Add a preview renderer like the one in MainType and the "Test OTF" window

Got a request? Post it here. Please do not post bug reports here.
Post Reply
nabsltd
Posts: 132
Joined: Tue Oct 18, 2016 12:35 am

Add a preview renderer like the one in MainType and the "Test OTF" window

Post by nabsltd »

The current Preview (F8) panel is very smart. Like the glyph display, it figures out things like contours with incorrect direction and fixes it in the preview. Unfortunately, this is not how the vast majority of OpenType renderers work, so it looks like the font has fewer problems than it really will when used.

The preview renderer for MainType (and the one for "Test OTF/TTF") is not as smart...it works much more like most applications. Adding this renderer to the FontCreator preview with a toggle button somewhere in the Preview window would allow users to better see what the font will really look like when used, without having to do the "Test OTF/TTF". In addition, it would still allow use of OpenType features, which the "Test OTF/TTF" window does not.
Bhikkhu Pesala
Top Typographer
Top Typographer
Posts: 9869
Joined: Tue Oct 29, 2002 5:28 am
Location: Seven Kings, London UK
Contact:

Re: Add a preview renderer like the one in MainType and the "Test OTF" window

Post by Bhikkhu Pesala »

Please try the Test Web Font.

Test as OTF uses a Windows control, which has limited support for OpenType Features.
My FontsReviews: MainTypeFont CreatorHelpFC15 + MT12.0 @ Win 10 64-bit build 19045.2486
nabsltd
Posts: 132
Joined: Tue Oct 18, 2016 12:35 am

Re: Add a preview renderer like the one in MainType and the "Test OTF" window

Post by nabsltd »

Bhikkhu Pesala wrote: Thu Jul 26, 2018 5:55 am Please try the Test Web Font.
This is limited by the installed default browser, most of which do not support all OpenType features. To be more helpful, "Test WOFF" should have a way to open in an arbitrary browser.

Also, it's yet another window that has to be opened, which is silly when there is a window already open that can do the same job.
Erwin Denissen
Moderator
Moderator
Posts: 11107
Joined: Fri Oct 04, 2002 12:41 am
Location: Bilthoven, The Netherlands
Contact:

Re: Add a preview renderer like the one in MainType and the "Test OTF" window

Post by Erwin Denissen »

MainType uses Windows to rasterize the font, so to use it we have to export and install the font which is exactly what Test TTF/OTF does.
Erwin Denissen
High-Logic
Proven Font Technology
nabsltd
Posts: 132
Joined: Tue Oct 18, 2016 12:35 am

Re: Add a preview renderer like the one in MainType and the "Test OTF" window

Post by nabsltd »

Erwin Denissen wrote: Thu Jul 26, 2018 2:52 pm MainType uses Windows to rasterize the font, so to use it we have to export and install the font which is exactly what Test TTF/OTF does.
Then, is there a way you can disable the "smart" bits of the FontCreator preview, and allow the user to toggle it (with the default being "smart")?

The biggest ones I notice are the fixing of contours with incorrect direction, and some changes to line spacing metrics when those in the font file are very weird. I also see better handling of missing characters. Other previews (like Windows) sometimes show huge gaps or extra line breaks when characters aren't encoded in the font, but the FontCreator preview does much better, even if the font doesn't have a .notdef character.

So, to sum it up, I like the "smart" preview, in that it does work really well, but having a built-in "dumber" preview to choose from with support for OpenType features would be nice.
Erwin Denissen
Moderator
Moderator
Posts: 11107
Joined: Fri Oct 04, 2002 12:41 am
Location: Bilthoven, The Netherlands
Contact:

Re: Add a preview renderer like the one in MainType and the "Test OTF" window

Post by Erwin Denissen »

You could try to change the glyph outline fill mode:
outlinefillmode.png
outlinefillmode.png (12.21 KiB) Viewed 7068 times
Erwin Denissen
High-Logic
Proven Font Technology
nabsltd
Posts: 132
Joined: Tue Oct 18, 2016 12:35 am

Re: Add a preview renderer like the one in MainType and the "Test OTF" window

Post by nabsltd »

Erwin Denissen wrote: Fri Jul 27, 2018 12:09 pm You could try to change the glyph outline fill mode:
This affects too many things, including validation. By changing it, FontCreator will completely miss some incorrect contours that it now finds. It will also see others as "incorrect direction", even though they are not.
Erwin Denissen
Moderator
Moderator
Posts: 11107
Joined: Fri Oct 04, 2002 12:41 am
Location: Bilthoven, The Netherlands
Contact:

Re: Add a preview renderer like the one in MainType and the "Test OTF" window

Post by Erwin Denissen »

It only uses a different algorithm for drawing overlapping contours.

This is the only setting available.
Erwin Denissen
High-Logic
Proven Font Technology
Post Reply