or: wow that looks neat but it totally ruins accessibility doesn't it
Hello! if you've looked at my website, you might've thought "wow this looks horrible, what is she even doing?" and the answer is "being excessively obsessed with being a bit silly, to the detriment of everyone".
In 2021 and 2022, when I started working on this site, I was obsessed with obsolete letters in english, and later with letters in general. This led to several choices, the most obvious being :
Now, the first one is just a bit weird and leads to fun interactions. I never use the font, on account of it being updated for writing by hand almost bi-weekly, (as in "every other week",) but the third one is an issue. This is because I decided, for a solid month or two, to use the typing gimmick as much as possible. I would use it in chats with friends, I would tweet in it sometimes, and, as you likely know, I would write my website with it.
I think it looks nice, because it gives a nice amount of visual flare to my writing while still being mostly able to understand it. That, combined with its impact on þe font, (specifically the Ms,) and the fact it's completely reversable, means I don't regret it in the slightest. What I do regret is its inconsistant application and horrid accessibility for screenreaders.
Suffice to say, don't use it yourself (as you might've noticed looking at newer pages, even I'm phasing it out). That said, here are the characters and rules (to the best of my memory (after a few years of not using it (that is to say, this is the idyllic verson and also might be lacking in some nuance ) ) ) :
| Character | Name | Use |
|---|---|---|
| Þ,þ | Þorn | This one was my favourite, and used the most. In general, should have been used as a soft "th", (as in third,) but was often used to replace a hard "th" (referred to henceforth as "dh") (as in "them") as well. Dealer's choice, in the end. |
| Ð,ð | Eð | This is the one I don't like and didn't use as much. It should have been used for the "dh" sound, (as in "them",) but I didn't really like it because "dh" is used so much more than "th" and gosh darnit I make the rules and I want to use Thorn. Can be used for "th" or "dh", dealer's choice again. |
| Ȝ,ȝ | Ȝogh, rarely "Ȝoȝ" | Usually I used this to replace a consonant "y", (like in "yes",) but I'm bad at things so was usually used as a replacement for any y, any where. Also replaced any "gh"s (as in "ghouls", which, okay, but also "gh" (as in "enough???? ) ) for some reason. |
| Ŋ,ŋ | Eŋ | Used pretty consistantly for the "ng" sound, (like "going",) and honestly it seems pretty chill I'm sure it's fine with that. |
| Ƿ,ƿ | Ƿynn | It's just a drop-in replacement for "w", (like the letter, from "wow",) though I think I remember using it specifically for "wh" (as in "who") at some point? it's been a while, I dunno. |
| ſ | Long S | Wow there are a lot of rules for this one, I had a stickynote entirely for it. It's basically just a lowercase s, (the letter, like in "sauce",) but a bit weird. The rules are up on wikipeda, just look at them there please. |
| ⁊ | Et | Drop in replacement for the ampersand (&), but also can cover for any sequence of "et" (as in "forget") in a phrase. Not always used, dealer's choice. |
| ꝛ | R Rotunda | Such a cool name for such a cool looking letter. Used in place of r (the letter, as in "organic") when it comes after a letter with a rounded forward stroke, like "o" (looking like "oꝛegami"). Works with any such letter, like b or p or þ or ð (depending on font ). |
| Æ,æ | Æsh | Swap in for the sound "ae" (as in "cat"). |
| Č,č | C with a caron | Swap for "ch" (as in "chomp"), but not "sh" (as in "Chicago"). |
| Ʃ,ʃ | Eʃ | Swap with "sh" (as in "short"). This isn't a sigma, please do not call it that I will cry. |
| Boustrophedon | Alternate every other line! like so : This is the second line third line etc. |
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