VISUAL.
VOICES.
munchfonts makes visual voices that work and play well in digital or print environments, and has since 1994 made award-winning typefaces and typeface font software for personal, general, and corporate use. A digital typeface foundry based in Connecticut, munchfonts applies type design principles of readabilty, legibility, cohesion, and expression.

WORKING.
OUT.
Starting with Fontographer, the original studio-oriented type design tool to 2003, then FontLab since 2003, munchfonts makes typefaces primarily for languages that use the Latin script (you know, the one developed in most of Europe and that you’re reading now), with specialties in non-Latin world scripts: Greek and Cyrillic, Cherokee (an Indigenous American script invented by Sequoyah), Gujarati (an Indic script of South Asia), and some Arabic.

READING.
NOW.
Sansabunch Web Regular & Italic
A Neo-Geo, midcentury modern text and display family with characteristics of both the early and mid 1900s and the early 2000s. Slightly longer projectors and sensitively narrowed rounds give Sansabunch a set of reading cues to the reader’s eye that yeah, it’s an h, not an n; b not p, etc.

SANSA-
BUNCH.
Seven weights for Regular and Extended with hand-tuned oblique italics, five weights for Condensed and italics. Extensive coverage for European languages using the Latin script.
(Still in development.)

Microsoft needed some new typefaces to show off their innovative ClearType techology with a casual, lapidary — stone-carved — aesthetic. Subtle curves on stems and diagonals render better detail with ClearType than with traditional full-pixel rendering! So, in 2003, munchfonts provided four styles: Regular, Italic, Bold, Bold Italic. Scripts covered are GLK (Greek, Latin, Cyrillic), with the Latin script extended for most European languages; Latin extensions by Ascender are for Vietnamese.

BUT.
WAIT!
If you have MS products (Word, Office, Windows, etc.), you probably have Candara already on your type menu.

UPDATE: With the release of the new MS font families in 2024, the ClearType families (including Candara) have been retired as defaults. Before updating, find your Fonts folder, pull out what you need to keep, then update; reinstall your keepers.

from Microsoft

Ergo is a humanist sans-serif with true italics in Regular, Medium, DemiBold, and Bold weights. A bold Sketch outline style rounds out the base family. Most styles have GLK coverage for the Greek, Latin, and Cyrillic scripts.

ERGONOMIC.
ENCOMIUMS.
Ergo took First Prize, Text Category in the 1997 Linotype Second International Typeface Design Contest. Adrian “Mr Univers” Frutiger said that Ergo is “konsequent durchdacht” — thoroughly thought out.

ERGO.
ENERGIZE.
Ergo is available in several configurations of scripts and style.

Ergo PanEuropean styles are Regular width fonts with the Latin script extended for most European language needs and include both Greek and Cyrillic. Add italics for a full, expressive palette.

Ergo Pro Greek or Ergo Pro Cyrillic styles are Regular width fonts with Latin extended for most European language needs and both Greek or Cyrillic. With italics, of course.

Ergo Pro Hebrew styles are Regular width fonts with Latin extended for most European language needs and for basic Hebrew. And italics.

Ergo Condensed & Ergo Compressed are additional widths; a text-friendly Condensed and a space-saving Compressed, both for the Latin script extended for most European language needs.
Ergo Condensed is in Regular, Medium, DemiBold, Bold, and Black weights, with italics.
Ergo Compressed is in Regular and Bold weights, with italics.

from Monotype’s MyFonts

Linotype Really is an extensive typeface family in Light, Regular, Medium, DemiBold, SemiBold, Bold, and Extra Bold weights, each with italics and small capitals. Really provides a broad palette of expressions to draw from — sensibly light to brightly stentorian heavy.

The moderate-to-strong contrast of the vertical to horizontal strokes recalls the Transitional and Modern styles of Baskerville and Bodoni. The subtly oblique axis of the stroke weight recalls the old-style faces of Caslon.

Sturdy serifs offer a Realist sensibility of a clear, readable, no-nonsense workhorse text face whose clean details yet offer the designer a high-impact display face. Italic styles have exuberant Latin swash capitals for word-initial settings.

Scripts covered include GLK (Greek, Latin, Cyrillic) in capitals, lowercase, and small capitals, with a small complement for basic Hebrew.

