New: DTL OTMaster 7.9

LeMo aka PatternMan aka Frank E Blokland
LeMo aka PatternMan aka Frank E Blokland Posts: 723
in Font Technology
The previous retail version (6.3) of DTL OTMaster was released back in the spring of 2016. A lot of functionality has been added since, especially developed for the internal font production at URW Type Foundry and the Dutch Type Library. The current OTM version is already 7.9 and an overview of the extensive new functionality can be found below.

The initial idea was that version 8 would be the next retail version. However, the conversion from OTF to TTF and vice versa, the handling of the UFO 3 format, and the development of the updated manual takes a bit longer than planned. Especially since the TYPO Labs conference in Berlin last April, we received quite a number of requests for a new OTM version. Therefore we have decided to release version 7.9 first. Consequently this version comes without the OTF to TTF conversion, UFO 3 support, and without an updated manual.

However, because of these limitations we lowered the price for OTM 7.9 to €199 instead of the standard €255: please note this is a one-time-only discount. Owners of version 7.9 will be able to upgrade to version 8 (scheduled for the first half of 2019) for only €25. An upgrade from older versions, for example 6.3, to version 7.9 costs €50.

OTM 7.9 is available for macOS, Windows, and Linux. The macOS version has not been notarized by Apple for Gatekeeper yet: consequently, when starting OTMaster for the first time, the right-mouse button (or <cntrl> + click) has to be pressed to open the application. Of course, alternatively the settings for allowed downloaded apps in the ‘Security & Privacy’ section of the System Preferences can be changed.

OTM 7.9 is available from Glyphs GmbH, FontLab Ltd., and DTL.


New in version 7.9

1. OpenType Font Variations viewer (works dynamically, with sliders):
– Instances editor
– Font Viewer
– Side by Side Viewer (shows instances and whether or not glyphs are isomorphic, i.e., ready for interpolation)
– Enhanced Glyph Viewer, Glyph Editor
– Text Viewer

2. Support for OT Variation tables:
– fvar, gvar, STAT, HVAR
– meta
– CFF2

3. Table Comparator:
– Make tables consistent across a family, enhance, or remove entries

4. Side By Side Viewer:
– Print
– Variation-instances
– Isomorphic glyphs, or non-isomorphic only
– Different total width only

5. Consistency Checker:
– ‘use_typo_metrics’ bit checkbox

6. Proofing Tool

7. OS/2 table:
– Support for version 1–5
– Adds (calculates) default entries if changing version to 3, 4, 5

8. Import/Export Options:
– Export UFO format
– Export new instances from variation fonts (QQ, BE)
– Export AFM file with original metrics (1000, 2048…)

9. Glyph Editor:
– Glyph Editor Tabs moved from bottom to top
– Glyph Editor Reset to maximum Em-square (instead of fixed size)
– Glyph Editor Point List
– Antialiasing in Glyph Editor and other displays
– Shift tool: center vertically in Em square
– Spacing Editor
– Numbering of coordinates (no virtual anchorpoints in TrueType fonts)
– Preferences: Marker Size, Fill Anchor Points

10. Feature Editor:
– H/V lock in Mark Attachment Display, H=Shift, V=Alt+Shift

11. Text Viewer:
– Spacing Editor in Text Viewer and Glyph Editor, arrow key support
– Simplified sample text handling in Text Viewer and Text Editor

12. Glyf table
– X,Y positions in ‘glyf’ table comments

13. General:
– Font selectors with file names instead of full path names
Tagged:

Comments

  • LeMo aka PatternMan aka Frank E Blokland
    LeMo aka PatternMan aka Frank E Blokland Posts: 723
    Looking at yesterday’s sales I can happily conclude that there is a strong demand for a sophisticated post-production tool like DTL OTMaster still. Time is flying and the first edition of OTM was released already nine years ago. The tool is part of a much longer development, which started roughly 40 years ago with the IKARUS system at URW. Those who have visited the new https://www.fontmaster.nl website already, will have noticed that we made a brief start with describing this development, which is fun to do actually.
  • John Nolan
    John Nolan Posts: 51
    edited November 2018
    Looks great.
  • AzizMostafa AzizAli
    AzizMostafa AzizAli Posts: 103
    edited November 2018
    Does DTL OTMaster support Arabic including RTL kerning, swashing and across-up-down overlapping as elaborated in the attached QB-English.pdf?
  • LeMo aka PatternMan aka Frank E Blokland
    LeMo aka PatternMan aka Frank E Blokland Posts: 723
    Although Arabic is not really my stronghold, OTM should support all of that, I reckon. However, if you would like to test this thoroughly yourself, please send me (otm[at]dtl.nl) your e-mail address and let me know whether you use macOS or Windows. Whatever the outcomes of your tests are, I would very much appreciate it if you post these here on TypeDrawers.
  • John Hudson
    John Hudson Posts: 3,229
    I've not had a chance to test OTM 7.9 yet, but this is what I note in terms of Arabic support in 7.3. This is with regard to the GSUB/GPOS Viewer and Text tools:

    Right-to-left writing direction is correctly displayed, but needs to be manually toggled in the Text tool. In the Text tool you also need to open the Features panel and set the script and language to invoke default shaping features correctly. The Text tool then displays the Arabic layout, including kerning and cursive attachment positioning:


    [The numbers in the rectangles are glyph IDs.]

