Are you shure it adds points? It happened to me in Illustrator on converting to outlines, but not to the font files.

When I ’Generate Font’ fontlab adds nodes to all my curves.

Yes, that usually happens when you convert from PostScript curves (which you probably use for drawing in FontLab) to TrueType curves.

But when you convert a font to outlines in Illustrator, the curves get converted to PostScript again, and even more points are added. That means what you see in Illustrator after converting isn't what's actually in the font.

Solution is a) to generate PostScript-based OpenType fonts (no curve conversion necessary) or b) convert manually to TrueType inside FontLab before generating OT/TrueType fonts. In the latter case you get the chance to check the converted curves for bumps and waves (copy the actual PS outlines into the mask layer to see the differences) and correct them by hand before generating.

I'm fairly sure FontLab is adding the points. I can see the wobble when I print the ttf. Any other ideas?

Calvin Tennant
calvintennant.ca

@ Jens Kutliek thanks!

Calvin Tennant
calvintennant.ca

Worked perfectly, I've attached a screenshot for reference.

Thanks so much.

Calvin Tennant
calvintennant.ca

OK, tested and you're right.
However, if you want to generate TTF's with the same amount of points, just select all the glyphs and go to Contour > Paths > Set TT Direction.

Cheers!

calvintennant,

every type design tool will change the contours slightly when converting PostScript curves to TrueType curves. It is due to the nature of the curves.

These curves are based on different geometry. Each PostScript node has up to two control points, while in TrueType, there are on-curve points and off-curve points: between two nodes there may be often just one off-curve "control point". It's just a different way to draw curves, and some PostScript curves cannot be represented 100% exactly on the same UPM size (i.e. on the same grid of units per em).

This is somewhat similar to a situation when you convert a PNG image to a JPG image, or to a situation when you export a movie into a different format, with different compression/encoding. You'll never get pixel-for-pixel fidelity.

If you want better fidelity in the conversion, you could increase the UPM size in Font Info / Metrics and Dimensions before generating the .ttf font (you need to enable "Scale all glyphs..." there). You can use 2000 or 3000 UPM rather than 1000.

I recommend reading the FontLab Studio manual for more information about the difference between PostScript and TrueType curves.

Cheers,
Adam

>However, if you want to generate TTF’s with the same amount of points just select all the glyphs and...

This is, I believe, false. The direction of the curves being correct, is separate from the control points being chosen during the lossy conversion from T1 to TT. The best way to avoid this issue is to have native drawing of TT in FL. It is the majority product format these days, and losslessly converts to T1. When?

Cheers!

Wow! Thank you all so much for the responses. Its nice to finally be part of such an active community.

To ensure that I'm understanding this correctly:

FontLab uses PostScript in its drawing interface, or at least by default it uses PostScript
OpenType uses PostScript geometry, so by using OpenType I do not need to convert to TrueType geometry
TrueType uses its own geometry, different and incompatible with PostScript
FontLab will automatically convert PostScript to TrueType on export (if I select TrueType)

Is this correct?

The only thing I don't understand: why would I use TrueType?

Thanks again,

Calvin Tennant
calvintennant.ca

>The only thing I don’t understand: why would I use TrueType?

Because there are circumstances where "Font Lab adding nodes when generating ttf" is not a good thing for the end product.

Cheers!

This is with the end product being TTF, but why not use OpenType PS?

Calvin Tennant
calvintennant.ca

>...but why not use OpenType PS

There are several billion users who don't use PS of any kind, sometimes.

Cheers!

One main reason for using TrueType can be the most precise hinting. But I’ve always worked with OpenType PS for typefaces intended for print.

dberlow writes:
"The best way to avoid this issue is to have native drawing of TT in FL"

You can draw TT natively in FL since its first release, even TT MM, but it is unconvenient. We are still waiting for meta control points to control curvature, tension and distances between TT off-curve points.

dberlow writes:
"TT losslessly converts to T1"

That is not correct for various reasons.

TT can have a much higher UPM than PS, then you'll have rounding to a coarser grid.

In theory, between 2 TT off-curve points a PS on-curve point can be placed, but this new point must be rounded to the grid, just as any new BCP. With all this rounding you lose the quality of your TT curve.

When you edit quadratics (TT) in FL, you might notice you can do things that are not possible in cubic curves (PS) e.g. an optically pleasing connection between a straight and a curve, and this will never convert loslessly.

Before converting from PS to TT, up scaling the UPM will give a much better curve fidelity. At the same time you get more off-curve points per curve segment, and all these off-curve points are rounded to the grid, giving a subtle warm wobbliness, that won't be there when you go back to PS :-)

TT curves and fonts *can* be superior to PS, it is just too much work.

>When you edit quadratics (TT) in FL, you might notice you can do things that are not possible in cubic curves (PS) e.g. an optically pleasing connection between a straight and a curve, and this will never convert loslessly.

I don't see how this can be correct. PS curves are cubic equations, of which quadratic equations are a special case. So whatever you can do in outlines with quadratic--and TT outlines are quadratic--you should be able to do with cubic PS curves, if you are on a grid with the same resolution. You may need intermediate points off the extrema in PS Beziers, but there is no barrier to adding intermediate points--or working in 2048 units per em, right?

> TT can have a much higher UPM than PS

How so? You can make OpenType PS (.otf) fonts with a UPM of from 16 to 16,384 units, same for Type 1 -- exactly as with TrueType fonts. The maximum coordinates limit in OpenType PS (.otf) fonts and Type 1 fonts is ±4,095, so converting a 16,000 UPM TT font to PS may indeed pose a problem. But for the most common cases, there is none. Adobe Arabic is an .otf font with PS outlines based on a 2048 UPM, just like most Microsoft-made TT fonts. Conversely, many TT fonts are based on a 1000 UPM, just like most Adobe-made PS fonts. But both PS and TT fonts can have pretty much any UPM, within the set limits.

See http://www.typophile.com/node/30913 for more discussion on this.

Cheers,
Adam