What is so good about Helvetica?

Question

For as long as I have known, a majority of designers have been beyond enamoured with Helvetica. While I can see that it's a nice typeface, I really don't understand the hype.Some research into the matter yields some arguments: Helvetica is neutral, well-glyphed (as in: it has lots of glyphs and has been issued in eg. Cyrillic) and has been in use for long.According to [this article](http://www.webdesignerdepot.com/2010/01/the-simplicity-of-helvetica/), Helvetica has become associated with business culture and is a 'safe' choice.These arguments don't convince me of Helvetica's superiority. Why is Helvetica so good? Is it objectively better than any other neutral, well-glyphed and not too young a sans serif typeface? I know it's way better than Arial, but is it better than Futura, Frutiger or Myriad? And if so, why?I understand that this question is at least partially opinion-based, so I'd like to point out that I'm looking for *objective* answers here. I'd like to be swayed with some proof, not with feels.

Answer 1

I think it is only one reason. Just like Windows, it comes on the computer. Not an answer for me. After 20-years of running my studio the one constant is this. People will always have this font embedded into their documents. They can see no other way. Reminds me of a customer. I asked them why I had to custom print / cut envelopes for them. Know the answer? The owner bought 1,000's of reams of custom sized paper. I told them. Send me the paper and I will cut it to the right size. Answer? That is the way we always do it. D-U-H !!!