Font Forum

Why would a font that I created work in all my text editors, my older graphics programs (Paint Shop Pro versions 7.1 and 9.01), but does not work in CorelDraw X. I'm missing something somewhere. Here are the particulars...
Windows 7
FontCreator 7.5.0
Steps I followed...

1. Created a new project called Nickel Plate
2. Created a new font using default settings; named it Nickel Plate
3. Opened a font file on my computer named NKP that held the glyphs I wanted; copied those glyphs into the corresponding locations in my new font.
4. Closed the NKP font so that only the Nickel Plate font remained in my project
5. Tested the font with the Font>Test option. Everything looked good
6. Installed the font with the Font>Install option; operation completed successfully. An OpenType font called Nickel Plate appeared in the Windows font folder.
7. Tested the font in OpenOffice; Windows Notepad; Paint Shop Pro 7.1 and 9.01; font worked fine
8. Tested the font in CorelDraw X; the font appears in the drop down menu but does not work. Nothing is entered; the cursor does not advance

I've also tried exporting the font to my fonts folder, then installing the font that way. That doesn't work either!

This is driving me crazy! (short trip) Does anyone have a suggestion?

Dave Campbell

I suggest attaching the font project.

I'm sorry but we can't look into the precise cause of the problem, as you're using an older version of FontCreator, but if you send us the font project, we'll export the font through the most recent version of FontCreator, so you can test this font.

Even without this problem, I would strongly recommend to upgrade to the latest version of FontCreator as we've made many improvements and fixed several bugs. Without knowing the exact cause of your problem, I'm positive that will solve the issue.

Oops...

Just noticed you asked for the project file, not the font file...

Here's a copy of your font exported from FontCreator 11.5 after fixing some validation issues.

Unless the original NKP font license allows it, copying glyphs from it to create a new font is illegal. Do check the license terms before going any further. I will delete the font once you have downloaded it to test it in CorelDraw X.

Thanks so much for the help!

And the glyphs I've used are with permission of the folks who own them.

Dave Campbell
PS... Where on the website does it allow a registered owner to update their software to the latest version?

The page for Upgrades is hard to find. There is a link at the bottom of the Buy Now page.

Thanks for all the help. Unfortunately, the font still will not work in Corel Draw.

Here's what I did...
Removed the old Nickel Plate font from my fonts folder.
Found the original file in my downloads folder. It has an .otf file extension.
Right clicked and chose "Install" from the drop-down.
Restarted my computer.
Tested the newly installed font in various word processors and Paint Shop Pro v7; worked fine.
Tested the font in Corel Draw X5; did not work. Cursor did not advance; nothing appeared on the screen.

Further info.

The downloaded file has an .otf extension. It installed with an .otf extension. The Corel Draw fonts drop-down menu displays the font as a True Type font... That may be normal, but in any case is a feature that is certainly contributing to my confusion as to what's going on.

Also, yesterday, in a message to the help desk, I attached two fonts I had created with FC. One works with Corel Draw (PM); the other does not (NKP).
If I hadn't run into this "one font works; one font doesn't" situation I'd be inclined to believe my problem is a Corel issue... but I don't really think it is. It has to be something I'm doing when I create/install the font to start with.

At least that's my theory for now.

Thanks!
Dave Campbell

I have no clue why the font fails, but here is the font exported with the latest release of FontCreator.

I renamed the font to "Nickel Plate 2", so we know for sure it isn't a caching issue.
I hope it works.

Just to put a ribbon on this thread...

First, the font Erwin sent would not work in Corel Draw. But, through a long process of trial, error, retry, etc, I determined that there was one particular compound glyph that was creating the problem. Eliminating that glyph resulted in a font that worked fine. The validation process didn't find any problems, but with that glyph the font was a no-go as far as Corel Draw was concerned.

I don't know why or what's really going on, but at least I now know the source of the problem. Thanks to all who tried to help!

Dave Campbell

I'm glad to know you've managed to solve the problem. I suggest you report the issue with Corel as it is clearly a bug within their software.