General

Managing Font Sizes

Written by: Jim Holmes at 3/1/2008 5:57:29 PM

In my previous column Optimize Visual Studio for Presentations, I mentioned altering font size in text editor windows to improve readability for presentations.

Readable text in the editor window is critical to a good presentation, but just as critical is the ability to read other portions of the Visual Studio IDE.  Ever tried to understand a project layout on the screen when you can’t read a #(*%$!! thing in the Project Explorer?  Ever been frustrated because you can’t see what a speaker is pointing at in the Server Explorer?

Visual Studio 2003 offers a command line option to set font sizes throughout Visual Studio, even in dockable windows like Server and Project Explorers.  Simply start VS via the command line and pass it the /fs switch, specifying a font size in points.  Visual Studio will start with your set font size and remain that way until you reset it with another /fs switch.

Visual Studio 2003 with increased font size

Visual Studio 2005 doesn’t have this handy command-line switch, but you can achieve the same results by altering the font size in your operating system.  In Windows XP/2000 you do this on a profile-by-profile basis.  Scott Hanselman’s presentation tricks blog post makes a great suggestion: create a separate logon profile with Administrator rights just for demos.  Set that profile’s font size to a large one and you’ll have a readily-configured system just for presentations.

In Windows XP, you can set the profile’s font sizes by right-clicking on the desktop, then selecting Properties.  On the Appearance tab, pull down the Font Size list and select Large or Extra Large.  Note that this will not affect Visual Studio 2003's fonts, only 2005.

Font settings from the Display Properties Appearance tab

Font sizes in Visual Studio’s text editor window won’t change, but all the other “unsettable” features will.  You’ll end up with a shiny, readable IDE and make your audience much happier.

Visual Studio 2005 with larger fonts.

Don’t forget about the command prompt, either.  Access its Properties list by clicking the application icon in the window’s upper left corner, or by hitting Ctrl-Space.  Set your font sizes on the Fonts tab.  Lucida Console 14 point is a good choice.  Also, try out the hideous bright green text on a black background.  It sounds awful, but is probably the most readable combinations.

Setting font sizes in the command prompt.

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