PLEASANT.
PLAUDITS.
Really was a winner, in 2000, of the 3rd Linotype International Typeface Contest.

The Greek and Cyrillic extensions were chosen among fourteen other typeface designs as winners in the Type Directors Club’s TDC2 Type Design Competition 2000, and were also selected in the ATypI (Association Typographique Internationale) bukva:raz! international type design competition.

REALLY.
READING.
Really is available in several configurations of scripts and style.

Really No2 (no suffix) is a redesign from 2008, scaled up with taller and wider glyphs. Script support in Latin is extended for most European language needs. Select fonts with Greek (G&L) or Cyrillic (L&K) or Hebrew (H&L).

Really No2 PanEuropean is W1G/WGL4/GLK only (without basic Hebrew). Latin is extended for most European language needs. Fonts include both Greek and Cryillic.

Really W2G is W2G/HGLK (with basic Hebrew) with GLK glyph coverage with Latin extended for most European language needs and Vietnamese in each font, style, and weight for Greek, Cyrillic, and basic Hebrew.

All fonts include numerals for text and capital settings (old style and lining), with proportional sets for each.

from Monotype’s MyFonts

Incredibly tiny writing can be verrry intriguing — is there a secret there? What’s that say? Well, Nanogram is like that; a complete reversal of the Big X-Height movement of the ’70s and ’80s. It’s got long, generous ascenders and minimal minims. The strokes are ballpointpen biro-stylo, and counters! — counters? — who needs no stuffy old counters!

ITTY-BITTY.
TEENY-TINY.
Set Nanogram for speedy, casual, or the inscrutable chemistry notes my dad made that were the inspiration for this great face.

A second font holds a set of silly pictogram doodles — Nanogram Pixies!

from munchfonts

Here’s a cursive Italic typeface that swings along with your thoughts: in two weights, Micro and Macro.

INTENSE.
ELEGANCE.
Whether you want an extra-fine biro ballpoint or a squushy felt-tip, Finerliner has it. The links are complete, the word picture, refined; text is personal yet very readable.

from Monotype’s MyFonts

Sansbunch is a Neo-Geo, Midcentury Modern (Mid-Mod!) text and display family with characteristics of both the early and mid 1900s and the early 2000s. Slightly longer projectors and sensitively narrowed rounds give Sansabunch a set of reading cues to the reader’s eye that yeah, it’s an h, not an n; b not p, etc.

GLOBAL.
REACH.
Sansabunch’s character set covers all European languages that use the Latin script, and languages many beyond Europe. Further development will add broader coverage.

Included OpenType features in Sansabunch are: turned ‘l’, or “el”; old-style numerals, set to near-x-height that rise and fall like lowercase letters; alternate “binocular” forms for ‘g’ characters; easy setting of vulgar fractions; and a set of eight directional arrows.

READING.
NOW.
Sansabunch Web Regular & Italic
This Web version is identical to the print version in function and form.

from munchfonts

Slababunch, competent cousin of Sansbunch, is a sturdy, slab-serif, text and display family with characteristics of both the early and mid 1900s and the early 2000s. Slightly longer projectors and sensitively narrowed rounds give Slababunch a set of reading cues to the reader’s eye that yeah, it’s an h, not an n; b not p, etc.

SNAP-ON.
SERIFS.
Slababunch’s character set covers all European languages that use the Latin script, and many languages beyond Europe. Further development will add even broader coverage.

Included OpenType features in Slababunch are: old-style numerals, set to near-x-height that rise and fall like lowercase letters; alternate “binocular” forms for ‘g’ characters; easy setting of vulgar fractions; and a set of eight directional arrows.

SLABA-
BUNCH.
Seven weights for the Regular width, with two sets of slanted forms: hand-tuned Obliques that use the full serif set, and true Italics that have a more cursive structure with reduced serifing. Extensive coverage for world languages using the Latin script.
(Still in development.)

from munchfonts

Cursabunch, kooky crazy cousin of Sansbunch, is a Mid-Cen-Mod Deli-Diner Script text and, really, display family with characteristics of both the mid 1900s and the early 2000s. Its projectors are mostly unlooped to clarify the wordshapes, and smooth continuous linking stokes and rolling rounds give Cursabunch the feel of a sure hand at the order pad making American cursive with skill and verve.

