Another approach, which has come up in the past few years is the
replacement of headlines by vector graphics with the help of Java Script.
Services that offer this functionality are Typeface.js and Cufón. But all of
these techniques have some problem or another – be it the incompatibility
with search engines or problems with zooming in and out of Web sites.
Successful second run thanks to subpixel rendering
The introduction of Safari 3.1 by Apple marked a turning point in the use of
web fonts. This browser update brought back the old @font-face rule. A
significant improvement came in the introduction of flat panel LCD
monitors. These monitors, with a much higher screen resolution along with
anti-aliasing via subpixel rendering have since become standard. Subpixel
rendering makes use of the fact that each pixel on a color LCD is composed
of individual red, green and blue subpixels. It uses these subpixels to anti-
alias text, which increases the apparent resolution of an LCD display thus
improving the rendering of text, even with very small font sizes.
On Mac OS X platforms this function is activated by default. Windows uses
its own trademark ClearType, which is activated by default in Windows Vista
and Windows 7, but kept turned off in Windows XP. In Microsoft Office
2007/2010, Internet Explorer 7 and higher, as well as Windows Live
Messenger, the option ClearType is turned on by default, even if it is not
enabled throughout the operating system.