Free Desktop Publishing Newsletter!
Discuss in my Forum

Stop Faking It
What difference does it make whether I use true italics or not?

See More About:

Fake and true italics

In an experiment with true italics and fake italics, in my page layout program I set some text in italics with and without the italic version installed. See the illustration above the sidebar for the results. I didn't have Century Schoolbook Italic installed so the software simply slanted the Century Schoolbook font a little. After installing the true italic version, the software used it. See the difference in appearance? Notice the change in the shape of e and a and the bottom of l and i.

Not only does the use of the actual italic fonts make a difference in appearance, it can make a difference in what gets printed. When having a document commercially printed, if the italic version of the font is missing it is possible that the text would not show up at all as italic (fake or true italics) when printed.

_{The Desktop Document > Text Phase > Text Composition/Emphasis > Italic Type}

Submit an Article or Review for Desktop Publishing
Share your design or software expertise. Sound off on issues relevant to desktop publishing. Submit an article on any aspect of desktop publishing or a review of software, books, or other desktop publishing tools.
^{Submission Guidelines}

There's More to Explore

Ask the Experts, Join the Discussions
	Drop into any of the three desktop publishing forums to learn about software, prepress, printing, fonts, graphics, and freelance design.
Got Questions? Get Answers.
	Browse the FAQs for answers to questions about desktop publishing careers, layout, graphics, prepress, software, and fonts.
Stay Up-to-Date on the World of Desktop Publishing
	Sign up for free newsletters and free email courses from your About Desktop Publishing Guide to keep abreast of what's new and what's happening.