Editing Helvetica (section)

==Helvetica clones==
[[File:Helvetica, Arial, MS Sans, Bitstream Vera comparison.png|thumb|Comparison of Helvetica, [[Arial]] and [[Microsoft Sans Serif]]. [[Bitstream Vera]], a humanist design not based on Helvetica, is shown for comparison.]]
Derivative designs based on Helvetica were rapidly developed, taking advantage of the lack of copyright protection in the [[phototypesetting]] typeface market of the 1960s onward.<ref name="The Scourge of Arial">{{cite web|last1=Simonson|first1=Mark|author-link=Mark Simonson|title=The Scourge of Arial|url=http://www.marksimonson.com/notebook/view/the-scourge-of-arial|website=Mark Simonson Studio Notebook|date=21 February 2001 |access-date=19 March 2016|quote=Many type manufacturers in the past have done knock-offs of Helvetica that were indistinguishable or nearly so. For better or worse, in many countries—particularly the U.S.—while typeface names can be protected legally, typeface designs themselves are difficult to protect. So, if you wanted to buy a typesetting machine and wanted the real Helvetica, you had to buy Linotype. If you opted to purchase Compugraphic, AM, or Alphatype typesetting equipment, you couldn't get Helvetica. Instead you got Triumvirate, or Helios, or Megaron, or Newton, or whatever. Every typesetting manufacturer had its own Helvetica look-alike. It's quite possible that most of the "Helvetica" seen in the '70s was actually not Helvetica.|archive-date=6 March 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160306221218/http://www.marksimonson.com/notebook/view/the-scourge-of-arial|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|last1=Downer|first1=John|title=Call It What It Is|author-link=John Downer (signpainter)|url=http://www.emigre.com/Editorial.php?sect=2&id=1|publisher=[[Emigre (type foundry)|Emigre]]|access-date=20 March 2016|archive-date=22 March 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160322163322/http://www.emigre.com/Editorial.php?sect=2&id=1|url-status=live}}</ref> Some of these were straight clones, simply intended to be direct substitutes.<ref name="Font Wars: A Story On Rivalry Between Type Foundries">{{cite web|last1=Loxley|first1=Simon|title=Font Wars: A Story On Rivalry Between Type Foundries|url=https://www.smashingmagazine.com/2012/05/font-wars-story-on-rivalry-between-type-foundries/|website=Smashing Magazine|date=14 May 2012|access-date=20 March 2016|archive-date=30 March 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160330215720/https://www.smashingmagazine.com/2012/05/font-wars-story-on-rivalry-between-type-foundries/|url-status=live}}</ref> Many of these are almost indistinguishable from Helvetica, while some add subtle differences.

Substitute Helvetica designs that have survived into or originated during the digital period have included [[Monotype Imaging|Monotype]]'s Arial, Compugraphic's CG Triumvirate, ParaType's Pragmatica, [[Bitstream Inc.|Bitstream]]'s Swiss 721, [[URW++]]'s [[Nimbus Sans]] and [[Scangraphic]]'s Europa Grotesk.<ref name="The Scourge of Arial" /><ref>{{cite web|last1=Devroye|first1=Luc|author-link=Luc Devroye|title=Helvetica clones|url=http://luc.devroye.org/fonts-46693.html|website=Type Design Information|access-date=20 March 2016|archive-date=29 March 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160329233458/http://luc.devroye.org/fonts-46693.html|url-status=live}}</ref> Berthold itself responded to Helvetica's popularity with Akzidenz-Grotesk Buch, effectively a Helvetica clone.<ref name="Karow2012">{{cite book|author=Peter Karow|title=Font Technology: Methods and Tools|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=5MeoCAAAQBAJ|date=6 December 2012|publisher=Springer Science & Business Media|isbn=978-3-642-78505-4|pages=225–8, 235–40}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|last1=Spiekermann|first1=Eric|author-link1=Erik Spiekermann|title=Twitter post|url=https://twitter.com/espiekermann/status/580497573800255488|website=Twitter|access-date=21 July 2016|quote=AG Buch war [[Gunter Gerhard Lange|GGL]]'s Antwort auf Helvetica, für die Berthold keine Lizenz kriegte von Linotype.|archive-date=21 June 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190621063208/https://twitter.com/espiekermann/status/580497573800255488|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=AG Book Pro|url=https://www.bertholdtypes.com/font/ag-book/proplus/|publisher=Berthold|access-date=1 October 2017|archive-date=2 October 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171002022705/https://www.bertholdtypes.com/font/ag-book/proplus/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=AG Book Rounded Pro|url=https://www.bertholdtypes.com/font/ag-book-rounded/proplus/|publisher=Berthold|access-date=1 October 2017|archive-date=2 October 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171002022815/https://www.bertholdtypes.com/font/ag-book-rounded/proplus/|url-status=live}}</ref> Besides Helvetica imitations, Helvetica was available in custom derivatives with unusual special-order characters for many years, notably a straight-legged 'R' and round-topped 'A'.<ref name="NHG Kupferschmid" /> [[CNN]] uses a custom derivative, "CNN Sans", which has a '1' with a base and larger x-height.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.newscaststudio.com/2016/04/22/cnn-now-has-its-own-font/|title=CNN now has its own font ... for some reason|date=22 April 2016|website=NewscastStudio|access-date=29 April 2016|archive-date=2 May 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160502113449/http://www.newscaststudio.com/2016/04/22/cnn-now-has-its-own-font/?|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.promaxbda.org/brief/content/cnn-customizes-new-company-wide-font#!|title=CNN Customizes New Company-Wide Font|date=2016-05-02|access-date=2016-08-30|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160911040833/http://www.promaxbda.org/brief/content/cnn-customizes-new-company-wide-font#!|archive-date=2016-09-11|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://vimeo.com/163429840|title=CNN Sans|website=Vimeo|access-date=2016-09-28|archive-date=2016-10-07|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161007095043/https://vimeo.com/163429840|url-status=live}}</ref>

