Font Support on Windows Mobile-Based Devices

  • Article

Windows Mobile-based Pocket PCs include at least the following two fonts:

  • Tahoma (default variable-width font)
  • Courier (default fixed-width font)

All other fonts are converted to the closest of these fonts, as defined by their font descriptions. Using the <PRE> tag for any fixed-width content ensures that Pocket Internet Explorer chooses the correct fixed-width font.

Text in Images

Text in images is a handy way to decorate a page with a title in a font that is not found on Windows Mobile-based Pocket PCs and therefore is not available to Pocket Internet Explorer.

When you place text in an image, it is generally best to use a font that was designed specifically for computer screens. There are several excellent 1-bit-friendly fonts from which to choose. For example, Microsoft Verdana® was designed to be rendered well on bitmapped displays at all resolutions, so it is suitable for use on mobile devices.

Text placed in bitmaps is not indexed by search engines like Microsoft MSN® Search. You can use text in the <alt> tag of the image to allow search engines to effectively index the graphic text.

See Also

HTML Reference for Pocket Internet Explorer

HTML Support for Pocket Internet Explorer

Mobile Web Site Design Overview

Pocket Internet Explorer Overview

Scripting Support in Pocket Internet Explorer

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