Questions About All Caps Setting

Maybe we can clear this up once and for all. A Fontblog reader asks: "For the new corporate identity of one of our customers we suggested setting all headlines on posters, mailings etc. in all caps, and using this characteristic to typify the organization."

Now it has been stated repeatedly that all caps setting is less readable than mixed caps setting. Neither is it recommended for emphasis in text, although here the unpleasant appearance is mostly used as an argument.

Is all caps setting really so poorly readable that one can't use it in headlines of let's say maximum three lines, or is the unfavourable effect negligible? Has anybody done any serious investigations on this matter, or can anybody show us any convincing examples where it works really well?

Already 36 comments (in German) on Fontblog.

Header Image:Capitals waiting to be hung on a shopfront on Nevsky Prospekt, St. Petersburg

© Paul D. Hunt