Month: April 2017

Open Sourcing Mental Illness

Posted on by Mike Hickey

Starting in 2013 as a speaking series by Ed Finkler, Open Sourcing Mental Illness is the largest 501(c)3 non-profit dedicated to mental health in tech. They help to help shine a light on problems that have too long been a taboo discussion topic in the workplace. Since its inception Ed has given over 50 talks at conferences, meetups and corporate events spreading the message of OSMI. In addition to the talks, OSMI conducts research by polling the tech community to help gauge the attitudes towards mental health in the workplace and produces documentation to improve the workplace for those that suffer from mental health disorders.

Their 2017 fundraising campaign recently kicked off and they’re goal is to collect $50,000 to continue and expand their work.

Google’s ‘Noto’: Free and readable in over 800 languages

Posted on by Jaclyn Tokarz

If you’ve ever digitally communicated with someone in another language and you’ve never heard the term “tofu,” you’ve almost certainly experienced what it describes. “Tofu” is the nickname given to the square blocks that appear in text in place of specific characters that your language doesn’t recognize. Now, with the release of ‘Noto,’ Google and Monotype have set out to eliminate “tofu” from getting in the way: simultaneously unifying a multitude of different typesets and encouraging global communication.

‘Noto’, short for “no tofu,” is the result of five years worth of work on the part of its creators to build a universal typeface that can be translated into over 800 languages, including those that are lesser-used or “dead.” On top of the legibility of the typeface, they also set out to make sure that it was aesthetically pleasing and acceptable for each culture. For example, seeking critique and approval from Buddhist monks for the Tibetan version of the design. After such significant research, the resulting product is clean and crisp and highly accessible.

More information, including download instructions here.