Chapter six is about Fonts. There are many formats that fonts can come in. Such as: PostScript(Type 1), TrueType, and OpenType. the first format is PostScript fonts. They consist of a bitmap "screen font" component and a printer component that tells how to print the characters. Second, we have TrueType fonts. This format consists of a single file. Thirdly, there is OpenType fonts which also are single file fonts. OpenType is also a cross platform font, which means the same font can be used on a PC or Mac. OpenType can have more than 65,000 glyphs. A glyph is a distinct letter-form. OpenType fonts are supported by all current font managing software and all recent RIP's. OpenType is the font format of the future.
Macintosh OS X system fonts have font names just like their PostScript cousins. They are basically TrueType fonts but they are described as dfonts: data only fonts. these fonts are problematic because they are similarily named. This can cause substitution or reflow of fonts on other systems. Windows system fonts are all OpenType fonts since Windows 2000. OpenType fonts is actually a result of a collaboration between Microsoft and Adobe.
Multiple Master Fonts was an idea to give users the ability to create multiple weights, angles and widths of a single font. But the idea died because they didn't know how to make the variations of the font, how to collect the fonts, or if the print service provider knew how to use them. Now they are just used as display when fonts are missing. The last thing it says about font formats is "Do NOT substitute one font species for another. TO activate fonts you have Apple Font Book for Macs, which is free and for Windows you have the Control Panel, that activate when users place their fonts in the Fonts folder.
Font management programs allows you to activate fonts when you need them and deactivate fonts when you don't so you don't slow down your applications. The most common applications include: Extensis Suitcase Fusion 2, Suitcase for Windows, Font Agent Pro, Linotype Font Explorer, and Alsoft MasterJuggler. There can be font conflicts with names that are similar. The easiest way to avoid this is to use OpenType fonts.
Last we have Font Licensing issues. Fonts are distributed and licensed as a software. You have to buy fonts and they come with a EULA(end user license agreement) that describes how you can use that font. However, one of the biggest issues is that your print service provider has to own the EULA to the same font you do to be able to view, change and print your work. One way around that is to Embed fonts in PDFs because as of now there is no way to extract the fonts from a PDF. Also, you should subset your fonts. Subsetting embeds only the characters you used instead of the entire font. They also require the security settings to be a only viewing and printing PDF. The only other thing you could do (EULA permitting) is outline the text. If you are sure you and the print service provider have the same font and not in violation of the EULA then package your fonts and submit them to the print service provider.
Chapter seven is called Cross Platform Issues. The first issue it addresses is naming files. The book says to keep names short because even though the newer systems have a lot of character space for the names, the older versions do not. Keep your file names short. Next is do not use punctuation in your file name. Instead, use capitol letters or underscores to separate names. It also says to watch the language you use in your file names because they might be names reserved for a certain system. The last tip for naming files is always put the file extension on it so you don't run into problems with opening the file in another system or placing it in another document.
The next issue it talks about with crossing platforms is fonts. It says that Mac fonts won't function on PC's and Windows PostScript and TrueType fonts won't work on Macs unless forced. This is why they have to be converted. You can use font editing programs like FontLab or Fontographer to convert the PC fonts to Macintosh versions. Or better yet, submit print-ready PDF's to avoid these issues. But the best approach is to use OpenType fonts that can be used on both PC and Macs. The last thing this chapter tells us is about Graphic Formats. TIFF, PSD, EPS, AI, JPEG and PDF can all cross platforms easily, but they say not to forget the file extensions.
All information was from our textbook: Print Production by Claudia McCue.
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