What is SVG?

Design Tips: What is SVG?

SVG stands for Scalable Vector Graphics. As the name implies, it’s a vector graphic format, which scales well. And that’s exactly what you want from a logo if your business requires a large format printing (like a T-shirt, a signboard or a sandwich board).

It turns out that SVG was the one graphic format that most closely responds to current web development demands of scalability, responsiveness, interactivity, programmability, performance, and accessibility.

What Is SVG and Why Should You Use It?

SVG is a vector graphic format—based on XML and is used to display a variety of graphics on the Web and other environments.

Under the hood, SVG documents are nothing more than simple plain text files that describe lines, curves, shapes, colors, and text.

As it is human-readable, easily understood and modified, SVG code can be manipulated via CSS or JavaScript. after that This give SVG a flexiblity and versatility that can’t ever be matched by traditional PNG, GIF or JPGs.

SVG is an W3C standard, which means it can inter-operate easily with other open standard languages and technologies including JavaScript, DOM, CSS, and HTML. As long as the W3C sets the global industry standards, it seems likely SVG will continue to be the de-facto standard for vector graphics in the browser.

The true value of SVG is it solves many of the most vexing problems in modern web development. Let’s see what they are.

  • Scalability and Responsiveness

Under the hood, SVG uses shapes, numbers and coordinates — rather than a pixel grid — to render graphics in the browser, which makes it resolution-independent and infinitely scalable. If you think about it, the instructions for creating a circle are the same whether you’re using a pen or a skywriting plane – only the scale changes.

In contrast, raster-based formats like GIF, JPG, and PNG have fixed dimensions, which causes them to pixelate when they are scaled. Although various responsive image techniques have proved valuable for pixel graphics, they will never be able to truly compete with SVG’s ability to scale infinitely.

  • Programmability and Interactivity

SVG is fully editable and scriptable. All kinds of animations and interactions can be added to a drawing via CSS and/or JavaScript.

  • Accessibility

SVG files are text-based and do can be searched and indexed. This make them readable by screen readers, search engines and other devices. By contrast, a chart

  • Performance

One of the most important aspects impacting web performance is the size of the used files on a web page. SVG graphics are routinely smaller file sizes compared to their raster graphics brethren.

Common Use Cases and Browser Support

SVG has an avalanche of practical use cases. Let’s explore the most significant of them.

  • Plain Illustrations and Diagrams

Any traditional drawing that may have been produced with pens and pencils should translate perfectly into the SVG format.

  • Logos and Icons

Logos and icons often share the same need to be clear and sharp at any size – from button to billboard. SVG icons are more accessible and are much easier to position.

  • Animations

You can create appealing animations, and even special kinds of animation, including SVG line drawings.

  • Interactivity (Charts, Graphs, Infographics, Maps)

SVG can be used to plot data and update it dynamically based on user actions or some events

  • Special Effects

Many live effects can be achieved by using SVG, including shape morphing or different gooey effects

  • Building Interfaces and Applications

SVG enables you can make challenging interfaces and incorporate it with HTML5, web-based applications, and rich Internet applications (RIAs).

As you can see, SVG is used almost everywhere and in countless situations. The good news about all this is that browser support for SVG is getting better.

At this moment, most modern web browsers support the most important and fundamentals features of the SVG. So, now you know the ‘why’ of SVG – let’s look at the ‘how’. In my next article, we’ll walk-thru the best way to use Adobe Illustrator to prepare your SVG files for the web.

So with the right typeface coupled with the right font styles (see “Font vs typeface: the ultimate guide”), we can create designs that are quite simple and yet visually appealing at the same time. This emphasizes the most important aspects of the design while using fewer resources and also inducing the least amount of unwanted cognitive load.

Typography can be very powerful.

But what are the best free font websites?

Dribbble, Behance, Gumroad, and so on are home to a ton of hidden gems, but this involves sieving through a lot of digital resources, some of which are incomplete side ventures and “lite” versions.

That being said, make sure that you bookmark awesome resources if you do happen to come across any. Even Instagram might surprise you, and Twitter shouldn’t be overlooked either.

That aside, let’s take a look as the best free font websites.

1. Google Fonts

First of all, Google Fonts offers a fast and convenient CDN (content delivery network), making it super easy to embed webfonts into websites without having to actually host them.

Google fonts can be subsetted by script and weight, and we can also control how they’re loaded on the Web by setting the font-display CSS property from the embed code’s query string, which improves website loading times. (The CSS-Tricks article on “Google Fonts and font-display” explains how.)

Mind you, self-hosting fonts is better for privacy (because it’s cookieless) and speed (because it offers developers more control). Either way, Google Fonts has a humungous repertoire.

2. Creative Market

What’s interesting about Free Goods is that these are actually premium fonts that are temporarily free. While the section isn’t that huge, and isn’t guaranteed to include fonts specifically, each and every week it’s refreshed with six new design assets (plus three more if you sign up and another three if you spend X amount on assets).

