Some of the font files I install come with multiple files (maybe in a zip file) for normal, italic, bold, and italic bold, and others come with one file. Sometimes when I use the fonts that have been installed with one file, I notice that italic, bold, and italic bold versions exist that I did not install. Does the original file include these, or does Windows create the italic, bold, and italic bold versions from the one normal version?
The font I am creating will have a separate italic font, not just a slanted normal font for the italic version. Will I need a separate file for this? Does the ttf otf file extension matter with this? If I want to create unique normal, italic, bold, and italic bold fonts, can I include them in one file, or do I have to distribute four separate files?
Windows creates false font styles for bold, italic, or bold italic, if they don’t exist for any given typeface. They are called faux fonts and cause problems when producing PDF files. They are converted to curves, bloating the PDF file enormously in some cases.
As a font designer, you don’t have to make all four type styles for every font that you create. Some designs don’t require it, e.g. Odana. Creating bold or italic styles for this font would be pointless and wrong.
Others may have a bold and regular, but no italic style, e.g. Talapanna:
However, if the typeface is intended for body text, one normally creates four fonts for the four styles, with a true italic, and a genuine bold weight with the appropriate contrast between thin and thick strokes. Then one distributes the four (or more) font files together expecting that users will install them all.
Windows will do a quick and dirty job of adding pixels to both thick and thin strokes, much as you could do in a graphics program by adding a line to the outline of the letters.