===Nimbus Sans===
[[URW++|URW]] (later URW++) under the leadership of [[Peter Karow]] produced a modification of Helvetica called [[Nimbus Sans]].<ref name="Karow2012" /> This is an extremely large font family with optical sizes spaced for different sizes of text and other variants such as stencil styles.<ref>{{cite web|title=Nimbus Sans|url=https://www.myfonts.com/fonts/urw/nimbus-sans/|website=[[MyFonts]]|publisher=[[URW++]]|access-date=30 April 2018|archive-date=1 May 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180501093702/https://www.myfonts.com/fonts/urw/nimbus-sans/|url-status=live}}</ref> Florian Hardwig has described its display-oriented styles, with tight spacing, as more reminiscent of Helvetica as used in the 1970s from cold type than any official Helvetica digitisation.<ref>{{cite web|last1=Hardwig|first1=Florian|title=National Trust Tree Appeal Poster|url=http://fontsinuse.com/uses/4873/national-trust-tree-appeal-poster|website=Fonts In Use|date=30 September 2013|access-date=20 March 2016|archive-date=31 March 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160331230208/http://fontsinuse.com/uses/4873/national-trust-tree-appeal-poster|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|last1=Freeman|first1=Luke|last2=Hardwig|first2=Florian|title=London's Fastest poster campaign by Nike|url=https://fontsinuse.com/uses/18106/london-s-fastest-poster-campaign-by-nike|website=Fonts in Use|date=31 July 2017|access-date=1 May 2018|archive-date=1 May 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180501230256/https://fontsinuse.com/uses/18106/london-s-fastest-poster-campaign-by-nike|url-status=live}}</ref>

