Make Win7 Fonts as Smooth as OS X

If you've ever used a newer Macintosh computer system, you'll know that the fonts seemingly appear to be crisper and better looking than the fonts on a standard Windows 7 desktop. Cleartype technology is Microsoft's attempt at making the best of those jaggy fonts and smoothing the edges, but in hindsight (since Windows XP) I've noticed that Cleartype isn't all it's cracked up to be.

Take into account also that the Windows fonts aren't exactly the best to begin with, (regardless if they are still an improvement over the earlier fonts in Windows), and what we have is the equivalent of a font lover's nightmare.

For those who use a Mac, you are safe to ignore this post. You already have the benefit of GDI ++ type rendering of fonts in the form of Quartz, and your text displays look absolutely wonderful for it. However, for Windows users (XP, Vista and Windows 7) I offer a solution.

To better appreciate something like GDI ++ rendering of fonts, you first have to understand what it is that Cleartype is doing versus GDI ++, so I'll make an attempt to explain it below (using pictures whenever possible).

When comparing Microsoft to Apple one will immediately think of countless ways to say one is better versus the other, and countless Internet wars have been fought with no end in sight. In this instance, though, I will only be giving a quick explanation of the two types of Font Rendering employed in each Operating System, so feel free to leave the Apple vs Microsoft debate for another forum.

Quartz and ClearType. Source: Smashing Magazine. Full Sized Image [+]

"Microsoft and Apple have both delivered technological advances in the world of anti-aliasing, but they have somewhat different approaches. The current versions of both operating systems use anti-aliasing and subpixel rendering. Both vendors have dramatically increased legibility within their operating systems, but controversy has arisen over the aesthetics and legibilty of each. Microsoft’s entry in the competition — which is characterized by tight grid-fitting — is aptly named ClearType. By forcing characters tightly into the pixel grid, ClearType increases contrast along the edges of glyphs and renders more crisply.

Distinctly different is Apple’s Quartz 2D, which puts emphasis on maintaining the shape and integrity of the typeface. This certainly makes sense, given the high proportion of designers who work on Macs. But Quartz rendered type often appears blurry, which can cause eye strain with extended reading." Smashing Magazine, The Ails of Typographic Anti-Aliasing

This is possibly the best explanation aside from the full Wikipedia entry about the subject that I can offer in order to illustrate the difference. For people who are much more curious and would like to really get in-depth about it, I'll offer both links:

Microsoft Cleartype: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ClearType
Apple Quartz 2D: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quartz_2D

In any event, the point I'm making here is that the two different methods for font display can be a blessing or a curse depending on who you are talking with at the time. Cleartype has a slight advantage in that it often times makes on screen legibility a bit better for reading, but at the cost of font accuracy and smoothness. Quartz 2D goes for the smoothness and font accuracy approach (great for design, but maybe not so much for on screen legibility). My personal preference is for the font accuracy and smoothness versus the alleged legibility boost from Cleartype, and quite honestly I actually find it easier to read fonts rendered with Quartz 2D and GDI ++ methods over Cleartype methods.

There is a minor drawback to using something like GDI ++ on Windows, which is to say that not all programs in Windows will respond well to it. Paint Shop Pro, for instance, has a bit of trouble with GDI ++ running as some of the fonts in that program actually become worse as a result in the interface. However, the majority of windows and programs seems to fare well with GDI ++ enabled, including Firefox.

Now that the explanations are complete, let's get to actually putting this in place.

The first thing about GDI ++ to be aware of is that while it will make most of the fonts on screen look better, it can never hurt to actually have some of the Apple fonts installed in Windows 7. A good place to begin for this is to head over to Iceman's Emulation Page and download the converted OS X fonts:

http://www.jonmega.com/iceman/stuff/fonts/

After you install those fonts, we'll be ready to move onto installing GDI ++ to swap the on-screen rendering over to something smoother. A quick note about Iceman's OS X Fonts; The last one in the set doesn't seem to be a font that Windows will recognize, but it is safe to ignore it for this purpose. The rest, such as Lucida Grande, and Garamond series are the ones you really want. Also, if you have the extra money laying around (and are a hardcore Font lover) nothing spells font perfection quite like having Helvetica on your system, Neue Helvetica and Helvetica World. Unfortunately for many, Helvetica series is a commercial font and quite likely out of your price range. Each Font family has numerous iterations and types within the family listing and each individual font usually sells for about $26 each.

You may be wondering what the point of getting these fonts installed on your Windows machine is, and I'll tell you simply that it never hurts to be able to see how projects are rendered on a Mac. Secondly, one must also consider that the core Windows fonts are optimized for ClearType use and not Quartz use, and as such may result in lackluster results without adding the other fonts. Overall the reason would end up being "Why the heck not?".

After we've installed the fonts, it's time to head over to the GDI ++ page (english version) here: http://drwatson.nobody.jp/gdi++/index-en.html and download the GDI ++ program (it's free). You may want to note that the program is no longer being developed or updated, but for this purpose it still works just fine. After unzipping the download, simply place the folder in the Programs directory and run it. From there you can find it in the system tray and have access to all of the options it supports, including the ability to enable or disable the GDI ++ as you see fit.

After GDI ++ is running, you may want to select Redraw Desktop from the right-click menu on the icon in the system tray to get everything switched over to GDI ++. Also in firefox (and any program that allows it) you should go to the Tools -> Options menu and under Content choose Lucida Grande as the default font and possibly a font size of about 16 on a higher resolution screen for clarity. The prior step would apply if you went ahead and installed the Apple OS X fonts on your system.

The Final Verdict is truly up for debate, because either Quartz style font rendering or Cleartype have their advocates. Some will swear that Cleartype rendering makes it easier to read on an LCD, and that Quartz style rendering actually makes it harder. Still, you'll find that there are others who swear by Quartz style rendering for accuracy and legibility for reading. I happen to fall into the latter camp in that I prefer the GDI ++ rendering style (Quartz 2D) over Cleartype styles. Whenever I get a new computer I make it a point to install the Apple fonts, Helvetica Series and GDI ++ before I do any serious work.

You could say that I'm trying to make my Windows machine into a Mac, and am making up for something that a Windows system cannot do... but I like to think that because I'm a Windows user, I'm paying a bit of homage to Apple by tipping my hat in their direction for the ability to render fonts on screen beautifully.