Yosemite System Font - Please Help

[Ivy99]

http://www.apple.com/feedback/macosx.html

I want to ask anyone with with a mac of any sort to hit this link and request that they allow users to control the system font size. Apple Support told me I'm the only one having problems with it being so small. It is absurd with the technology they have that we can't have control over the size of our system font. Please ask anyone you know to do the same please.

 

[Raz0rEdge]

Welcome to Mac-Forums..

This issue comes up from time to time, but there are number of ways of dealing with this short of making everything on your system huge.

All browsers and application that show text allow you to set the text size to something you can comfortable with. You can do this either on a ongoing basis or permanently. Safari, for example, as an option to limit the lowest text size on any website..

The other option is to use the readily available Accessibility features within OS X like the Zoom..

One thing to remember is that just because another OS allows you to do something that OS X should allow it as well regardless of whether it's appropriate here or not..

 

[Ivy99]

I'm not sure of the meaning or use of "appropriate". I remember when it was "appropriate" with Apple OS's. But then I remember their systems having glitz too, another thing of the past. I can only assume appropriate in this case means "on most average size laptops", like one size fits all. I'm on a 27" monitor and the Safari favorite bar text displays at a size 11. For the price they command and the technology they have, they could do so much better, like they used to. Snow Leopard when I bought this machine was fine. They keep downsizing. And I don't think white folder names on my desktop are appropriate. I would describe Yosemite as mediocre and complacent.

 

[Raz0rEdge]

I'm on a 27" monitor at home and on a 15" rMBP here at work, so I know how small the text is on these screens..

Have you looked into the Accessibility options?

 

[chscag]

http://www.apple.com/feedback/macosx.html

I want to ask anyone with with a mac of any sort to hit this link and request that they allow users to control the system font size. Apple Support told me I'm the only one having problems with it being so small. It is absurd with the technology they have that we can't have control over the size of our system font. Please ask anyone you know to do the same please.

I'm sure you're not the only one having difficulty with the system font being too small. However, if you run your 27" iMac at its native resolution, everything is going to appear small since the display is set at 2560 x 1440. You can lower the resolution or set your display to "scaled" which will increase the size of the system font. But that might introduce some distortion to your viewing.

As for Apple ever allowing users to control the system font, I doubt it. They provide settings in the accessibility preferences to overcome any viewing difficulty. I'm afraid you'll have to live with that.

 

[chas_m]

I don't know the age or eye condition of Ivy99, but I'm a middle-aged guy and have no trouble at all seeing the menu bar font (which, I assure you as a graphic professional, is larger than 11pt). This is not to say I have eagle vision; I wear glasses for near-sightedness (which has gotten a lot worse over the last 25 years), without them everything more than say five feet away or so is blurry.

My monitor (20") is, per recommendations, a bit more than arm's length away. I have set the minimum font size in Safari to not display type any smaller than 11pt. I don't need to wear my glasses when I am at my desk in front of my monitor.

To the best of my knowledge, there is no safe way to increase the size of the menubar font. Other fonts in other places, no problem. But the menu bar is a specific design point that is intended to take up only that much of the screen space. The only option I know of is to lower the resolution of the display.

One day, perhaps, we will have resolution-independent font scaling and perhaps that will make a difference. Till then, there are some limits.