How would I write a letter on a blank page for sending to the printer for printing, similar to writing an e-mail?
You could use the TextEdit program, located in the Applications folder.
Ok I saw that, but how do I enlarge the fonts so I can see what I'm writing?
The default font size in TextEdit is 12pt. Which is too large for a letter so infact you will need to reduce it to no less than 8pt. 9pt is standard. Once you reduce it you can then zoom in using the little tab thingy at the bottom that will say something like 50% or something. Set it to 150% or even 200% to zoom in.
but when I send the page to the printer, the font size on paper is smaller than on the Text Edit screen. How do I get them to be the same size?
Ok I figured out how to how to make the fonts bigger when I write, but when I send the page to the printer, the font size on paper is smaller than on the Text Edit screen. How do I get them to be the same size?
except that doing that does not work with any consistency - the screen size and the print size do not change in the way you would expect. you can up the screen size and the print size remains the same.
Does it look quite as big now?This is roughly 12pt on paper
This is roughly 9pt.
Obviously I am aware the size will change a little depending on your screen res. But im sure you will agree its a bit big for a letter.
As a designer, for me, 12pt is fecking HUGE.
Does it look quite as big now?
Most people will use a more compact font (like Times New Roman/Garamond/...) for letters, where 12 pt. is far from inappropriate.
B
No but you have used a smaller font in your post.
My point is that the appropriate font height will depend of the font you choose. I made the fonts in my post size 3 and no size as you did, just changing the font.
12 point Times New Roman is nicely readable and compact. 12 point Arial is just hideous.
B
No but you have used a smaller type size in your post.
Times may look smaller than say Frutiger or Arial but 12pt is still too big for a letter in my opinion. I'm not arguing here I'm just saying I think its too big. FYI Gill Sans looks almost a point size smaller than most other fonts at the same size. So I would up it one size for a letter but I probably would still only hit 10pt or 11 at a real push.
Right, but letterwriting isn't a free-for-all. Standard business forms (and official government correspondence) are printed in Times New Roman, 12 point. If using an Arial-class typeface, 10 point is the standard. All of these details (along with page margins, spacing lines, and other formatting) should have been instructed in a business class, computer applications class, or professional training program and references are available online as a refresher. For what it's worth, the forum default text on both Macs and Windows is set to the standard size and prints out exactly correct for letters on all of my machines. Linux is inconsistent.Fair dos!
Like I said im not arguing just stating my opinion/preference. Design is all about opinion anyway.
Right.Be that as it may, the standard font size for letters comes from typewriters, which generally outputted Courier or Pica in 10-pitch or 12-pitch. Translated to point sizes, that works out to being about 12 point or 10 point. 9 point is just too small for a standard letter. 11 is just about perfect, unless you're using an especially wide font.