Autohinting seems to make big fonts-any way to keep size down?

[abquid]

I've noticed when I autohint a face and then generate a Windows TTF/OTF font that the font is quite large-usually around 150k compared to 40-50k sizes I'm seeing for normal fonts. I don't know how to manually set hints, but is there any way to keep the size down when  using autohinting?

[Tim Ahrens]

Hi abquid,

I noticed that unchecking "Interpolate positions of cusp points" in the TT autohinting options typically gives quite a reduction in file size. I would not consider this type of hint really crucial and often FL does not get it right anyway. You can also try unchecking other options and see how that affects the file size.

Also, nowadays you typicaly don't want any x-direction hinting so if you remove all vertical PS-hints before autohinting that should help reduce the file size.

Two other tips to keep the file size small:

- When you convert your outline from PS to TT curves, FL typically uses lots of control points. In my experience, Fontforge only uses 50-80% fewer points while staying very close to the original. Fewer points mean smaller files.

- Using components for the accented characters saves file size. For CFF/OTF you would typically decompose everything but it makes sense to use actual components when you export TT.

Tim

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