ORDER.
THE FRIES!
Cursabunch’s character set covers all European languages that use the Latin script, and many languages beyond Europe. Further development will add broader coverage.

Included OpenType features in Cursabunch are: old-style numerals, set to near-x-height that rise and fall like lowercase letters; alternate “binocular” forms for ‘g’ characters; easy setting of vulgar fractions; and a set of eight directional arrows.

Another OT feature accesses Cursive (Swash) Capitals for capitalizing words (not recommended for use in ALL CAPS — that would be, as your teacher told you, TOO MUCH).

CURSA-
BUNCH.
Seven weights with OT contextual replacments that provide: even spacing between flat and flat, flat and round forms; separate initial or post-cap forms for letters that begin their strokes from the baseline (r, s, x, z); contextually different links into r, x, z from b, o, v, w. There’s the same extensive coverage for world languages using the Latin script as in the other Bunches.
(Still in development.)

ORDER.
UP!

from munchfonts

Grotik is a Neo-Grotesque sans serif (called “Grots”) with characteristics of the late 1800s and the early and mid 1900s working typefaces. Sensible, sturdy, no-nonsense, Grotik is matter-of-factly blunt about its mission to communicate. Slightly longer projectors and subtly contrasted weights in the verticals and horizontals give Grotik a set of reading cues to the reader’s eye that yeah, it’s an h, not an n; b not p, etc.

WORKIN’.
GROTIK.
Grotik’s extensive world script character set covers all European languages that use the Latin script, and many languages beyond Europe. Additional script coverage is included with Greek (monotonic and polytonic), Cyrillic (including Serbian, Macedonian, and Bulgarian variants as well as trans-Uralic extensions); Armenian, Cherokee, Hebrew, and a usable Arabic. A Gujarati set includes numerous half-forms and conjuncts. All but the latter two (Arabic and Gujarati) have oblique italics.

Included OpenType features in Grotik are: turned ‘l’ (el) to disambiguate 'I' (eye) from 'l' (el); slab serifs added to capital and small cap ‘I’ (eye); old-style numerals, set to near-x-height that rise and fall like lowercase letters; alternate “monocular” forms for the default “binocular” ‘g’ characters; easy setting of vulgar fractions; and a set of ten directional arrows. Another feature makes the two-story ‘a’ into a single story ‘a’ (like an ascenderless ‘d’) to match the monocular ‘g’.

All cased (that is, all but Hebrew, Arabic, and Gujarati) scripts have small caps along with capitals and lowercase letters.

GROTTY
GROTIK.
Nine normal weights, gossamer Thin to beefy Black with oblique italics. A brawny Ultra and a burly Solid are in roman only.
(Still in development.)

from munchfonts

Dryad is a high-contrast, vertical axis serif design, woodland companion to the chthonian Grotik. It has characteristics of the late 1700s and the early and mid 1900s text typefaces in the line of the Baskerville, Didot, and Bodoni typefaces. Slightly longer projectors and moderate weight transitions in the rounds, verticals, and horizontals give Dryad a set of reading cues to the reader’s eye that yeah, it’s an h, not an n; b not p; c, not e, etc.

DARLING.
DRYAD.
Dryad’s extensive world script character set covers all European languages that use the Latin script, and many languages beyond Europe. Additional script coverage is included with Greek (monotonic and polytonic), Cyrillic (including Serbian, Macedonian, Bulgarian variants and trans-Uralic extensions); and Hebrew.

Included OpenType features in Dryad are: old-style numerals, set to near-x-height that rise and fall like lowercase letters; alternate “monocular” forms for the default “binocular” ‘g’ characters; easy setting of vulgar fractions; and a set of eight directional arrows.

All of the cased (that is, all but Hebrew) scripts have small caps along with capitals and lowercase letters.

from munchfonts

Jardim is an edged-pen inspired calligraphic design reminiscent in structure of the Renaissance and Mannerist handwriting of the writing masters of the late 1400s and the early and mid 1500s, and of the Italic Revival of the 1900s. But where all of its precedents include serifing patterns, Jardim is serif-free. Jardim brings the Italic hand into the 2000s.

JAUNTY.
JARDIM.
Jardim’s extensive world script character set covers all European languages that use the Latin script, and many languages beyond Europe. Additional script coverage is included with Greek (monotonic only) and Cyrillic with trans-Uralic extensions.

