invers
video a lot.
The reason, I think, is that arty fartyness has invaded all parts of our
lives.
Bill
--
An old man would be better off never having been born.
dorayme
> More and more web pages and also downloadable PDFs seem to be using
> gray rather than black fonts for large portions of their text content.
> For just one easy-to-reach example, take quick look at
>
> <http://support.apple.com/kb/ht2546>
>
> Why? -- or, putting it more bluntly, "Why the Hell do they do this?!?"
> (For many readers, makes it much harder to read, both on screen
> and when printed out)
They do it mainly because they think it looks cool, understated.
But it is often very annoying! You might like to look into making
your own user css stylesheet.
If you use Firefox with some addons, and if you learn a few
things about css styling (web pages are mostly controlled by
these sheets theses days), you can alter these to suit as you
read. But user style sheets to override all the others is the
simplest solution.
--
dorayme
sbt
Salmon Egg <Salm...@sbcglobal.net> wrote:
Succinctly stated. Many doing the web design work are graphic artists
and the visual impact is first priority. Readability is sacrificed on
this altar.
However, this is not only the case on the Web, but insufficiently
contrasting text is becoming more common in mainstream "glossy"
publications (e.g. TV Guide, Macworld, et al) as well.
--
Spenser
John Whitington
On Oct 21, 5:00 pm, AES <sieg...@stanford.edu> wrote:
> More and more web pages and also downloadable PDFs seem to be using
> gray rather than black fonts for large portions of their text content.
> For just one easy-to-reach example, take quick look at
>
> <http://support.apple.com/kb/ht2546>
> --When printing a web page to PDF: any global setting in
> Preview that will convert gray text to black??
Our product can do this;
http://www.coherentpdf.com/proview.html
Menu Process --> Blacken... --> Blacken Text
Cheers,
John Whitington
Coherent Graphics Ltd
AES
<07577008-b789-4e32...@l20g2000yqm.googlegroups.com>,
John Whitington <jo...@coherentgraphics.co.uk> wrote:
> > --When printing a web page to PDF: any global setting in
> > � �Preview that will convert gray text to black??
>
> Our product can do this;
>
> http://www.coherentpdf.com/proview.html
>
> Menu Process --> Blacken... --> Blacken Text
>
> Cheers,
>
> John Whitington
> Coherent Graphics Ltd
Thanks -- looks good.
[But it does it also convert all spellings to the British forms?]
Peter Flynn
Many designers are young, insufficiently trained or experienced in
production, and anxious to prove their cred.
If the stock is *really* "glossy" (glazed or art paper), then
insufficient contrast is bad because readers can't read the copy, and
you lose sales, or interest, or whatever it is you're peddling. It's
even worse in long-run rotogravure because the absorbency of the
substrate dulls the colour slightly, making it even harder to read.
On the web it's more severe, as most people don't know the tricks of how
to fix it, and you can't easily use a magnifying-glass, or twist the
surface to catch low-angle light. If these sites' readers include many
of the older and perhaps wealthier AB groups whose sight is "stiffening"
(as one writer delightfully put it :-), making the site hard to read for
them, they lose even more eyeballs.
But that's their funeral: if they wish to cut a substantial chunk of
their readers and potential purchasers out of their market, let them.
Someone else with a better site will pick them up.
///Peter
Peter Flynn
Doubtful, but this site: http://www.rinkworks.com/dialect/
can translate any page into Redneck, Jive, Cockney, Elmer Fudd, Swedish
Chef, Moron, Pig Latin, or Hacker.
:-)
///Peter