Clear Type Tuner for XP

[KD-did]

ClearType Tuner
Step 1: Turn on Windows XP ClearType

With Windows XP, ClearType delivers improved font display quality over traditional forms of font smoothing or anti-aliasing. ClearType improves readability on color LCD displays with a digital interface, such as those in laptops and high-quality flat panel displays. Readability on CRT screens can also be somewhat improved.

Use this online tuner to turn on and tune your Windows XP ClearType settings. Alternately, download a Windows XP PowerToy version of the tuner.

http://www.microsoft.com/typography/cleartype/tuner/Step1.aspx

For Windows 95

Windows 95 font smoother

Font smoothing is one of several system enhancements originally included in the Plus! pack for Windows 95. Now you can make full use of the benefits of this technology, making text easier to read and more pleasant to look at, without having to purchase the Plus! Pack.
http://www.microsoft.com/typography/grayscal/smoother.aspx

If your browser doesn't allow this to work use IE...it is worth it.

[D RAT2]

That sounds great for improving the visual quality of your text on screen, but does it effect the output quality, say for printing ?

[KD-did]

I really don't know....all I can say is even though my display resolution is set at 1024X768 everything including icons, avatars,graphics and text have a sharper cleaner look no matter where they are encountered.

Just wish I had set up an experiment before downloading and installing.

[Texas]

That sounds great for improving the visual quality of your text on screen, but does it effect the output quality, say for printing ?


Ask a friend at Microsoft, the clear type wizards and settings are ONLY for display purposes, it has NO effect on the output or printing. Hope this answers your question...

Randy

[KD-did]

That is rather interesting...because I am seeing a difference in an export I did after downloading and installing and the same export before installation....Things appear bigger without increasing file size.I am still seeing a difference between the exports on a different computer without the download there is a smoother look to the exports after the download...

Here both imports are the same size and type of export....see attachment for side by side comparison...

[D RAT2]

Right, your exports look cleaner on screen. But if you were to print it, it would look the same as before you installed the software. Also those who don't have the software installed will not see a difference in your exports. I guess what I am getting at is that I want to see my exports the way others see them. Besides if you have a good quality monitor you shouldn't be able to tell that much of a difference, I would think ?

[KD-did]

My question is...is this a situation where we are seeing what we are suppose to be seeing in the first place? I had saved the 1st export to a floppy..as fullsize and saved the 2nd export to the same floppy fullsized...then looked at them on the same brand monitor set at the same resolution....and there is a difference.When printing there is almost no difference except the image is a little larger on the 2nd export (while the canvas shows to be the same size)and curved lines are slightly smoother after installation of software, especially noted in the cursive font. Red circles on the attachment show where there are differences in appearances on the screen and in print.

Keeping in mind that both exported out of TLC exactly the same way, they should be carbon copies but they are not and the subtilise are not lost when printing.

[KD-did]

Futher reading on this seems be saying is this tuner lets XP users see things the way they should be and was lacking.

Finally a ClearType Tuner Powertoy

Cleartype_tuner
Microsoft Cleartype technology is a powerful tool for rendering fonts on LCD screens properly. The difference between normal displays on a laptop and a Cleartype enabled screen can be quite spectacular. For some reason Windows XP does not enable Cleartype by default so the first thing a user with an LCD screen should do is enable it. This has always entailed a visit to the Cleartype web site and running the Cleartype Tuner through Internet Explorer. Not anymore. Microsoft has finally released the Cleartype Tuner PowerToy for Windows XP users that creates a control panel applet, which is where it belongs. It's free and once you install it you have complete control for enabling and optimizing Cleartype for your particular display. Well worth the trouble to go get it.

October 07, 2004 in cool stuff | Permalink jkontherun


Josh pointed me to a great resource. At Whitespace I was bemoaning the fact that ClearType and CRTs just don't seem to mix. If I implemented it the text just seemed more blurry and would make my head spin. Well Microsoft has a ClearType tuner that works really well with LCDs, but also with CRTs. Check it out. However, I think you have to use IE to make it work. Forevergeek


Microsoft’s ClearType Tuner PowerToy
Permalink | ~ PCs

If you are running Windows XP and have an LCD monitor, you should be running Microsoft’s ClearType. Microsoft’s description of ClearType says:

With Windows XP, ClearType delivers improved font display quality over traditional forms of font smoothing or anti-aliasing. ClearType improves readability on color LCD displays with a digital interface, such as those in laptops and high-quality flat panel displays. Readability on CRT screens can also be somewhat improved.

Before, you only had the option to use the web-based ClearType tuner which required IE (since it uses ActiveX). Now you have the option to download the new ClearType Tuner PowerToy. It allows you to adjust the settings locally, and has an alternative adjustment UI in the Advanced tab.Zoinger blog


It applies to any color font and any color background and any width object (indeed, it can apply to an arbitrary image!). ClearType also can accept fonts that are rasterized at a higher resolution than the sub-pixel resolution (which yields fewer "jaggies"). http://research.microsoft.com/~jplatt/cleartype/

To make the best choices of fonts is is better to see them as they should appear.

[MasterDesign]

Anyway, everything looks more clear on my screen now, thanx Katie
MD