Viewing the web on Windows XP? There’s a chance the text you’re reading right now is more jagged and difficult to read than it should be. The fix is a Microsoft technology called ClearType, and it’s built right into XP. The catch is that it is turned off by default, so most users have been unaware of it.

To turn it on, right-click on your desktop and select Properties. In the window that pops up, pick the Appearance tab and click the Effects… button towards the lower right. A dialogue box appears. Select the second checkbox, "Use the following method to smooth edges of screen fonts:" and ensure that ClearType is the option shown in the following drop-down menu. Press OK on all open windows to put them away, and that’s it.

One might be wondering, "Why isn’t ClearType on by default in the first place?" The answer to that is, it was designed with LCD monitors in mind. When employed on CRT displays, the results had the potential to be less than ideal. Since the distribution of screen types still favors CRTs, leaving the feature off was the route Microsoft chose.

Learn more about ClearType on Microsoft’s site.

Text on the web without smoothing.

Text on the web with smoothing.