# What's the point of "wing dings" font? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [September 20, 2009, 11:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-point-of-wing-dings-font/510819 "2009-09-20T11:39:33Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 12\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Moriarty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/moriarty/32/49_2.png) [@Moriarty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Moriarty)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2009, 11:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-point-of-wing-dings-font/510819/1 "2009-09-20T11:39:33Z")
What’s the point of those weird fonts available on commercially available word processing programs that turns each word into a series of unusual shapes and figures? Are they purely random shapes, or is it possible to be able to learn to “read” it? Is there any practical application, or is this strictly on the computer for shits and giggles? Thanks to those who respond. ---
**Author:** ![Napier](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/ce73a5/32.png) [@Napier](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Napier)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2009, 11:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-point-of-wing-dings-font/510819/2 "2009-09-20T11:51:12Z")
I think you’re supposed to use them one at a time for special effect, not write words with them. They correspond to letters only because that’s what all fonts are organized as. ---
**Author:** ![Harmonious\_Discord](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/74df32/32.png) [@Harmonious\_Discord](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Harmonious_Discord)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2009, 12:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-point-of-wing-dings-font/510819/3 "2009-09-20T12:03:05Z")
It’s a leftover from early computers and printers so you could add a few graphics. Those blocks can be put together for graphics. The fonts match some dot matrix printer’s built in fonts. It was of use in the 80’s. I really haven’t used them for decades. They had their uses on the early graphics cards too, not just the printers. Those graphics blocks were in the graphics card’s chips too for ASCii graphics. ---
**Author:** ![FlyingRamenMonster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/ce7236/32.png) [@FlyingRamenMonster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FlyingRamenMonster)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2009, 2:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-point-of-wing-dings-font/510819/4 "2009-09-20T14:31:19Z")
Hey, I still use them sometimes. The “checkbox” symbol, for instance, is pretty useful. ---
**Author:** ![aldiboronti](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9fc348/32.png) [@aldiboronti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aldiboronti)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2009, 2:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-point-of-wing-dings-font/510819/5 "2009-09-20T14:34:10Z")
These types of fonts are known as [dingbats](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dingbat). Another example is Webdings. Wikipedia defines a dingbat as _an ornament, character or spacer used in typesetting, sometimes more formally known as a “printer’s ornament” or “printer’s character”._ ---
**Author:** ![Canadjun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/76d3ee/32.png) [@Canadjun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Canadjun)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2009, 3:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-point-of-wing-dings-font/510819/6 "2009-09-20T15:21:42Z")
> [@Harmonious\_Discord](#): > > It’s a leftover from early computers and printers so you could add a few graphics. Those blocks can be put together for graphics. The fonts match some dot matrix printer’s built in fonts. It was of use in the 80’s. I really haven’t used them for decades. They had their uses on the early graphics cards too, not just the printers. Those graphics blocks were in the graphics card’s chips too for ASCii graphics. It sounds like you are talking about the high-ASCII characters, which (among many others) include horizontal and vertical line drawing characters, rather than the wing dings font. ---
**Author:** ![Serenata67](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/serenata67/32/10646_2.png) [@Serenata67](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Serenata67)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2009, 6:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-point-of-wing-dings-font/510819/7 "2009-09-20T18:50:46Z")
> [@FlyingRamenMonster](#): > > Hey, I still use them sometimes. The “checkbox” symbol, for instance, is pretty useful. I use them for creating unique bullets (when appropriate… no smiley faces on a report about the current economy, of course). ---
**Author:** ![TheMadHun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/53a042/32.png) [@TheMadHun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TheMadHun)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2009, 10:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-point-of-wing-dings-font/510819/8 "2009-09-20T22:06:14Z")
Probably some are never used at all. And it makes them cry. :\*( ---
**Author:** ![LouisB](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/dfb087/32.png) [@LouisB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LouisB)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2009, 12:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-point-of-wing-dings-font/510819/9 "2009-09-21T00:44:37Z")
I picked up a virus once upon a time that turned everything on that computer into wing-ding font and there was some important stuff there. It cost me $125.00 to get it cleared and I thought some terrible thoughts about the morons who thought it was funny. ---
**Author:** ![Savannah](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b3f665/32.png) [@Savannah](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Savannah)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2009, 1:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-point-of-wing-dings-font/510819/10 "2009-09-21T01:14:59Z")
> [@FlyingRamenMonster](#): > > Hey, I still use them sometimes. The “checkbox” symbol, for instance, is pretty useful. Me, too. And dingbats fonts are fun for spicing up my documents, more so at home than work. I’ve downloaded many decorative wingdings fonts just for fun. And fun bullets, too. ---
**Author:** ![Otanx](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/c5a1d2/32.png) [@Otanx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Otanx)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2009, 1:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-point-of-wing-dings-font/510819/11 "2009-09-21T01:24:22Z")
Friend in I in high school used to use Wingdings to “encrypt” messages to each other. Type a message, select all, change font, save file. When we got the encrypted file just do a select all, and change the font back. Yep, we were l33t haxxors. -Otanx ---
**Author:** ![Hilarity\_N.Suze](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hilarity_n.suze/32/6223_2.png) [@Hilarity\_N.Suze](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hilarity_N.Suze)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2009, 2:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-point-of-wing-dings-font/510819/12 "2009-09-21T02:47:04Z")
My company (publisher) uses them, usually a combination, as a chapter opener icon. We also occasionally use them for bullets.