Firefox browser - Font Smoothing?

[astral276]

Having had some recent problems with IE7 I am considering making Firefox my default browser. One thing I do like from IE that I can't seem to find in Firefox is to have smoothing of screen fonts applied.

Is there a switch for this tucked away somewhere that I am failing to see?

[heatemyfather]

For smooth fonts you could try Safari, it's also supposed to be the fastest browser according to the blurb.
There may be a trick to getting smooth fonts in Firefox, but I don't know what it would be on the PC.

[astral276]

Having had some recent problems with IE7 I am considering making Firefox my default browser. One thing I do like from IE that I can't seem to find in Firefox is to have smoothing of screen fonts applied.

Is there a switch for this tucked away somewhere that I am failing to see?

To answer my own question - just in case anyone is interested in the solution.

Go to Desktop > Right Click > Display Properties > Appearance > Effects

Then set the checkbox “Use the following method to smooth edges of screen fonts:” and select 'ClearType' as your preference and click the 'Apply' button.

I'm sure my system was set thus at one time but something seems to have changed the setting to an undefined state - I know not when.

It would appear that IE uses ClearType screen font smoothing by default (you have to tell it not to) but Firefox doesn't unless the system is set to use it.

[heatemyfather]

To answer my own question - just in case anyone is interested in the solution.

Go to Desktop > Right Click > Display Properties > Appearance > Effects

Then set the checkbox “Use the following method to smooth edges of screen fonts:” and select 'ClearType' as your preference and click the 'Apply' button.

I had cause to set this on a family friend's PC yesterday, very handy bit of advice, thanks! They were using one of those strange HDMI TV-come-monitor things which was less than ideal, all of the text was blocky and bitty, yuck! ClearType smoothed it out a lot (but it was still nowhere near as good as it should be on a proper monitor).

[JanetB]

To answer my own question - just in case anyone is interested in the solution.

Go to Desktop > Right Click > Display Properties > Appearance > Effects

Then set the checkbox “Use the following method to smooth edges of screen fonts:” and select 'ClearType' as your preference and click the 'Apply' button.

I'm sure my system was set thus at one time but something seems to have changed the setting to an undefined state - I know not when.

It would appear that IE uses ClearType screen font smoothing by default (you have to tell it not to) but Firefox doesn't unless the system is set to use it.

I went and followed your instructions and don't see any change on my monitor so my question would be: What is the purpose of doing this?

~Jan~

[astral276]

I went and followed your instructions and don't see any change on my monitor so my question would be: What is the purpose of doing this?

~Jan~

This:



as compared to this:

[JanetB]

Oh my goodness, now I see it and it sure does look better, and, is it my imagination, does the font look a little bolder too?

I never knew about this option, so thank you very much, I've learned something new for today

~Jan~

[astral276]

...is it my imagination, does the font look a little bolder too?

Sort of. It is what is know as anti-alias of the text. A sort of optical trick on the eye. If you magnify the actual text you will see that it is altered as in:



is changed to:



This fools the eye into not seeing the blockiness of the pixels that form the characters.

[JanetB]

aaaaahhhh thanks!

~Jan~

[maroy41]

Just did this too, you are never too old to learn it seems