Included OpenType features in Jardim are: old-style numerals, set to near-x-height that rise and fall like lowercase letters; small caps with appropriately sized numerals; easy setting of vulgar fractions; and fleurons and border parts. Each roman weight has a set of ligatured capitals to form interlocking logotype elements. The regular italic has a set of turned-right Chancery ascenders for b, d, h, k, l; and all have swash tails for the capital Q. The Bravia italic has extreme flourishes from ascenders and descenders that fly like larks ascending, swooping, curling, swirling.

JOYOUS.
JARDIM.
Two weights, regular and bold,with one Chancery italic regular weight and one Bravia italic regular weight.
(Still in development.)

from munchfonts

Londinium is calligraphic, following the ductus of Gothic Blackletter Textura Quadrata, the Late Mediæval and Renaissance Northern European style used large in state or ecclesiastical texts and Bibles, or small, in a personal Book of Hours. Londinium is impressive, dense, formal; “Gothic” in its tall, dark, narrow, hexagonal forms, and very different from the Rotunda of Southern Europe (c.f. Duomo). Textura was the model for the first typefaces, in Johannes Gutenberg’s great 42-line Bible, c. 1452-55.

LONDON.
LONDINIUM.
Londinium’s character set covers the majority of European languages that use the Latin script.

Included OpenType features in Londinium are: default old-style numerals, set to near-x-height that rise and fall like lowercase letters; Titling caps in the Lombardic Versal style. Several Versals have alternate, rounded forms.

Common scribal abbreviations (per, pro), ligatures of gg and pp, alternate forms of v, w, y; d, and rounded r fill out the character set.

A set of graphic elements, fleurons, and black-ink ivy-leaf border parts are included.

LITERALLY.
LONDINIUM.
One weight only, but a full scriptorium in a single font!
(In re-development for character set expansion.)

from munchfonts

Duomo is calligraphic, following the ductus of Italian Rotunda, the Late Mediæval and Renaissance Southern European style often used large, in missals (songbooks) for choral use. Duomo is pleasant, stately, formal; “Gothic” in its dark, rich texture with a mix of rounded and angular lowercase forms, and very different from the narrow hexagonal forms of the Gothic Textura of Northern Europe (c.f. Londinium).

DOME.
DUOMO.
Duomo’s character set covers the majority of European languages that use the Latin script.

Included OpenType features in Duomo are: default old-style numerals, set to near-x-height that rise and fall like lowercase letters; simplified capitals for use in all-cap settings to replace the default, elaborated, double-stroked capitals; Titling caps in the Lombardic Versal style. Several Versals have alternate, rounded forms.

Common scribal abbreviations (per, pro), ligatures of gg and pp, alternate forms of v, w, y; d, and rounded r fill out the character set.

A set of fleurons and border parts are drawn in the White Vine style, where the vine is surrounded by the color field; each border part matches seamlessly to the next, capped by elaborate floral finials.

DEFINING.
DUOMO.
One weight only, but a full scriptorium in a single font!
(In re-development for character set expansion.)

from munchfonts

Techne: spare, stripped-down, ready to work. Its large x-height and modest ascenders and descenders make for high visibility and presence. The super-ellipse-like rounds are architectural, complemented and softened by rounded corners on all stroke ends.

TIGHT.
TECHNE.
Techne’s character set covers most of the European languages that use the Latin script.

Included OpenType features in Techne are: Ligatures for the “fiffles”; full sets of superior, inferior, numerator, denominator, and full vulgar fractions. A set of eight directonal arrows fills out the set.

TAUT.
TECHNE.
Six weights in roman and italic: Thin, Light, Regular, Medium, Bold, and Black. The italics are unusual in being upright, with formal changes in bowl attachments to stems and shifts of curves to mark the difference from roman.

from munchfonts

Elen síla lúmenn’ omentielvo!
Haven is a fanciful nod to the works of a certain author whose books are rather famous (I once asked the estate if they would be OK if I made a calligraphic copy of the, um, Silmarillion, and LO, they said OK. But, LOL, the project never got far.) There are obvious formal similarities to the Tengwar, adapted to modern Latin use — though, really, the Carolingian script of Alcuin of York for Charlemagne is a huge influence, too.

