ClearType

A software font technology that, according to Microsoft, dramatically improves font display resolution (by about 300 percent) and marks a breakthrough in screen readability.

To get a grasp on the importance of screen resolution, consider that digital screens currently have a resolution quality of around 90 dots per inch (dpi), whereas most offset printers print at 1,200 dpi or higher. If you compare a printed page with what you see on a screen, you'll get a sense of how an improvement in digital screen resolution would help ease your eyes when you do a lot of online reading. ClearType technology appears to be able to improve font rendering at the subpixel level, creating a much finer image than what has previously been possible. ClearType (and Adobe's CoolType) will help users see the contents of an e-book better on an electronic book reader.