Best Practices for Using Text

     

It is crucial to ensure that your text can be read. Attributes that affect legibility include

  • Contrast between text color and background color

  • Serif typefaces

  • Point size

  • Letter spacing and line spacing

These attributes are especially important when bitmap fonts are used. The point size is predetermined for bitmap fonts and is often small. It is therefore even more important to ensure that there is sufficient contrast between font color and background color. Dark text on light backgrounds is most easily read, although light text can be used on dark backgrounds if the colors are carefully chosen to ensure sufficient contrast. Avoid combining text and background colors that are similar in brightness, especially with text at small sizes, such as body copy set in bitmap fonts.

Another rule of thumb is to avoid the use of serif typefaces at small sizes. Serifs are delicate lines, much finer than the main strokes of letters , and at small sizes it is difficult to distinguish such fine detail. Anti-aliasing exacerbates the problem. Miniml offers a bitmap serif font, Cerif, which is more legible at small sizes.

For more information about Miniml fonts and other bitmap fonts, see the "Bitmap Font Resources" sidebar, earlier in this chapter, page 369 .


If you are not using bitmap fonts, you can control the point size of your text. Preview your text at different sizes and formatting to find the optimum size, letter spacing, and line spacing. Also, have someone else read your text to ensure that a viewer who is unfamiliar with the content can comfortably read it.

Give Text Fields Unique Instance Names

If you need to create several input or dynamic text fields that are the same size and have the same attributes, it's fastest to copy and paste a single text field. However, copied text fields have identical attributes, including instance and variable names. This will really mess up your scripting, so you must ”I repeat must ”then assign unique instance and variable names for each text field. Be compulsive about naming.

Similarly, if you're having a problem with a script dealing with multiple text fields, check your instance and variable names for repetition. Because you can display the attributes of only one text field at a time in the Property inspector, use the Movie Explorer or the List Variables option in the Debugger (Debug, List Variables) to view the entire list of variables at once.




Using Macromedia Studio MX 2004
Special Edition Using Macromedia Studio MX 2004
ISBN: 0789730421
EAN: 2147483647
Year: N/A
Pages: 339

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