For the first time in nearly 15 years, Microsoft is dropping the default font. The user is then prompted to select a new font.
The company has ordered five new custom fonts, which are said to replace the time-honored but slightly jaded Calibri, which has been the default in all Word documents and Outlook emails since 2007. At one time, Calibri replaced Times New Roman - a beautiful font with a rich history, but with a clear aesthetic of pre-Internet times.
The default fonts should be unobtrusive and easily adaptable. And Calibri perfectly met these requirements. It is easy to read, yet unobtrusive. And the subtle curves make it a little warmer than the sans-serif Helvetica and Arial fonts so beloved by designers. In other words, this is a very good font. The only problem is that it's just outdated. And for this reason, the company decided to change it to something more modern.
At the same time, in Microsoft decided to involve the users themselves in choosing a new default font. The company has developed 5 new fonts for which it is proposed to vote. These are Bierstadt, Grandview, Seaford, Skeena and Tenorite. According to the designers who created them, all of them can become a worthy replacement for the "veteran" Calibri. You can vote for them in the official Twitter companies.
At the same time, the development took into account all the richest heritage of type design of recent decades. So Bierstadt was inspired by mid-century Swiss design. And Grandview is based on an idea borrowed from old German railway signs, which were designed to be easily disassembled from a distance.
“The default font is often the first impression we make. This is our visual identity that we present to other people through our resumes, documents or emails,” Microsoft said in a blog post about the upcoming changes. According to the company, ways of self-expression should "grow and develop", just like people.
Although Calibri will no longer be the default next year, it will still be available among hundreds of Microsoft Office fonts.
