Introducing TransType 4 beta 4808 for Mac OS X

[Adam Twardoch (FontLab)]

Introducing TransType 4 beta 4808 for Mac OS X



Convert fonts with ease

TransType had its start in the days of the ‘font wars’ — when the manufacturers of operating systems were battling it out over font formats. Anyone who worked with fonts needed TransType’s quick and easy conversions between the different formats and platforms. Meanwhile, OpenType has established itself as the font format of choice on desktop computers.

But we have new font formats which are used on the web (WOFF, EOT, SVG), and by font developers (UFO, VFB), so the need for conversion tools is just as strong. It still does matter whether the OpenType font exists in the PostScript or in the TrueType flavor (OTF or TTF). Also, a number of legacy PostScript Type 1 fonts still exists, which makes it difficult to move documents between Mac OS X and Windows. TransType 4 supports all these formats (new and old), and makes font conversion between them easier than ever before.

Reduce problems with font family organization

One of the greatest hassles of converting fonts between platforms has always been the incompatible font family structures and naming systems on different operating systems. As a result of this, fonts have about a dozen of different naming fields and settings which control how they appear in the applications’ font menus. Making sure that these fields follow the various specs and guidelines set up by OS and app vendors, and that they’re consistent within a font family, has always been a nightmare for font vendors, and especially for font hobbyists and beginner type designers.

TransType 4 is the first application on the market that virtually eliminates this problem by introducing a revolutionary, intuitive visual approach to font family management. All you need to do is tell TransType to optimize the styling, and all fonts will be neatly arranged within the family. To make corrections, drag-and-drop a few font thumbnails, or click-and-edit one or two text fields — and your fonts are guaranteed to work cross-platform.

The time required to turn any type design project (in VFB or UFO format) or any existing desktop fonts into a font family that works across all operating systems and all web browsers — with TransType 4, it’s literally reduced from hours to minutes.

Be more creative with fonts

But fonts are not just about work and hassle — they’re primarily about fun and creativity. So TransType 4 includes a number of sophisticated filters, which can be used to change the font’s appearance. Some are purely functional. The Blend filter allows the user to take any two fonts, and create a new font that looks like a bit of both — perfect for making a Medium weight in a family where the Regular is too thin, and the Bold is too dark. The Tracking filter simply adds or removes space between characters and ‘hardwires’ the changes into a new font. Other filters are much more experimental — Blur or Distort will add a grunge look to the most ‘corporate’ sanserif, while Round will add warmth to the coolest ‘techno’ letterform by softening its hard corners. The Filters are not a replacement for a professional type designer’s work, but they’re fun to use.

What TransType 4 does for you

For font foundries or type designers who enjoy the creative process of designing a typeface, and want to produce OpenType fonts or webfonts, but do not want to be bothered with font format technicalities — TransType 4 is a perfect companion for their font editor, whether they’re using FontLab Studio, Fontographer, TypeTool, or one of the editors that support the UFO format (such as RoboFont, Glyphs or FontForge).

For professional graphic designers and art directors — TransType 4 can help them experiment with their typeface collection, but customizing a font’s weight, adjusting the slant angle or permanently modifying the font’s tracking.

For regular font users — if they’re troubled with platform and application incompatibilities, TransType 4 can fix these problems; and if they’re just bored with the fonts they have, they can try making some new with more pizazz.

Important note about intellectual property

Please note that many font foundries do not allow modification of their original font files, or distribution of such modified fonts, so users should consult the font’s End-User License Agreement before using it in TransType.

Download TransType 4 beta 4808 for Mac OS X
Note: this product is of pre-release quality. Please use it for testing the application, and report back to us! All users can install this beta version. It does not require a serial number or a pre-existing TransType installation. However, this build will expire on March 31st, 2013.

AVAILABLE DOWNLOADS:

• DOWNLOAD TransType 4 beta 4808 for Mac OS X 10.5, 10.7 and 10.8 (this build will expire March 31st, 2013)
• DOWNLOAD TransType 4 for Mac OS X beta manual

New features in TransType 4 beta 4808

• The Credits and Licensing section of the Font Info Panel has been expanded. It's now possible to view the License (EULA) text and the Vendor ID, it's possible to click on the URL buttons for Vendor, Designer and License stored inside of the font file, and for License and Description, a "..." button is available that opens a dialog box which allows more comfortable reading the text. Note, the "OK" button in that dialog box is not yet functional, please use the Close button in the top-left corner of the dialog.
• The Webfont TT .woff+.eot+.svg (Optimize) export profile. It generates web font packages which consist of a TTF file, a TrueType-based WOFF file, a EOT (compressed) file, a SVG font file as well as simple CSS and HTML files.
• The build also enables the OpenType PS .otf (Optimize) profile, but it's not yet functional. OTF export will crash TransType. Please disregard the OTF export functionality at this moment as it’s not yet ready.
  

