TYPE DESIGN INFORMATION PAGE last updated on Fri Dec 13 00:42:13 EST 2024

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LUC DEVROYE

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WSI: Weatherly Systems Inc [Mike Charness]

Mike Charness's Huntsville, AL-based foundry used to offer a huge number of handwriting fonts, and thousands of other fonts at rock bottom prices, in all font formats. It stopped selling fonts to end users or licensing fonts for redistribution in 2003, but continues OEM work.

Lists of font names:

• Robert Long discussed the fonts, and mentioned in some cases the original fonts they were modeled after (read: copied, tweaked and renamed).
• A partial list found in internet archives and corrected by Herbert Van Brink is here. A list annotated by Robert Long and kindly sent to me by Richard George, is here.
• Michael Yanega published a list of the WSI Hand names and their equivalences on the ClickArt Handwritten Fonts CD.
• Ulrich Stiehl provides a further list and explanations: Anastasia is Anna, Avian is Avant Garde, Basset is Baskerville, Bastian is Buster, Boston is Bodoni, Bulletin is Flyer, Aladdin is Legende, Palisade is Palatino, and so forth.

WSI had barcode fonts, MICR fonts (such as CheckNums-MICR), some foreign language fonts, and many dingbats. The full collection could at one point be downloaded here. The handwriting font collection (known as WSI Hand) was downloadable from here, here and here. Apparently, these handwriting fonts were obtained by first selling a handwriting font service, and then selling a CD with the created fonts.

WSI is no longer selling fonts and has this ironic line: WSI's fonts are not freeware, but are commercial software protected by copyright. Now, how did WSI start up its business? I quote from this archived page: We don't sell directly to end users, but rather provide fonts to software publishers who sell our fonts under their own labels. Current and past licensees include PowerUp, Spinnaker, SoftKey, Wayzata, Canon, Fuji, Epson, Serif, Borland, Novell, Maxis, Cosmi, Xoom, Dynamix/Sierra Online, Synergistic Software, Expert Software, IMSI, Parsons Technology, MySoftware, Abstract Software, Dunlop Corp., Case Inc., GraphicCorp, CAI, Creative Wonders, The Learning Company, Current Inc., Pierian Springs Software, Lookout World, Palladium Interactive, Philips Publishing, AIG, Asymetrix, Media Graphics, Knowledge Adventure, WIZ Technology, Paper Direct, Sanctuary Woods Multimedia, GST/GSP, Baudville, Zedcor, and many others.

EXTERNAL LINKS
WSI: Weatherly Systems Inc
Dafont page
MyFonts search
Monotype search
Fontspring search
Google search

INTERNAL LINKS
Handwriting fonts ⦿ Extinct 20th century foundries ⦿ Type scene in Alabama ⦿ Avant Garde typefaces ⦿ Modern style [Bodoni, Didot, Walbaum, Thorowgood, Computer Modern, etc.] ⦿ Barcode fonts ⦿ MICR fonts ⦿ Baskerville ⦿