I just read Smashing Magazine’s 8 Simple Ways to Improve Typography in Your Designs, which heavily references the Robert Bringhurst’s classic The Elements of Typographic Style. The advice is all good but there’s more recent supporting evidence to draw upon than this 1992 tome. Here are two good papers that I’ve been quoting:
Optimal Line Length
Users tend to read faster if the line lengths are longer (up to 10 inches). If the line lengths are too short (2.5 inches or less) it may impede rapid reading. Finally, users tend to prefer lines that are moderately long (4 to 5 inches).
Reading Online Text: A Comparison of Four White Space Layouts
Results show that the use of margins affected both reading speed and comprehension in that participants read the Margin text slower, but comprehended more than the No Margin text. Participants were also generally more satisfied with the text with margins. Leading was not shown to impact reading performance but did influence overall user preference.
