Helvetica has weathered the transition from lead to digital type remarkably well. Since 1985, every Apple Macintosh computer—the choice of most graphic designers—has included Helvetica as a "resident font," meaning that Apple licensed the typeface and embedded it in the system's software. Microsoft, on the other hand, looked around for a cheaper alternative. In 1992, the company chose Arial, a digital Helvetica knockoff, as the default font in its Windows software. Since then Arial has spread like a virus, much to the dismay of graphic designers who dismiss it as a homely imposter.

To an untrained eye, the two typefaces are nearly indistinguishable, though there are a few telltale differences: Helvetica's lowercase a has a tail; Arial's doesn't. Helvetica's R has a curved leg; Arial's is straight. Helvetica's G has a spur on the bottom right; Arial's doesn't. (Designer Mark Simonson offers a more thorough comparison of the two typefaces here. Think you can tell them apart? Take the quiz here.)