Typography

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Font formats and file types

Lesson 24 of 34 in Typography.

Font File Types: Usage & history explained · Shakthi Hari Design
Lesson

The format question is simpler than the list of acronyms suggests. For desktop use, OpenType. For the web, WOFF2, which is the same data compressed for delivery. Older formats exist for older software and can usually be ignored.

.glyphs · sourceotfprint · desktopttfdesktop · appswoff2web · smallestthe licence, not the file, decides where it may go
One source file exported to the formats print and web each need.
Two identical open suitcases, one nearly empty with a few letter shapes and one packed with many shapes and marks, with the full one also squeezed smaller for sending.
Two identical cases hold very different contents: one a few basic letters, one many scripts and extras. With fonts, what is inside matters more than the file type.
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Members answer these 3 questions and keep the ticket for this lesson. Every lesson has one.

  1. Question 1, locked

    Which of these words means this? “The current standard. Holds outlines plus features and broad language support.”

    • OpenType
    • Logotype
    • Bidirectional text
    • Vertical metrics
  2. Question 2, locked

    Which of these words means this? “A compressed wrapper for web delivery. What a website should serve.”

    • WOFF2
    • Em
    • Point
    • Outline font
  3. Question 3, locked

    Which of these words means this? “Two ways of describing a curve. Both live inside OpenType.”

    • Hierarchy
    • TrueType and PostScript outlines
    • Readability
    • cpl

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