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How Are Type Fonts Measured?
by Tim Donnelly, guest writer —
T
ype is measured in a standard of measurement, called points and picas, which is most commonly found in the printing industry. With the exception of type, you probably won't come into contact with points and picas.

What are they?
Once you get familiar with picas and points, they're not very hard to understand at all. Just as there are 12 inches in a foot, there are 12 points in a pica. That's easy enough to remember.

So, how big is a pica?
Well, there's actually 6 picas in an inch. It's based on multiples of six, just like our own standard measuring. So, if there's 12 points in a pica and 6 picas in an inch, how many points in an inch? Let's see, 12 x 6 =72. There's 72 points in an inch.

Valuable
Though pretty useless in everyday life, there are times when this information can be quite valuable. If a designer wants to divide an 11" sheet into three equal sections, how big would each section be? I'm sure you're not the only one reaching for a calculator. But, if I told you there were 66 picas in 11 inches, I'm sure you could tell me that each section would measure 22 picas. Pretty simple, huh?

Quick reference
For your convenience, here's a chart of some conversions from inches to picas and points. Memorize these and you'll really impress your printer at your next meeting. Imagine the look he'll give you when you say "I've been thinking. Isn't it fascinating that there are 36 points in a half inch and there are 36 inches in a yard?"

Inches	Picas	Points		Inches	Picas	Points
1/16"	0.375	4.5		5/8"	3.75	45
1/8"	0.750	9.0		11/16"	4.125	49.5
3/16"	1.125	13.5		3/4"	45	54
1/4"	1.500	18.0		13/16"	4.875	58.5
5/16"	1.875	22.5		7/8"	5.25	63
3/8"	2.250	27.0		15/16"	5.625	67.5
7/16"	2.625	31.5		1"	6	72
1/2"	3	36		2"	12	144
9/16"	3.375	40.5		3"	18	216

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