HAPPY.
HAVEN.
Haven’s character set covers many of the European languages that use the Latin script; the set shold be extended to cover all Latin European languages.

Included OpenType features in Haven are: Ligatures for the “fiffles”; tabular full-height and tabular oldstyle “lowercase” numerals. Playing off the Uncial style of the source‘s original models, there are fully Uncial rounded capitals D, G, H, M, T, W; with an extra-tall L. The lowercase has rounded variants for v, w, and y, and closed bowls for d and q.

HIGH.
HAVEN.
Two weights in roman only; Regular and Bold.

from munchfonts

Dataloop is futuristicalist sans-stuffy stuff, featuring primary (internal) and secondary (outer) counters while eliminating tertiary counters, the nicks at stem and arch. Each weight and style is metrically compatible with each other — text set in Thin will occupy the same space as the same text set in Black Oblique.

DAUNTING.
DATALOOP.
Dataloop’s character set covers all European langages that use the Latin script, as well as Monotonic Greek (with several archaic letters). Cyrillic is in the planning stage.

Included OpenType features in Dataloop are: Open, untied ligatures for the “fiffles”; full sets of superior, inferior, numerator, denominator numerators for full vulgar fractions, and a plethora of monetary signs. Add alternate turned ‘l’ for ‘I’ (eye) ‘l’ (el) disambiguation; and a bunny-rabbit, binocular ’g’ for fun. (It’s really a monocle, as its tail is open; but it has an ear!) A set of eight directional arrows fills out the set.

DECISIVE.
DATALOOP.
Ten weights in roman and italic: Thin, Extra Light, Light, Regular, Medium, SemiBold, Bold, Extra Bold, Black, and Extra Black. Obliques are structurally similar to the roman, but tuned to flow naturally.

from munchfonts

Dataloss is an eroded variation of Dataloop. All the futuristicalist sans-stuffy stuff is there, but less! Snips and cuts that run counter to the writing ductus for roman Latin scripts offer an alternative dutus that baffles and confuses. Each weight ais metrically compatible with each other — text set in Thin will occupy the same space as the same text set in Black. And, Dataloss overlaid on Dataloop offers dichromic opportunities, revealing lost parts of Dataloop where Dataloss occurs.

DASTERDLY.
DATALOSS.
Dataloss’s character set covers only European langages that use the Latin script.

Included OpenType features in Dataloss are: Open, untied ligatures for the “fiffles”; full sets of superior, inferior, numerator,and denominator numerals for full vulgar fractions; and a plethora of monetary signs. Add alternate turned ‘l’ for ‘I’ (eye) ‘l’ (el) disambiguation; and a bunny-rabbit, binocular ’g’ for fun. (It’s really a monocle, as its tail is open; but it has an ear!) A set of eight directional arrows fills out the set.

DEVIOUS.
DATALOSS.
Ten weights in roman only: Thin, Extra Light, Light, Regular, Medium, SemiBold, Bold, Extra Bold, Black, and Extra Black.

from munchfonts

Vertalic is a classic Renaissance Chancery Italic updated for modern times. It's slanted only 4° (a vertical italic!) to the right, its lowercase forms are hyperbolic and parabolic, and the branching arcades spring almost from the baseline; serifs are full diagonals and link to the next letter in most pairs. Capitals are plain, to offset the lively pattern of the lowercase, but with an additional set of semi-serifed caps, a bit of formality can be added to the elegance of the simple caps. A set of double-struck Titling caps for initials or short heds fills out a massive character set. With a lowercase thick-thin axis of 45°, there’s a sense of mid-morning light streaming through. Informed by the mark of the callligraphic pen, the Vertalics are soft, sensuous, spontaneous.

VERSATILE.
VERTALIC.
Vertalic’s character set covers only European langages that use the Latin script.

Included OpenType features in Vertalic are: ligatures for the “fiffles”; full sets of superior, inferior, numerator, and denominator numerals for full vulgar fractions; old-style “lowercase” numbers; a world of monetary signs; a binocular ‘g’ for those who prefer theirs fancy-pantsy. ‘Q’ can sport a long tiger’s tail. There are discretionary, optional ligatures for ‘sp’, ‘st’, and ‘ct’ as well as lowercase and capital ampersand (&). A set of eight directional arrows and three simple fleurons fill out the set.

