Get Helvetica Off Our Money

[mga]

i'd rather support 'get "in god we trust" off our money'

[joubert]

I wish I could exchange all my karma for upvoting this comment. Not that I have a lot, but still.

[duck]

Alright, since no one else is commenting on this... why?

[zck]

All the new dollar bills seem like they were designed piecemeal, with little thought as to how they coalesce into one image. Independence Hall is cut off on the right by the giant 100. It's not cut off on the left. Who cares about symmetry?

The back of the $20 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:US_$20_Series_2006_Reverse...) looks like a child took a highlighter and drew 20 on the bill dozens of times. There's no discernible pattern; it looks like noise.

The front of the $10 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:US10dollarbill-Series_2004...) has three things going on in the exact same place. Look at the seal on the right of the bill. It also has TEN written over it, and We The People in the same spot. Is it harder to counterfeit if you can't read it? It simply looks lazy to me.

[thwarted]

The back of the $20 looks like a child took a highlighter and drew 20 on the bill dozens of times. There's no discernible pattern; it looks like noise.

But it's not noise. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/EURion_constellation

The front of the $10 has three things going on in the exact same place. Look at the seal on the right of the bill. It also has TEN written over it, and We The People in the same spot. Is it harder to counterfeit if you can't read it? It simply looks lazy to me.

Yes, that's exactly why, it's an anti-counterfeiting device. Are you really having trouble reading "We the People" or using that TEN to determine the denomination?

[jamesbressi]

We should have used something ridiculous like windings just to add to the conspiracy theories surrounding the hidden meanings in our currency.

[qq66]

Out of curiosity, why is there so much hand-wringing on the Internet about fonts? I agree that typography has importance in design. But the attention given to it seems totally incommensurate with its importance.

[techiferous]

More info here: http://www.newmoney.gov/currency/100.htm

The large Helvetica 100 is meant for the visually impaired.

[rantfoil]

Helvetica is awesome. I disagree vehemently.

[mortenjorck]

Here's the thing. Helvetica is indeed awesome. But it fits into the design of US currency about as well as an Eero Saarinen table fits into a Victorian living room.

If we're going to have Helvetica on there, we need to go full Modern. The old Dutch Guilder notes (http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/48/5_Gulden_...) might be a nice place to start.

[jessriedel]

I'd sacrifice increased counterfeiting if it meant we could get rid of all those colors. For the longest time, the US had currency that was truly unique looking compared to the rest of the world. Now, it's beginning to look like every other foreign currency: rainbow colors, large and detailed faces, and asymmetric denomination marks.

[duck]

Really? In the end the public pays for counterfeiting. I do agree it's beginning to look the same and it seems like we could come up with something more original, but in the end I don't care what it looks like as long as whats in my back pocket is real.

[nonrecursive]

I thought the other reason for the variety of colors and sizes was that it made it easier for visual impairments to handle money. It would indeed be nice, though, if US currency became more usable while remaining unique.

[az]

I think we should add braille like some countries

[mhunter]

Only if it is replaced with Comic Sans (sarcasm).

[koanarc]

I whole-heartedly support this notion. Monopoly money should look as such.

[astrec]

Why isn't it polymer?

[iamgabeaudick]

Eww.

[ax0n]

Is there a genuinely compelling reason to banish one font or another from our currency? Really? Font Nerds are very high up on the list of geek subcultures that I do not understand. Not quite as high up as furries, though.