[P1] Fonts Won't Install; Fonts Confuse Me

[Michael Adams]

Fred Stevens K2FRD wrote:

> It used to be there was only one type of font:  ttf. Now, there's four 
> in one grouping and two in another:  dfont, otf, ttf, and suit (for 
> suitcase), and LET Fonts and ITCTT. When I download a font, it doesn't 
> matter (or it didn't before) what the font's format was; I had a tt 
> converter. What's the difference and how should I use or apply them or 
> otherwise treat the font type when I install them?


OS X supports many more types of fonts than OS 9, which is a Good Thing.

The two new formats (which I know about) are...

  OTF - Open Type Font: a supposedly universal font format for both macs 
and PCs which stores the fonts pretty much as a suitcase, ie, multiple 
styles in one file.
  DFont: OS X native font, which doesn't use a data fork, so it can be 
transferred to PC's or via the web easier

Also, if you're having trouble making fonts appear after you install 
them it could be that they're corrupt or conflict with existing fonts. 
Try using the freeware 'X Font Info' by Vojou Software to see what your 
fonts look like before installing them. If X Font Info doesn't load your 
font then it is probably a corrupt font file.

HTH,
--Michael.