Finding Font Files -- Mac
The Macintosh operating system, and many graphics applications that
install fonts automatically place them in the FONTS folder within
the SYSTEM Folder. Up to about 100 fonts can be open at a time.
All fonts in the SYSTEM / FONTS folder are active and available
for use. If you have a basic Mac installation and have done nothing
to move your fonts, that's where you'll find them. If you have a
font management program such as ATM, Suitcase, Master Juggler, or
Font Reserve, you've probably moved them into more organized folders
and know where they are. If not, use FIND... (Sherlock on G4s)
Finding Font Files -- PC
TrueType fonts are the native fonts used by Windows. They are automatically
installed in WINDOWS/SYSTEM/FONTS. Windows users MUST have Adobe
Type Manager (ATM) to install and use PostScript fonts.
Thebasic ATM, available at low cost, or as a part of many graphics
programs, installs the PostScript fonts and their screen display
bitmap files. The default setting for ATM is to create a folder
at the root level called "psfonts". As ATM installs fonts,
they are placed in this folder.
The two PostScript font components are:
- Font Metric (Outline) *.pfm
- Font Bitmap (Screen Font) *.pfb
*.pfb's are stored in the psfonts folder, while the corresponding
*.pfm's are placed in a subfolder psfonts/pfm. You must have both
parts that match for the font to operate successfully.
With basic ATM, all installed PostScript fonts in your system are active
at all times.
Users with hundreds or thousands of fonts will require Adobe ATM Deluxe
to organize and manage all their fonts. ATM Deluxe allows you to
organize fonts in multiple directories, and to create sets of fonts
which you can activate or deactivate as needed. This keeps your
system from having to deal with the hundreds or thousands of fonts
not required at a given time. That makes the system happier.
Also, ATM and ATM Deluxe help you identify the actual file names and location
of the fonts that you've used in a given job so you can send them
along with that job for output and printing. Due to its DOS roots,
PC fonts are identified by an 8 character (or less) name. Figuring
out which is which can be an impossible task. ATM lets you select
fonts, open them, display a sample of what they look like on the
screen and identify the exact font file name. For example, A(dobe)
Garamond Bold, Italic is gdbi_.pfm and gdbi_.pfb.