[XeTeX] Ligatures question

[wodzicki at math.berkeley.edu]

> I'm sorry, but I´ll have agree with Fr. Michael. I doesn't seem wrong,
> neither aesthetically, nor grammatically, to use these kinds of ligatures.

'Grammatically'? What do ligatures have in common with grammar?

> If nowadays there have gone out of fashion, or if there doesnt seem to be
> any more use for them, I don't mind at all. I have typeset several Latin
> language editions using these ligatures and they seem beautiful---and the
> publishers for whom I've worked also seem to like them.

As has been already stated, and very well at that, 'æ' and 'œ' don't
really belong to critical editions, one reason I suppose, is because they
easily lead to confusing 'ae' with 'oe'. If you love ligatures, then go
ahead and use them to the extent they were used in the 16th-17th
Centuries. And don't forget about suspensions!

> And what would be the beauty of [Xe]LaTeX --- to quote Dario Taraborelli
> ---
> without ligatures?
>
> Best wishes.
> Nicolas

I would be happy using ligatures 'ct', 'st', long and final 's', etc, but
I wouldn't use 'æ' or 'œ'. Maybe because I don't find these particular
ligatures beautiful, maybe because in Latin I find them to be rather odd.
I am very fond of the past typographical practices but I approach them
with all the accuracy they deserve.

Mariusz Wodzicki