However, at a minimum most of the major commercial programs support OpenType and TrueType fonts. Note: Surprisingly, information on supported fonts is not readily available from many manufacturers. Many Linux distributions supply a font server program (such as X Font Server) for distributing fonts over a network. However, current Linux desktop environments (such as KDE and Gnome) manage fonts for applications using their internal framework library calls for font display, thus allowing management of fonts centrally and comfortably via the GUI. Instead, each application loads them as it needs them, leaving no need for a font management program. Linux-based operating systems generally do not pre-load fonts on a system-wide basis. That way, fonts that are needed only for specific applications or projects can be made available on the fly, then put away when not needed, thereby reducing the load on the operating system.
Font explorer software#
When the application or document is closed, the font management software can deactivate those same fonts. Some font management programs can activate one font, several fonts, or a specific group of fonts when a specific application or document is launched. However, these operating systems have internal limits on active fonts beyond that point, system problems may occur.
Font explorer windows#
This capability is especially important on older versions of the Microsoft Windows and Apple Macintosh operating systems, as with those systems, fonts are normally always active and available to all programs that use or display text. In taking advantage of a font manager's ability to activate fonts when they are needed (either individually or in groups, such as a group of fonts for a specific project), users can reduce the system's font load. Keeping thousands of fonts active can slow down many systems. One of the uses of font management software is to improve system performance. Once a font is found, a person can view the individual glyphs (letters, numbers, punctuation marks, and other components of a font), and can visually compare two or more fonts with each other.įont management software often provides details on fonts such as how many glyphs are in the font, whether the font can be embedded (such as in PDFs), and the person or foundry that created the font. They can also view specific fonts in a variety of ways, such as by character or size, to better evaluate a font's suitability for a specific purpose. When there are hundreds or even thousands of fonts on a system, font management software makes it easier to find, organize, and evaluate specific fonts. Most operating systems come with basic font management abilities, limited to installing or uninstalling however, people who use many typefaces need font management software with more capabilities.Įase of Finding and Evaluating Fonts Eventually, they may end up with tens or even hundreds of thousands of fonts hence the need to manage those fonts. Fonts and typefaces can be used by purchasing / freely downloading them from type foundries, persons or websites. These people require fonts as a basic part of their job.
Font explorer install#
( Learn how and when to remove this template message)įont management software is utility software that computer users use to browse and preview fonts and typically to install and uninstall fonts. ( October 2013) ( Learn how and when to remove this template message) Please help improve it by removing promotional content and inappropriate external links, and by adding encyclopedic content written from a neutral point of view. This article contains content that is written like an advertisement.