===Arial and MS Sans Serif===
[[Monotype Corporation|Monotype]]'s [[Arial]], created for IBM and also used by Microsoft, is indistinguishable by most non-specialists.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Simonson |first1=Mark |author-link1=Mark Simonson |title=How to Spot Arial |url=https://www.marksimonson.com/notebook/view/how-to-spot-arial |website=Mark Simonson Studio |date=17 June 2021 |access-date=27 March 2020 |archive-date=23 December 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191223092203/https://www.marksimonson.com/notebook/view/how-to-spot-arial |url-status=live }}</ref>{{Verification failed|date=November 2024}} Matthew Carter, who was a consultant for IBM during its design process, describes it as "a Helvetica clone, based ostensibly on their [[Monotype Grotesque|Grots 215 and 216]]" (Monotype's old 1920s sans-serif family, popular in British trade printing in the metal type period, and itself based on the Bauer [[Venus (typeface)|Venus-Grotesk]] family).<ref name="Blue Pencil no. 18—Some history about Arial" /> Differences include:
* Helvetica's strokes are typically cut either horizontally or vertically. This is especially visible in the t, r, f, and C. Arial employs slanted stroke cuts, following Monotype Grotesque.
* Helvetica's G has a spur at bottom right; Arial does not, but instead has a vertical stroke connecting the curved portion to the crossbar.
* The tail of Helvetica's R is more upright whereas Arial's R is more diagonal.
* The number 1 of Helvetica has a square angle underneath the upper spur, Arial has a curve.
* The Q glyph in Helvetica has a straight cross mark, while the cross mark in Arial has a slight curve.
The design was created to substitute for Helvetica: Arial (and many other clones of the period) are metrically identical to the PostScript version of Helvetica, so that a document designed in Helvetica could be displayed and printed correctly without IBM having to pay Linotype for a Helvetica license on its printers.<ref name="Blue Pencil no. 18—Some history about Arial">{{cite web|last1=Shaw|first1=Paul|last2=Carter|first2=Matthew|last3=McDonald|first3=Rod|title=Blue Pencil no. 18—Some history about Arial|url=http://www.paulshawletterdesign.com/2011/09/blue-pencil-no-18%E2%80%94some-history-about-arial/|website=Paul Shaw Letter Design|access-date=30 April 2018|archive-date=29 September 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210929213006/https://www.paulshawletterdesign.com/2011/09/blue-pencil-no-18%E2%80%94some-history-about-arial/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|last1=Shaw|first1=Paul|title=Arial Addendum no. 3|url=http://www.paulshawletterdesign.com/2011/10/blue-pencil-no-18%E2%80%94arial-addendum-no-3/|website=Blue Pencil|access-date=1 July 2015|archive-date=9 December 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211209170323/https://www.paulshawletterdesign.com/2011/10/blue-pencil-no-18%E2%80%94arial-addendum-no-3/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|last1=Shaw (& Nicholas)|title=Arial addendum no. 4|url=http://www.paulshawletterdesign.com/2011/11/blue-pencil-no-18%E2%80%94arial-addendum-no-4/|website=Blue Pencil|access-date=1 July 2015|archive-date=9 December 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211209170310/https://www.paulshawletterdesign.com/2011/11/blue-pencil-no-18%E2%80%94arial-addendum-no-4/|url-status=live}}</ref>

Microsoft's "Helv" design, later known as "[[MS Sans Serif]]", is a sans-serif typeface that shares many key characteristics to Helvetica, including the horizontally and vertically aligned stroke terminators and more-uniform stroke widths within a glyph.<ref>{{cite news |title=The Faces of Microsoft |url=https://typemag.squarespace.com/home/2017/10/6/the-faces-of-microsoft |access-date=17 July 2024 |work=TYPE Magazine |date=7 October 2017}}</ref>

===Free Helvetica substitute fonts===
[[File:TeXGyreHerosSpecimenCH path.svg|thumb|TeX Gyre Heros – an enhanced version of Nimbus Sans under the GUST Font License]]
* '''[[Nimbus Sans L]]''', a version of URW's Nimbus Sans spaced to match the standard Linotype/PostScript version of Helvetica, was released under the [[GNU General Public License]] in 1996, and donated to the [[Ghostscript]] project to create a free PostScript alternative.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.tug.org/fonts/deutsch-urw.txt |title=Finally! Good-quality free (GPL) basic-35 PostScript Type 1 fonts. |format=TXT |access-date=2010-05-06 |archive-date=2010-06-15 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100615013230/http://www.tug.org/fonts/deutsch-urw.txt |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://mirror.cs.wisc.edu/pub/mirrors/ghost/aladdin/fonts/ghostscript-fonts-std-4.0.tar.gz |title=ghostscript-fonts-std-4.0.tar.gz - GhostScript 4.0 standard fonts - AFPL license |format=TAR.GZ |date=1996-06-28 |access-date=2010-05-06 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110424032316/http://mirror.cs.wisc.edu/pub/mirrors/ghost/aladdin/fonts/ghostscript-fonts-std-4.0.tar.gz |archive-date=2011-04-24 }}</ref> It (or a derivative) is used by much open-source software such as [[R (software)|R]] as a system font.<ref>{{cite web|title=Fonts|url=http://www.cookbook-r.com/Graphs/Fonts/|website=R Cookbook|access-date=7 April 2016|archive-date=14 April 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160414083945/http://www.cookbook-r.com/Graphs/Fonts/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|last1=Horton|first1=Nicholas|title=Specifying fonts in graphics|url=http://sas-and-r.blogspot.co.uk/2010/04/example-733-specifying-fonts-in.html|website=SAS & R|date=19 April 2010|access-date=7 April 2016|archive-date=21 April 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160421172055/http://sas-and-r.blogspot.co.uk/2010/04/example-733-specifying-fonts-in.html|url-status=live}}</ref>
* '''TeX Gyre Heros'''<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.gust.org.pl/projects/e-foundry/tex-gyre/heros | title=TeX Gyre Heros — GUST Web Presence | access-date=2023-08-09 | archive-date=2023-06-10 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230610192406/https://www.gust.org.pl/projects/e-foundry/tex-gyre/heros | url-status=live }}</ref> – a derivative of Nimbus Sans L with enhanced letter forms and metrics – has been prepared for use in the [[TeX]] scientific document preparation software, and since 2009 general under the GUST font license.<ref>{{cite web|title=TeX Gyre Heros|url=http://www.tug.dk/FontCatalogue/texgyreheros/|website=The LaTeX font catalogue|publisher=TeX Users Group Denmark|access-date=2 August 2017|archive-date=15 August 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170815193140/http://www.tug.dk/FontCatalogue/texgyreheros/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>[http://www.gust.org.pl/projects/e-foundry/tex-gyre The TeX Gyre (TG) Collection of Fonts] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110622122721/http://www.gust.org.pl/projects/e-foundry/tex-gyre |date=2011-06-22 }}, accessed 2020-09-30.</ref>
* '''[[FreeSans]]''' is a free font descending from URW++ Nimbus Sans L, which in turn descends from Helvetica.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.gnu.org/software/freefont/design-notes.html |title=GNU FreeFont - Design notes |date=2009-10-04 |access-date=2010-07-02 |archive-date=2010-06-15 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100615141734/https://www.gnu.org/software/freefont/design-notes.html |url-status=live }}</ref> It is one of free (GPL) fonts developed in GNU FreeFont project, first published in 2002.