VIVACIOUS.
VERTALIC.
Eleven weights in ’roman‘ only: Hairline, Thin, Extra Light, Light, Regular, Medium, SemiBold, Bold, Extra Bold, Black, and Extra Black.

from munchfonts

Vertalic Titling is, like Vertalic, a classic Renaissance Chancery Italic updated for modern times. Here, Vertalic’s capital Titling feature of doubled stroked forms is carried through nearly all characters to set out a decorative feast of a headline. With a lowercase thick-thin axis of 45°, there’s a sense of mid-morning light streaming through. Informed by the mark of the callligraphic pen, the Vertalics are soft, sensuous, spontaneous.

TOTALLY. VELVET.
VERTALIC. TITLING.
Vertalic’s character set covers only European langages that use the Latin script.

Included OpenType features in Vertalic Titling are: ligatures for the “fiffles”; full sets of superior, inferior, numerator, and denominator numerals for full vulgar fractions; old-style “lowercase” numbers; a world of monetary signs; a binocular ‘g’ for those who prefer theirs fancy-pantsy. ‘Q’ can sport a long, graceful tail. A set of eight directional arrows and three simple fleurons fill out the set.

TANTALIZING. VIVID.
VERTALIC. TITLING.
One weight only: based on the Vertalic Extra Light weight’s OpenType Titling feature for capitals, with the double-struck effect extended to all full-size lowercase, numeral, and punctuation glyphs.

from munchfonts

Choose updates the incunabula Venetian typefaces of Jenson and Aldus for the 2000’s. With moderated old-style proportions (full-square ‘O’, half-square ‘E’) and a soft, late-morning stress axis, Choose has a luxuriously distinctive rhythm and flow to ease reading at length. Of course! the ‘e’ has the characteristic Venetian slanted center bar.

CHOICE.
CHOOSE.
Choose’s character set covers languages that use the GLK scripts: Greek (with Polytonic!), Latin (with Vietnamese), and Cyrillic (with trans-Uralics! VarIants for Bulgarian! Serbian!); IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) characters for most uses; and basic (unpointed) Hebrew.

Included OpenType features in Choose are: small caps in each of the GLK scripts; old-style and cap-height tabular and proportional numerals; small-cap numerals. Italic Latin basic capitals have luxuriant flourished forms, to be used as initials and with typographic restraint.

Common ligatures for the “fiffles,” unusual ligatures for some capital pairs, arrows, and astronomic & astrological symbols fill out the character set.

CHOOSEY.
CHOOSE.
Six weights with accompanying Italics: Light, Reguar, Medium, DemiBold, SemiBold, Bold.
(In re-development for feature set naming.)

from munchfonts

NEWSITE • ON SAMPLES • ON EXAMPLES • ON OPENTYPE • ON IMAGES • OLDSITE

NEW BOTTLE.
NEW WINE.
Rebuilding this site to add typefaces not yet released is a process, so return infrequently to see what's happening. This site is composed of artisanal HTML and CSS, with no cookies or javascript (eh, an onclick) or other artificial sweeteners.
Until a separate page for each new typeface is built, the links to them are non-functional. Sorry.

OLD BOTTLE.
OLD WINE.
Until the new stuff is up, you can see the old pages on the archive link way below, or go have a look at Monotype’s MyFonts.com site to see current munchfonts commercial releases shown here. Linotype, publisher of several munchfonts works, is now part of Monotype.
FAVES: ERGO & REALLY No2

TASTINGS.
TESTINGS.
Why R-l-g? In a limited available area, how does a typeface show its most salient features and character? You need to see rounds, diagonals, stems; ‘R’ has all three. You want an ascender and terminal serifs (if any, of the latter), so ‘el’. The ‘g’ is the best fun ever — it shows the x-height of the lowercase and a full round if it’s the two-storeyed, binocular, “loopy” form.

Why RAXHEOS? With capital (Majuscules, Caps, Big Letters) letters, there are two main sets of width categories: Proportional and Even Width.

After the R, which combines all three shapes, each pair of letters are angle (A X), square (H E), and round (O S) shows whether they are Proportional (wide/narrow) or Even Width.

