Font
Manager Shoot Out: Installation
and Setup.
Intro
| Installation | Interface
| Auto-Activation | Conclusions
| Resources
The
first stop in our font management shoot out is the installation
process. How much work does it take to install and setup each
font manager?
For
the purposes of our test, we created four identical partitions
on a PowerMac G5 workstation. This test computer was built up
from a standard CreativeTechs design system template.
- Mac
OS X 10.4.6
- System/Library
fonts already minimalized.
- Most
major design applications already installed.
- A
fairly clean collection of about 500 font families.
For
each application we are evaluating how each each application is
to install. What extra manual steps might be needed after each
installation. And how long the installation process takes.
The
Video Results:
 FontBook-Install.mov
Suitcase-Install.mov
FontAgent-Install.mov
FontExplorer-Install.mov
Apple
Font Book:
I
like that Font Book comes pre-installed in Mac OS X
10.3 and later. I applaud Apple's acknowledgement that font
management is needed in Mac OS X. I hold out hope that some
future version of Font Book will be powerful enough to be a
realistic choice for managing large font collections sometime
in the future.
I
don't like how slow Font Book becomes when I install
a large collection of fonts. To make maters worse, Font Book
automatically activates all the fonts I add -- potentially bringing
my computer to a crawl.
Extensis
Suitcase Fusion:
I
like that the Suitcase installer automatically installs
plug-ins for InDesign Illustrator and QuarkXPress if it detects
that these applications are installed.
I
don't like that Suitcase only checks for these plug-ins
during installation. If I install (or re-install) one of those
applications later, I'll have to track down and install the
plug-ins manually.
I
like that Suitcase Fusion adds a new choice of using
a Font Reserve-style "Font Vault" that keeps all of
my fonts tucked away in one protected area. Using a Font Vault
approach helps eliminate the chance for duplicates, as well
as protecting against users accidentally moving or deleting
key font files. (I also like that I can turn off the Font Vault
and just link to fonts on my hard drive if I prefer.)
I
don't like that Suitcase Fusions' Font Vault is saved
as one large package. This makes it much harder for a designer
to switch to a different font manger in the future should they
wish to (this is also similar to the old Font Reserve approach).
Insider
FontAgent Pro:
I
like the small installation wizard that walks me through
importing my fonts into FontAgent right at the beginning.
I
really don't like that FontAgent does not automatically
install needed plug-ins -- nor does it mention this anywhere
during the installation process. This omission is the source
of common support calls from FontAgent users wondering why auto-activation
is not working properly. (This is mentioned briefly in the FontAgent's
Quick Start PDF.)
I
like that FontAgent Pro collects all fonts into a central
font library -- similar to Suitcase Fusion's Font Vault. Further,
I much prefer the way these collected fonts are not hidden inside
a single package as Suitcase does.
I
don't like that FontAgent Pro does not provide an option
to simply link to fonts rather than importing them into a central
library.
Linotype
FontExplorer X:
I
like that installing FontExplorer is as easy as dragging
it into the Applications folder.
I
like that FontExplorer runs a setup wizard the first
time you launch the program.
I
like that FontExplorer will automatically install the
needed plug-ins for common graphic applications during this
first setup.
I
don't like that the QuarkXPress 6.5 plug-in failed
to install properly during our tests.
I
like that I have the option of letting FontExplorer
manage my fonts (similar to FontAgent pro). While I also have
the option to leave my fonts in place and only link to them.
I
really like that FontExplorer is the only font manager
that knows about Adobe's hidden font collection installed by
Creative Suite.
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