    In the GSUB/GPOS viewer, there are some issues in OTM 7.3, which I will review in the new version when I am able. The Image panel is only showing one of the two 'curs' lookups in the font, and I can't find a way to access the second. In the Data panel, both lookups are correctly presented. In the Report panel I get a message saying 
    <i style="background-color: transparent; color: inherit; font-size: inherit; white-space: pre-wrap;">• Sorry, no report available for GPOS lookup type 3.</i><br>
    The 'kern' feature behaves well in all panels, but writing direction may need to be manually toggled for the left-to-right kerning of numerals.
  • John Hudson
    John Hudson Posts: 3,229
    The Feature panel in the Text viewer is nicely designed for complex scripts that have default shaping features, in that you can toggle from the default state to check behaviour with and without features applied.


    Frank: the raising of the body rectangle is a nice visualisation of the cursive attachment positioning. I wonder if something similar could be available as an option for visualising horizontal positioning adustments in kerning. In this image, the first two glyphs on the right are kerned. It would be nice to have an option to display the kern as some form of overlap between the rectangles, e.g. a pale grey region.
  • John Nolan
    John Nolan Posts: 51
    edited November 2018
    When will Fontlab be offering the upgrade?
  • LeMo aka PatternMan aka Frank E Blokland
    LeMo aka PatternMan aka Frank E Blokland Posts: 723
    edited November 2018
    It would be nice to have an option to display the kern as some form of overlap between the rectangles, e.g. a pale grey region.
    I will discuss this with Juergen, but that should be doable for version 8, I reckon. Thanks for the posts and images, BTW! Yesterday I have sent OTM 7.9 to AzizMostafa for testing, and I am curious whether he will come up with some additional suggestions for improvements.
    Will Fontlab be offering the upgrade?
    The plan was that FL would offer OTM 7.9 this week also. Maybe Thomas can provide some additional information.
  • Sami Artur Mandelbaum
    Sami Artur Mandelbaum Posts: 97
    Hi Mr. BLOKLAND,
    I've made the payment for upgrading from 6.3 to 7.9 version but I've only receive link to download the 6.3 full version.
    Could you help me, please.
    Regards
    Sami
  • Thomas Phinney
    Thomas Phinney Posts: 2,897
    We will have the 7.9 version available within the next day or two.
  • LeMo aka PatternMan aka Frank E Blokland
    LeMo aka PatternMan aka Frank E Blokland Posts: 723
    Sami, thanks for upgrading OTM. Yesterday morning (our time) an e-mail containing the download link for version 7.9 was sent to the address specifed in your order. A few minutes ago we resent it with a different subject to prevent that it might end up in your spam folder.

    Thomas, good to know that FL will start delivering OTM 7.9 within a couple of days!
  • Sami Artur Mandelbaum
    Sami Artur Mandelbaum Posts: 97
    Thank Yoy Frank,
    This upgrade is Great, especially working with variable fonts!
    But 7.9 version still can't edit names in Character Variants features, this is very frustated for me. :'(
    Please, if there is a way to edit the names in CVxx, I would like to know.
    Best Regards
    Sami
  • LeMo aka PatternMan aka Frank E Blokland
    LeMo aka PatternMan aka Frank E Blokland Posts: 723
    Hi Sami, thanks for your compliments!
    But 7.9 version still can't edit names in Character Variants features
    Aren’t these entries just ‘normal’ ones in the name table that have a table index >255?
  • Sami Artur Mandelbaum
    Sami Artur Mandelbaum Posts: 97
    Yes, but I can't edit them like I do with SSxx
  • LeMo aka PatternMan aka Frank E Blokland
    LeMo aka PatternMan aka Frank E Blokland Posts: 723
    edited November 2018
    Would it perhaps work for you to export the features, to make the changes in the text file and to import the features again?
  • Sami Artur Mandelbaum
    Sami Artur Mandelbaum Posts: 97
    The problem is I use microsoft VOLT and I never get to import the fea file.
    There is always an error.
  • LeMo aka PatternMan aka Frank E Blokland
    LeMo aka PatternMan aka Frank E Blokland Posts: 723
    What happens if you only export the name table, make the required changes and import this again?
  • Sami Artur Mandelbaum
    Sami Artur Mandelbaum Posts: 97
    The name table is fine.
    I have no problem there.
    The problem is to link the CVxx tables with name table.
    Please, take a look at the adobe source code pro font (open source font):
    https://fonts.google.com/specimen/Source+Code+Pro
    You can enter in the entries of Stylist Set Fetures (Grow option) but not in the Character Variants features.
    The name table is not a problem.
  • LeMo aka PatternMan aka Frank E Blokland
    LeMo aka PatternMan aka Frank E Blokland Posts: 723
    edited November 2018
    Sami, I will discuss the issue with the other members of the team.
  • Sami Artur Mandelbaum
    Sami Artur Mandelbaum Posts: 97
    Thank You very much!
    DTL OTMaster still is my best font software.
    The DTL team are great.
  • Thomas Phinney
    Thomas Phinney Posts: 2,897
    John Nolan said:
    When will Fontlab be offering the upgrade?
    The upgrade is available in the FontLab store now: https://store.fontlab.com/index.php?option=com_mijoshop&view=category&path=42&Itemid=234

    The main OTMaster page on FontLab still needs some work, we are actually replacing it with a new, more modern page. 
  • Belleve Invis
    Belleve Invis Posts: 269
    So does it fix the bug that in the text view the option "top to bottom" actually arranged text in bottom-to-top?
  • LeMo aka PatternMan aka Frank E Blokland
    LeMo aka PatternMan aka Frank E Blokland Posts: 723
    edited November 2018
    Yes!

  • Rodrigo Saiani
    Rodrigo Saiani Posts: 78
    Is there a way in OTM 7.9 to manually change the variation menu order for the variation instances?
  • Thomas Phinney
    Thomas Phinney Posts: 2,897
    I forgot to post here, but we did indeed make a fancy new OTMaster page on the FontLab site: https://www.fontlab.com/font-utility/dtl-otmaster/

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