Proportional caps fit into a full square or half squares, full circles or two half-height circles. Old-style roman faces (c.f. Jardim) are usually proportional, and the letters are noticeably different in widths. Their rhythm is a complex blend of wide, narrow, and medium forms.

Even Width caps fit into a tall rectangle and oval, with subdivisions into horizontal rectangles and ovals. Many modern faces (c.f. Really) are even width (or nearly so); their rhythm is a steadier, simple blend of moderated forms.

RAXHEOS also helps identify three overall qualities of a typeface.
A C T. Axis of weight stress, Contrast of stroke weight, and Transition of weight stress.
Axis might have a tilt, with thins at upper-left ( \ ) lower-right, very oldstyle; or, vertical with thins at top ( | ) bottom, very “Modern.” In Italics, the axis might even be lower left ( / ) upper right! Some faces have a reverse-weight axis: left ( — ) right, horizontal.
Contrast might be high, medium, or low, with high contrast lending a sparkle to text that works for display size, but hinders reading in text sizes.
Transition of contrasted weight from thinnest to thickest can be slow, moderate, or fast.

Why etaoinshrdu? These are the most frequent letters used in English. A lot of character is carried by these characters. The humpty-bumpty h and n, the omg of o, the sinuosity of s. The sequence (‘e’ is most frequent) is also the two left-most columns of the Linotype hot metal composer keyboard.

Why QUOUSQUE? Cicero, the author, was a Roman senator and orator determined to take down a rival, Catiline, so he talked smack about him in the senate. Well, Catiline was a noble, but led a sort of populist revolt against the conditions of the lower classes (workers, artisans, merchants, etc.). The butthurt Catiline suffered from not getting elected Consul had a big part in it, too. And, yeah Catiline did mount a campaign to take down the ruling class (and lost). Cicero’s speeches against Catiline pretty much did Catiline in.
Anyway, the opening text — the QUOUSQUE etc. — was used in type samples in the 1700s into the 1800s during the Enlightenment period’s revival of antique texts. Caslon. Baskerville. Bodoni. All the greats. Classy classist Classical classicist claptrap.
More at Wikipedia on Cicero and Catiline.

ARGH WHAT DOES IT EVEN MEAN?
Per Teh Gooooogle Machine:
How long will you abuse our patience, Catiline? How long will this fury of yours elude us? To what end will boldness, unbridled, flaunt itself? Did not the nocturnal guard of the palace, nor the vigil of the city, nor the fear of the people, nor the concurrence of all the goods, nor this most fortified place of holding the senate, nor any of these move their borders and faces move you? Don’t you feel your father’s plans, don’t you see that your conspiracy is being held by the knowledge of all these things? What did you do last night, what did you do last night, where did you go, who did you call, what plan did you take, which of us do you think you ignore? O times, O manners!

OPEN.
TYPE.
Not familiar with OpenType (OT) features? Where have you been! In Adobe applications and others, all included glyph variants of characters are easily available by using OpenType features from palettes in Illustrator and InDesign.

In InDesign, the Character palette has a menu for OpenType off of the “hamburger” at upper right that shows menu options for the included OT features.

In Illustrator, OpenType uses two palettes. Use the Character palette and its “hamburger” for case forms (e.g., small capitals)* and a separate OpenType palette for numerical, swash, alternate forms, stylistic variations, etc.; there‘s a hamburger menu with access for various features.
*Always make sure the typeface has actual, drawn, small caps! Otherwise, most apps will oblige, but only shrink real caps to a portion of the cap height. This make the faux-small caps obviously lighter and spindly. Rookie mistake.
Check for real small caps in the Glyph palette.

Or, use the Glyph palette in the app or operating system to pick and choose. (But, don't make a habit of it.)

SIMPLE.
SAMPLES.
Images here are made in Illustrator and saved in SVG format: Scalable Vector Graphics. SVGs use the same kind of Bézier curves that typeface fonts use, so are accurate and free of the fuzz and pixelations that other image formats (GIF, PNG, JPG) inevitably suffer from. SVG is always crisp and clear! Zoom on in!

Microsoft, Linotype, Monotype, and the corresponding typeface names herein are trademarks of Microsoft, Linotype GmbH, Monotype GmbH, Monotype Imaging,
and the Monotype Corporation.
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