Alignment of Type on a Page

Notations on paper are as old as paper it's self. Type on paper, produced for the common masses to read, dates back to the 1500s. The origin of how to align text in a document comes from a history of typography and printing terms. These have crossed over to the computer where some software programs have added additional terminology. How text is aligned on a page has direct affect on how easily or how hard it is to read on the page.

The four alignment terms are align left, align right, centered and justified. Each has its purpose and use. Of these four, the easiest for a viewer to read is aligning left. This text will create a visual line along the left edge of the document and it will be unaligned or rough on the right hand side. The historical term for the edge of type that is not aligned is ragged. This is spoken as flush left, rag right, the short hand symbol for this would be FL/RR.

The second easiest text alignment to read would be justified. In this case, the text aligns on both sides of the page making a visual line down both sides of the page. Visualize this as a large box of text. The terminology for this alignment would be notated as just. The most common instance of this alignment of type would be in newspapers.

The third alignment of type would be right justified. This creates a visual line along the right edge and a rough, unaligned left edge to the paragraph of type. The left ragged edge makes it difficult for the reader to follow the lines of type and stay on the correct line. This is spoken as flush right, rag left and the short hand symbol for this would be FR/RL. Aligned right type can be used well in many instances when a small amount of type is being designed on the page. Consider using it to align with an image on the page for visual impact.

The final and most difficult to read would be centered type. It is very difficult to read a lot of type that is centered. Don't get me wrong, centered type has its place and is very beautiful on the page when used appropriately. Think wedding announcements and invitations. Otherwise, don't use centered type for a lot of text,
it is hard for the reader to transition from one row to the next and continue to keep their eyes on the right line of type.

While alignment isn't the only design necessity, there are other factors that come into play when designing type on a page. The size of type or point size, the style of type or font, the color of the type, as well as the weight of the font all play their part in the ability of the type to be visually legible.