Other such typefaces take creative liberties from Helvetica and its basic letter shapes.

* '''[[Liberation fonts|Liberation Sans]]''' is a metrically equivalent font to Arial developed by [[Steve Matteson]] at [[Ascender Corporation|Ascender]] and published by [[Red Hat]] under the [[SIL Open Font License]].<ref>{{citation |url=https://fedoraproject.org/wiki/Licensing/LiberationFontLicense |title=LiberationFontLicense – License Agreement and Limited Product Warranty, Liberation Font Software |access-date=2012-12-19 |archive-date=2012-05-23 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120523100933/https://fedoraproject.org/wiki/Licensing/LiberationFontLicense |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{citation|url=https://fedorahosted.org/liberation-fonts/browser/LICENSE |title=LICENSE - liberation-fonts |access-date=2012-12-19 }}{{dead link|date=March 2017 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref> It is used in some Linux distributions as default font replacement for Arial.<ref>{{citation |url=http://wiki.mandriva.com/en/Releases/Mandriva/2008.0/What%27s_New#Liberation_font_set |title=Mandriva Linux 2008 Release Tour |quote=integrated into Mandriva Linux 2008 |access-date=2010-04-04 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100619073124/http://wiki.mandriva.com/en/Releases/Mandriva/2008.0/What%27s_New#Liberation_font_set |archive-date=2010-06-19 }}</ref> [[Oracle Corporation|Oracle]] funded the additional development of Liberation Sans Narrow in 2010.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.openoffice.org/dev_docs/features/3.3/index.html#New_Narrow_Font_Family |title=OpenOffice.org 3.3 New Features |access-date=2016-03-20 |archive-date=2010-11-05 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101105110421/http://www.openoffice.org/dev_docs/features/3.3/index.html#New_Narrow_Font_Family |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Citation | url = https://fedorahosted.org/liberation-fonts/ | title = Liberation Fonts | publisher = Fedora | access-date = 2016-03-20 | archive-date = 2017-02-15 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20170215065644/https://fedorahosted.org/liberation-fonts/ | url-status = live }}</ref> Google commissioned a variation named [[Arimo (typeface)|Arimo]] for [[ChromeOS]].
* '''[[Roboto]]''' was developed by Christian Robertson of Google as the system font for its [[Android (operating system)|Android]] operating system; this has a more condensed design with the influence of straight-sided geometric designs like [[DIN 1451]].
* '''Inter''' (originally '''Inter UI''') is a fork of Roboto that resembles Apple's [[San Francisco (sans-serif typeface)|San Francisco]] typeface.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://rsms.me/inter/ |title=Inter font family}}</ref>
* '''Mona Sans''', a [[GitHub]] variable font released under [[SIL Open Font License]], stands out from the above examples with its [[a|'single-storey']] lowercase '''a'''.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://github.com/github/mona-sans | title=Mona Sans | website=[[GitHub]] | access-date=2023-08-10 | archive-date=2023-08-10 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230810230540/https://github.com/github/mona-sans | url-status=live }}</ref>
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