Known limitations in TransType 4 beta 4808

• This beta build, TransType 4 beta 4808, will expire on March 31, 2013
• The "OK" button in the License and Description dialog boxes are not yet functional, please use the Close button in the top-left corner of the dialog.
• OTF generation using the OpenType PS .otf (Optimized) profile will most likely crash TransType. Please do not use this export profile, it’s not quite ready yet.
• If you open a VFB or a UFO file and generate an OpenType TT or Webfont TT font, the OpenType Layout features in FEA format will not be compiled into binary OpenType Layout tables in this build. We're working on this issue.
• The application is not digitally signed so on Mac OS X 10.8, running it will issue a warning "App can't be opened because it is from an unidentified developer". See this website for suggestions how to eliminate this problem.
• TransType 4 beta 4808 is only available for Mac OS X. It runs on Mac OS X 10.6, 10.7 and 10.8. A Windows version will be available in early 2013.

Send us feedback!

Please post feedback about TransType 4 on this forum: impressions, opinions, problem reports or requests for future improvements!

Note: When reporting problems here, please state the build number and OS in square brackets in the Subject line or at the beginning of your post, such as "[4808 Mac] EOT support is wonderful".

Many thanks, and bets regards!
Adam Twardoch
Fontlab Ltd.

[martinplus]

Hi Adam,
It seems that the kerning is stripped when I apply the Tracking filter. This might be intended but I didn't expect it.

PS
I like the simple yet intuitive interface.

[martinplus]

The Hinting (vertical direction) is also not as it was after tracking

Best,
Martin

[JamesMontalbano]

I attempt to drag fonts in the window to begin the conversion but the fonts do not appear in the window.

[j f p]

It can be good to have same visibility of what you have for example on Mac OS FontBook:
more complete naming, license,
+ panose, foundry code

Specially because converting to another format is generally not allowed by the licenses. So its a crucial info who should remain non-editable,
TransType user should be informed of what he doing?

Even a non intrusive code should be added by TransType on one of the fields copyright, description, license, or version? "TR4conv"

[Adam Twardoch (FontLab)]

James,

would you kindly send me a direct mail to adam at fontlab dot com with some details? (Which font files, which OS, where your font files are located)

A.

[George Thomas]

James, I had a similar problem and discovered the files must come from the top level folder on a given drive; otherwise they will not import.

[George Thomas]

Adam, do you want beta reports as replies here or in the general TransType forum? I've been putting the ones I did outside this thread but others are posting here.

[Adam Twardoch (FontLab)]

George,

either way is fine. If you open a new topic, please include the build number and OS in brackets at the beginning, e.g.:
[4762 Mac] Cannot open TTC file

You can see the build number in the "About TransType" box.

Thanks!

Adam

[Adam Twardoch (FontLab)]

Everybody: please test the "Webfont TT" export profile. We've added the brand-new *compressed* EOT output (using the Monotype MTX compression) which should yield a 50-60% smaller EOT file compared to the previous build, and compared to utilities such as ttf2eot.

Please report your findings here!

Best,
Adam

[JamesMontalbano]

Adam, That problem I had with the previous version has now extended to this one as well, the the added issue of now even from the desktop I cannot add fonts to Transtype. Very Frustrating. Working with OSX 10.6.8

[JamesMontalbano]

Problem solved. I removed a ® from the path and everything works fine.

[JamesMontalbano]

Thank you George THomas

[Adam Twardoch (FontLab)]

Ah! Interesting. I'll test TransType with some non-standard characters in the path names and will see where it fails. It should accept all valid path names so if it chokes on the registered sign, we need to fix this.

[George Thomas]

Tested the default Webfont package on a Win XP SP3 machine, IE 6 and 8, Safari for Windows, Firefox for Windows.

The TTF, .woff and .eot function as they should in the browsers that support them; .svg not tested. No problems of any kind noted.

Same results from my Mac, Firefox 18.0.2. I did not test Safari for Mac.