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Will W3C Accept DRM For Webfonts?

Posted by timothy on from the magic-8-ball-time dept.

dotne writes "Microsoft has submitted Embedded OpenType (EOT) to W3C and a slimy campaign for EOT has been launched. EOT is a DRM layer on top of normal TrueType/Opentype files; EOT ties a font file to a certain web page or site and prevents reuse by other pages/sites. Microsoft's IE has supported EOT for years, but it has largely been ignored due to the clumsiness of having to regenerate font files when a page changes. Now that other browsers are moving to support normal TrueType and OpenType on the web (Safari, Opera, Mozilla, Prince), W3C is faced with a question: should they bless Microsoft's EOT for use on the web? Or, should they encourage normal font files on the web and help break Microsoft's forgotten monopoly?"

12 of 315 comments (clear)

  1. Loaded question by celardore · · Score: 5, Funny

    "Or, should they encourage normal font files on the web and help break Microsoft's forgotten monopoly?"

    Gee, I wonder what /. will think...

    1. Re:Loaded question by AltGrendel · · Score: 5, Funny
      60% will think "That depends on how much money Microsoft throws at the W3C.
      35% will think "So what, I won't use it anyway."
      4% will think "Microsoft should do whatever it pleases, nothing has stopped it from doing that anyway."

      The remaining 1% will be various trolls and flamebait.

      --
      The simple truth is that interstellar distances will not fit into the human imagination

      - Douglas Adams

    2. Re:Loaded question by argent · · Score: 4, Funny

      5% will think "That depends on how much money Microsoft spends to pack voting bodies with sock puppets."
      10% will think "So what, I won't use it anyway."
      50% will think "Microsoft will do whatever it wants anyway."
      90% will be various trolls and flamebait.

      Disclaimer: totals do not add to 100% because some contestants qualify for more than one category. Contents may have settled in shipping. 186,000 miles a second.... it's not just a good idea, it's the law. No animals were harmed in testing this product. Fnord.

    3. Re:Loaded question by X0563511 · · Score: 1, Funny

      A well designed page has no care for the specific font that is used, only the style of font and size.

      --
      For large sets, this will be our guide even unto death, for the LORD will work for each type of data it is applied to...
    4. Re:Loaded question by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Funny

      You get a screen full of random text and porn. Not a good impression to leave for your new college roommate

      I hated text in college too.

  2. Yay! by omeomi · · Score: 4, Funny

    If there's one thing that I wake up every morning with a deep desire to have, it's more random, cutesy, difficult to read fonts on websites.

    --
    ZuluPad, the wiki notepad on crack
    1. Re:Yay! by argent · · Score: 4, Funny

      I haven't been so excited since JWZ came up with BLINK.

  3. Re:DRM on FONTS?! by argent · · Score: 5, Funny

    Pantone would love that!

  4. Re:DRM on FONTS?! by FunkyELF · · Score: 2, Funny

    I call #FFFFFF, #000000 and everything inbetween!

  5. Your browser doesn't support ANSI X3.64! by argent · · Score: 4, Funny

    Just because a standard exists ^[1mdoesn't^[0m mean it has to be supported.

  6. Not sure by Schnoodledorfer · · Score: 2, Funny

    It will depend on how "slimy" the campaign for EOT is. If something is slimy enough, /. actually thinks it's cool.

    /. will never get tired of watching "Ghostbusters".

    --
    Knowledge is the small part of ignorance that we arrange and classify. (Ambrose Bierce)
  7. I think artists, typographers, etc should be paid by pembo13 · · Score: 3, Funny

    Just not every time someone wants to see their work.

    --
    "Thanks for all the money you paid to us. We've used it to buy off ISO among other things" -Microsoft