Hacker News Reader

Comment by Eddy_Viscosity2 | Hacker News Reader

This is like that Malcolm Gladwell story about the best spaghetti sauce. There is no one size fits all - different people like different things.

https://www.ted.com/talks/malcolm_gladwell_choice_happiness_...

View on HN

It's probably about the font just being well designed, having consistent kerning ans whatnot.

Same as with design guidelines. Every couple years something new comes along and is better than anything before.

We had an intern a few years ago who was still working on his masters and also made some money on the side with "web stuff". He wouldn't stop talking about material design, how it is the best ever and how every margin and padding is scientifically proven to be perfect to the pixel, the blue they picked is perfection, how rounded corners and 3D effects on buttons are fatiguing to the eye, and so on and so on. I guess it was the first time this fellow consciously witnessed the release of a web design framework. It was near impossible to convince him that using bootstrap is just as good, and while certain rules for ratios between paddings, margins and font sizes exist it's much more important your theme is consistent, and that you apply it consistently.

This is pretty much what happens to anyone who enthusiastically enters a new field. You can tell when someone both cares about typography and is lacking in experience when they start talking about how Comic Sans is the worst font ever made or Helvetica is the best font ever made. They're both excellent fonts when used as intended.

I find it amazing that people ever think that there might be a one-size-fits-all solution to a subjective human experience.

Spaghetti Sauce, Fonts.

Sure no one likes dog crap in their sauce, so there are obvious experiences no one likes, but to assume that there is one single one that everyone likes?

Sometimes we get so nearsighted that by reframing the question it seems obvious.

We cant even agree on which water is best

Water? You mean like in the toilet? What for?

I like blue toilet water

Who says there is one thing everyone likes best? (The OP says the opposite.)

Almost all human beings enjoy opiates. You can dose almost anyone with them and the experience is pleasant. This is why they are used so effectively as analgesics. The subjective experience is almost universally pleasant.

MDMA is similar. Sugar is similar.

Making good spaghetti isn't random. There is a science to cooking and making meals that have broad appeal.

Good typography matters, and it's not a wholly subjective or interpretive experience where wingdings, comic sans, and Times New Roman all are equally likely to provide an efficient reading experience.

We aren't that different, after all.

Sure, but that doesn’t mean that you are likely to find one single spaghetti or one single font that is “the best” for more than a fraction of the population. Too much variation and not enough alignment on what constitutes “best”.

Reply on news.ycombinator.com