Pure design: Ragged right vs. justified

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pure design

Ragged right vs. justiďŹ ed It happens often that an editor and a designer argue over how to set the type for a specific story. The designer may wish to have the text set ragged right—meaning that the right hand margin will not be justified as a block. The editor argues that this trivializes the content of the story. When it comes to ragged right versus justified type, the research does not point to very specific differences in terms of legibility for one or the other. However, it is true that readers tend to associate ragged right with columns and features, but that is because it has been traditionally used this way. Ragged right can be helpful in providing a bit of white space on a crowded page. I recommend it for shorter, not longer, texts. A small box or second reading in the middle of a mass of dense text, set ragged right, provides breathing room and lightens things up within the architecture of the page. Remember, a vertical column of ragged right type should always be accompanied by a thin vertical column rule, to prevent the ragged lines from running into the material to the right. 

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