[scribus] Identify font

[Gregory Pittman]

On 04/06/2010 08:29 AM, Marco Boeringa wrote:
> Sorry if this is off-topic, but I am using Scribus for a basic design,
> and I would potentially like to use 2 nice fonts I saw used in books.
> Both are probably commercial fonts. Now by pure luck, I managed to
> identify one of these as FS Sophie, but I still don't know the other
> one. I already browsed through parts of the Linotype and Adobe font
> collection on the respective websites, but since there is probably a
> gazillion fonts out there and on the internet, it is like trying to find
> a needle in a haystack...
>
> The font is quite distinct though, and should probably be readily
> identifiable from a quick look at it if you know it. I have made a scan,
> it's here:
>
> http://www.boeringa.demon.nl/forum/scribus/thread_identifyfonts/Font_1.jpg
>
> Anyone know this font? I am aware it might of course still be a
> dedicated design specially created for the book...

You can, of course, google the font, but you may be going about this in 
the wrong way.

The world is full of proprietary fonts, and there is a good chance that 
some cool font you see is proprietary. Beyond the _very_ basic 
assessment of whether some font is serif or sans serif or whatever, we 
unfortunately don't have a language to describe the particular features 
of one sans serif font versus another.

One angle on the proprietary font front is realizing that some old 
defunct programs included various fonts, and by including them, gave you 
a license to use them however you see fit. So you might find some old 
crusty disk which you can purchase for cents on the euro/pennies on the 
dollar just for legitimate use of the fonts.

The other approach (and these are not mutually exclusive) is to do your 
shopping where the products are free, like:

http://openfontlibrary.org/

Admittedly, the selected is limited at this point in time, but at least 
everything you see is free of encumbrances. Many on this list spend some 
time on a frequent basis looking for more and more fonts (can you ever 
have enough?), so you have to think longitudinally on this very issue.

You can also get some benefit from getting fontmatrix, which will help 
you understand any font you do have, and let you know about its licensing.

Greg