Each font style a separate font?

December 28, 2011 12:31 PM

[Mac OS X Filter] Combining different styles of the same font in FontBook for OS X: Is it possible?

When I'm installing a font I've downloaded, I notice that the font comes in a zip archive with a separate font file for each style.

Let's say, for example, I use FontSquirrel to grab Aller. The Aller.zip contains some license information and seven ttf files. If I open one of them, it gives me the option to install it. Then, FontBook and all of my applications show each style as a separate font.

Understanding, of course, that Arial Narrow and Arial Rounded are separate fonts, how do I combine different styles of the same font in my applications? Wading through 389 fonts would not be so annoying if they were 389 different fonts.

Is there third-party software that I can download (or purchase inexpensively) to handle this? Or is there some way I can do this with what's already available in OS X 10.6.8?

posted by phoebus to Computers & Internet (1 answer total)

I haven't played with it recently (since about OS X 10.4.something), but Fontforge can combine fonts into family groups. Looks like the process is different in 10.6.x and above, but it can apparently handle it.

You might also need to edit the fonts.list file to point to the .ttc file rather than the various .ttf files.

<sup>(I think, strictly speaking, that "families" is not the correct term, but it's the one Fontforge uses for groupings of related weights and styles. Or maybe I'm getting confused with "faces"?

Mefi typography cabal, feel free to correct me on that ;-)</sup>
posted by Pinback at 2:14 PM on December 28, 2011