What Is Lorem Ipsum and Why Do We Use It?

Lorem Ipsum is a widely used placeholder text that works as a tool to help creators visualise how their design will look once the actual copy is added. 

In essence, it fills spaces in designs with text that mimics the structure of real language. This helps creators to design a more accurate representation of how the final product will look, without having to produce finalised copy in advance.

This can be particularly helpful when it comes to page planning larger print projects, as it enables you to develop an overarching brand concept across multiple pages. So, whilst the use of Lorem Ipsum is not a replacement for the actual content that will eventually be used, it allows creators to focus on overall visual aesthetics first.

Put simply, it makes life easier when it comes to establishing the layout and design of any digital or print based project during the earlier stages. By having a visual representation of how the design will look, you can make changes and adjustments before the final copy is added, saving time and effort.

The History Behind Lorem Ipsum

Lorem Ipsum has been the standard dummy text used in the printing and typesetting industry for centuries. It is thought to have originated in the 1500s when a printer took a 1st century BC type specimen book written by Roman Statesmen Cicero called De Finibus Bonorum et Malorum and scrambled the text to create a sample document.

Over time, the original Lorem Ipsum text has undergone several changes and revisions. However, the original text was believed to have been written in the following form: “Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat.”

Translated to English from Latin this reads: “The pain itself is very important, and the education is followed, but at the same time it happens that there is some great pain and suffering. For to come to the bottom of it, no one should practice any kind of work unless he derives some benefit from it.” 

How To Create Lorem Ipsum Copy

There’s a number of websites able to generate Lorem Ipsum copy with one popular choice being  lipsum.com. This free tool allows you to choose the number of paragraphs, words, and characters you want to generate, and then select the type of filler text you’d prefer.
 
However, lipsum.com is not the only website available. There are many others such as loremipsum.io, blindtextgenerator.com, and randomtextgenerator.com. Some of these websites also offer the option to customise the generated text with specific keywords, languages, and other options.

Of course, design programs such as Adobe Photoshop, Illustrator and InDesign offer built-in Lorem Ipsum generators which allows you to add placeholder text easily without having to leave the software. If you want to add an element of fun to your copy though, and like the idea of being more playful with placeholder text, there are customised word generators out there like Pirate Ipsum or Cupcake Ipsum that take Lorem Ipsum to a whole new level. 

For instance, Pirate Ipsum will give you words and phrases that evoke Davy Jones’ Locker and spotting land ahoy from the comfort of your crow’s nest! Whereas Cupcake Ipsum will (as you might imagine) generate a load of dessert-based dialect for your perusal. 

                                                                             (Cupcake Ipsum)

                                                                             (Pirate Ipsum)

 

Boom-Online 

This is another useful text generator that offers several customisation features. Rather than providing generic placeholder text, Boom-Online pulls information from Wikipedia on the subject that the user is writing for.

This can be particularly useful for designers or developers who are working on a project related to a specific topic or industry in addition to providing more relevant content.
 

Chat GPT

The A.I language generator, ChatGPT is also capable of creating a wide range of filler text content, including Lorem Ipsum by following four simple steps: 

1.    Start by opening ChatGPT.
2.    Type “generate Lorem Ipsum” or “create Lorem Ipsum” to prompt Chat GPT to generate sample text into the command section.
3.    Chat GPT will then generate sample Lorem Ipsum text for you. You can then adjust the length of the text by specifying the number of words, sentences or paragraphs you need.
4.    If you want to generate a specific amount of Lorem Ipsum text, you can use a command such as “generate 50 words of Lorem Ipsum” or “create 3 paragraphs of Lorem Ipsum.”

So, if you’re a designer who wants to create engaging concepts in a timely fashion why not explore some of the Lorem Ipsum tools we’ve suggested above? You can also find out more about ChatGPT by reading our recent blog on Print and A.I. This piece provides in-depth insights on how ChatGPT can help you generate engaging and persuasive text by using A.I for copywriting.