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> >I was stunned at the number of ugly, badly written resumes and cover
> >letters I received for this job. Some were in Courier (which I used as a
> >"weeding" factor). ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
> ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
I have to speak up in defense of Courier. Yes, it is inappropriate
in many situations and is often misused. BUT...
It is ideally suited for FAX and multiple-generation photocopying.
Monospaced type is not always appropriate, but when it is, Courier
is the face of choice. It is very intelligently designed. IBM
used extremely competent typographers (sorry I don't know the names)
to make a monospaced, impact-impression face work with characters
as diverse as (W) and (i). The design considerations they were
constrained by have some very good effects in other uses, (e.g. FAX).
Courier is ideal for documenting screen displays that appear
in any monospaced font. (It does have some weaknesses, but it has
less confusion between characters like 1 and l than ANY other face
I've been able to find.)
Many recruiters and HR departments FAX photocopies and then copy
the FAXes. I would give an applicant high marks for choosing
Courier for a resume or cover letter if this is anticipated.
Weeding OUT resumes on that basis reflects much worse on the weeder
than the weedee, in my humble opinion.
Ray Bruman Cogito, ergo remunerantur.
Raynet Corp.
rbruman -at- raynet -dot- com I think, therefore I am paid.
415-688-2325
