Too many fonts!

Font lists that are too long case frequent call from Macintosh users who like to keep things simple. While designers and graphic artists love having lots of fonts to choose from, many Mac users are dismayed at the length of their font list.

Over the years we have received many calls from clients who decided to take the matter into their own hand and suddenly their computer or their favorite application will no longer work. This is not a good situation. It requires doing an archive and install of the operating system to correct the problem. If an application such is Microsoft word begins acting strangely, you will need to re-install it.

So just which fonts are needed?

There is a long list of font that are installed as a part of Mac OS X 10.4. The list can be found at http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=301332. Note that the list is in four sections. While the bottom two lists are optional, the top two lists are essential. Also note that there is a link at the bottom of the page for Mac OS X 10.3 users.

If you are a Microsoft Office user, there are a number of fonts installed with Word, Excel and Powerpoint. You can find the complete list of what is installed at http://word.mvps.org/Mac/Disable-Fonts.html#appendix. Once again, there are two list on the page. The first list is those fonts that are absolutely required. The second list is optional fonts.

Another application that installs fonts is Apple's iWork, though many of the fonts may already be on your computer from other sources. A list can be found at http://www.macfixitforums.com/showflat.php?Cat=&Board=Forum36&Number=826049&page=0&view=collapsed&sb=3&o=31&fpart=1.

If you are a Macintosh user who likes to tweak your fonts folder, pay particular attention to these lists. If you think you are having font problems, give us a call at Bob LeVitus Consulting and we can give you a hand.