I’ve been checking the Free Goods section on Creative Market every week for years, and I’ve built up a large repository of high-quality fonts that cost literally nothing. Font Bundles runs a similar deal.

3. Font Squirrel

Font Squirrel is like Unsplash but for fonts, considering how long it’s been around (a really long time!) maybe saying that Unsplash is like Font Squirrel but for stock images is more accurate! It’s one of the veteran free font websites alongside Dafont, 1001 Free Fonts, and Urban Fonts, although “squirrel” is better.

Although many of the veteran sites look a little outdated, Font Squirrel has kept its website somewhat modern compared to the rest. It also has a couple of very useful tools:

what is an svg file

4. FontSpace

FontSpace is one of the nicer-looking websites, although it only offers fonts that are free for personal use.

what is svg? FontSpace

5. Befonts

What sets Befonts apart is its focus on display fonts.

Although some of the fonts only offer lite/demo versions and often enough only come in TTF/OTF format (meaning they’re less suitable for the Web), Befonts is one of the very few websites that doesn’t take the “we have everything” approach (which can be overwhelming sometimes). Besides, you can always convert TTF and OTF fonts into webfonts.

what is svg? Befonts

6. Font Shop

Font Shop doesn’t focus completely on free typefaces like Font Squirrel and FontSpace, but it’s still a rather decent alternative if options one to four didn’t have what you were looking for.

I find it to be the least user-friendly of the options, but the fonts are relatively high-quality.

what is svg ? Font shop

Which font format do I need?

OpenType (OTF) and TrueType (TTF) font formats have been the standard for a really long time, and they’re still used heavily in graphic design today. Therefore, WOFF formats have better compression on the Web. In fact, the new Google Fonts embed code only offers the WOFF2 format now.

So, in short:

  • WOFF2 for web embeds
  • TTF/OTF for everything else

Which font style do I need?

Nowadays, it doesn’t really matter all that much because the norms have been thrown out the window a little bit. As an example, Serif fonts can have a modern feel now (think Medium).

Instead, we should focus more on clarity:

  • Legibility (how easy it is to tell characters apart)
  • Readability (how easy it is to read sentences as a whole)

Some of this comes down to the font itself, so one should be observant when deciding which fonts to use, but other times it comes down to how the font is styling (in terms of size, weight, and so on).

When in doubt, the WCAG 2.0/2.1 (Web Content Accessibility Guidelines) have everything you need to know about typography and its many attributes, such as line spacing, line width, line height, font sizing, and so on.

Conclusion

Fonts are super useful, and they’re often all that’s needed to achieve the right amount of visual, emotional appeal without laying on more and more visual clutter. Your design needs text anyway, so why not make it the most outstanding aspect of it?

Cricut-or-Silhouette

Cricut Explore Air 2 vs Silhouette Cameo 3 Should I Buy

When you buy the first cutting machine (exciting!), do you want to know which one of the silhouette and Cricut is right for you? You can find the right place here.

I’ll break down everything about the Cricut Explore Air 2 , including how it differs from the Silhouette Cameo 3 model.

What is it exactly that makes this craft cutting a crowd favorite?

Let’s explore.

Cricut Explore Air 2
Cricut Explore Air 2

About the Cricut Explore Air 2

The Cricut Explore Air 2 was released in late 2016, it is a great machine for most people. It’s a good value and 2x fast mode to cut at twice the speed of the previous model. I think it’s the best-designed cutter on the market: it looks stunning and is a pleasure to use.

If you want to go straight to the best deals and bundles, give that a click to head down to the bottom of this review where I’ve collected those for you.

Key features of the Cricut Explore Air 2

The Cricut Explore Air 2 comes with the standard Fine-Point Blade, and it’s compatible with the Deep Point Blade and the Bonded Fabric Blade (sold separately). With these tools, you can cut over a hundred different types of material including:

  • vinyl
  • paper
  • foam sheets
  • chipboard
  • bonded fabrics
  • paper and vinyl, foam sheets and chipboard, to bonded fabric.

Here are three important features of the Cricut Explore Air 2:

2x fast mode. It has one major upgrade, which lets you cut thin materials like vinyl, paper, and cardstock at twice the speed. This is really helpful for people who make multiple copies of their projects (like teachers) or people who make things to sell who will appreciate the amount of time they save.

Built-in bluetooth capabilities. You can cut wirelessly and a double tool holder so you can cut and write all in a single pass. And like the Explore Air, the second clamp is compatible with accessories like the Scoring Stylus, Cricut Pens, etc. so there’s no need to purchase an additional adapter.

Cricut Explore Air 2
Smart Set Dial

Smart Set Dial. You can easily choose the material you’ll be cutting, and the Cricut will automatically select the appropriate cutting depth and speed. This takes a lot of the frustration and guesswork out of picking the cut settings and will end up saving you significant time and material.

Conclusion

It’s a gorgeous machine with useful features to make your cutting projects a success. Personally I don’t actually use Fast Mode all that often, but it can definitely save you time if you do a lot of cardstock, vinyl, and iron-on projects!

About the Silhouette Cameo 3

Cricut Explore Air 2

The Silhouette CAMEO® 3 was released in August 2016. The Cameo 3 represents the newest model from Silhouette’s best-selling Cameo line. At first review, it sits on the desk like a gorgeous, sleek printer. But instead of printing ink onto a page, the Cameo 3 can cut and draw on over 100 different types of material.

I’ll run through the newest features of this machine and the important pros and cons, and then I break down all of the Silhouette Cameo 3’s features in an easy-to-read format, so you can determine if it is the right cutting machine for you.

New machine design

If you’ve used the Cameo 2 before, you’ll notice that the biggest change with the Cameo 3 is that it’s, well, bigger! The Cameo 3 is longer, wider, and weighs more than the Cameo 2. it keep a clean and streamlined design, and it has an incredibly sleek look that looks fabulous sitting in your crafting area.

I think overall the Cameo 3 is definitely a more attractive model than the previous Cameo.

Features of Your Silhouette Cameo 3

(A) Storage

The Cameo 3 has multiple storage compartments. With your lid open, there are places to keep extra blades on the left. On the top rack, you can keep blades, tools, or pens, and the pull-out drawer at the bottom opens for more storage.

Cricut Explore Air 2
Improved storage

There is also a long, narrow tray above the dual carriage that is great for holding up to 12 sketch pens. (Really they all fit!)

(B) LCD Touchscreen

Cricut Explore Air 2
Touchscreen

With the touch screen, you can load your media and access your machine settings. The Cameo 3 is our first machine to feature sounds to help you navigate through the screens. The touchscreen now features a series of easily-accessible tutorials that help with those who are new to the Silhouette family, or to cutting machines in general.

(C) Adjustable Rollers

Silhouette Cameo 3
Adjustable Rollers

The Cameo 3 is the first Silhouette featuring new adjustable rollers. The spring rollers have been designed for a strong yet gentle way to hold project materials in place, it much easier adjustment mechanism, just twist and slide.

Now that I’ve gone over how the new Cameo looks and feels, let’s move on to how she cuts!

(D) Cameo 3 Cutting

If you are using a long piece of media, the crosscutter can be very helpful. It is basically a paper-cutter on the back of your machine. The crosscutter lets you separate your finished cut job from the remaining media in one quick stroke. With the crosscutter track attached directly to the back, you will get a perfectly straight edge every time. Then, when you use the remaining media for a different project, your Cameo will load the nice, even edge very easily. If you use rolls of vinyl, the crosscutter will be very helpful.

Cricut Explore Air 2

The Cameo is able to cut long materials because you don’t have to stick your material to a cutting mat to run it through the machine. This Silhouette can do matless cutting on lined media (like regular adhesive backed vinyl).

(E) Built-in Bluetooth

The Cameo 3 is the first Silhouette machine with Bluetooth capabilities, all other Cameo editions, Bluetooth® is enabled, but you will need to install a Bluetooth® adapter.

Cricut Explore Air 2

Bluetooth lets you connect wirelessly to your computer, iPad, iPhone, or Android device. With 100 foot range, you can set up your Silhouette anywhere you want, without being tethered to your computer. Use Bluetooth® to get some of those pesky cords out of the way!

(F) Dual Carriage

Cameo 3 features a dual carriage. Are you like us and are a little bit EXCITED about the project possibilities? The tools are marked with little red circle on the left and a blue circle on the right. Insert your tools (such as an AutoBlade and a sketch pen) into the corresponding tool holders assigned in your Send panel. Watch two different tools work in one cut job!

Silhouette Cameo 3
Dual Carriage

The tools compatible with the its dual carriage are:

  • AutoBlade. Automatically adjusts cut settings.
  • Standard Blade. AKA the ratchet blade.
  • Fabric Blade. Same as the standard blade, but in a different color to distinguish it for fabric-use only.
  • Premium Blade. Lasts 3x as long as the standard blade.
  • Deep-Cut Blade. Cuts materials up to 2mm thick.
  • Sketch Pens. 24 colors now come with now with 2x the ink.
  • Pen holder. Can hold 3 different sizes of pens and markers.

Conclusion

The Silhouette Cameo 3 is a solid machine, a great value, and the best Silhouette machine you can get today.
Unfortunately, Silhouette still has not improved on the mediocre cutting power of the Cameo series, so it can’t easily handle dense or tough materials.
If you want to cut long materials, the Silhouette Cameo 3 is a great choice.

Specifications

  • Silhouette Cameo 3 machine.
  • 12″ cutting mat. This is how material is usually loaded into the Silhouette. Its price is very expensive, about one dollar is about 10 dollars, we recommend customers to use LinkedGo Cutting Mat, the same low price
  • AutoBlade. Automatically adjusts to the cut settings you choose in Silhouette Studio.
  • Crosscutter. A very useful tool for cutting rolls of vinyl.
  • Power and USB cables.
  • 1-year limited manufacturer’s warranty.
Silhouette Cameo 3