Is there an easy way to increase the letter-spacing in a font?

doubleshuffle · 07-11-2016, 03:49 AM

Since the letter-spacing property still doesn't seem to be supported by most reading software (at least it doesn't work in RMSDK, which still is what counts), I will have to work with an embedded font with increased letter-spacing.

So I will have to modify a font in order to increase its letter-spacing. Does anyone know of an easy way to do it? I simply don't have the time to learn Fontforge...

JSWolf · 07-11-2016, 04:18 AM

You want to adjust kerning and/or side barings.

http://designwithfontforge.com/en-US...d_Kerning.html

GrannyGrump · 07-11-2016, 06:19 AM

I know very little about font editing, but I use a freeware editor Type Light to make small custom fonts for dingbats, dividers, and such. It is not comprehensive, like Font Forge, but doesn't crash if you breathe on it, and does what I need. It does have a tool to let you increase spacing of glyphs, but it must be done one character at a time. So that would be tedious. Vertical spacing can be changed globally very easily in Type Light.

I am not sure if even FontForge has a way to *globally* increase horizontal spacing.

doubleshuffle · 07-11-2016, 06:58 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by GrannyGrump

I know very little about font editing, but I use a freeware editor Type Light to make small custom fonts for dingbats, dividers, and such. It is not comprehensive, like Font Forge, but doesn't crash if you breathe on it, and does what I need. It does have a tool to let you increase spacing of glyphs, but it must be done one character at a time. So that would be tedious. Vertical spacing can be changed globally very easily in Type Light.

I am not sure if even FontForge has a way to *globally* increase horizontal spacing.

I use the free Type Light too for a quick fix (font names, especially), but precisely that lack of increasing horizontal spacing globally led to my question here.

In the meantime I have followed Jon's link (thanks!) and at first sight it is indeed very easy to do in FontForge - except that Windows refuses to open the exported fonts and tells me thy aren't valid font files.

So, hours of troubleshooting ahead. I hate FontForge. (Although I have to admit the latest build seems to be more stable than the older ones. Hasn't crashed on me once so far, during an amount of fiddling which usually would have made it crash five times at least...)

(Secretly I am hoping one of the programming geniuses we have here would write a little script like sherman's utterly brilliant "Koboify Fonts" script.

)

GrannyGrump · 07-11-2016, 09:54 PM

Just a quick thought about "not a valid font file" --- I have had this message from my font manager a few times. I simply open the font in Type Light, check the font names (always they were fine), scroll through the glyph list (one time a "corrupt" looking unmapped glyph which I deleted), re-save the font file, and after that get no more "invalid" messages.

I think the save-file action corrects something in the bowels of the font.

Give it a try and see if it helps.

doubleshuffle · 07-12-2016, 01:46 AM

Thanks. I'll try that.

doubleshuffle · 07-12-2016, 03:40 PM

Managed to get it done. Seems selecting all glyphs and editing the bearing at once messed up too much down in the bowels of the font (as you so nicely put it); selecting just the groups of glyphs I needed and editing just those did the trick.

When I feel up to it, I might even add some kerning. I can only recommend getting the latest version of Fontforge - it is running absolutely stable for me, while the older version I had crashed whenever I was thinking I was getting somewhere.

07-11-2016, 03:49 AM	#1
doubleshuffle Unicycle Daredevil Posts: 13,924 Karma: 185041098 Join Date: Jan 2011 Location: Planet of the Pudding Brains Device: Aura HD (R.I.P. After six years the USB socket died.) tolino shine 3	Is there an easy way to increase the letter-spacing in a font? Since the letter-spacing property still doesn't seem to be supported by most reading software (at least it doesn't work in RMSDK, which still is what counts), I will have to work with an embedded font with increased letter-spacing. So I will have to modify a font in order to increase its letter-spacing. Does anyone know of an easy way to do it? I simply don't have the time to learn Fontforge...

07-11-2016, 09:54 PM	#5
GrannyGrump Obsessively Dedicated... Posts: 3,200 Karma: 34977896 Join Date: May 2011 Location: JAPAN (US expatriate) Device: Sony PRS-T2, ADE on PC	Just a quick thought about "not a valid font file" --- I have had this message from my font manager a few times. I simply open the font in Type Light, check the font names (always they were fine), scroll through the glyph list (one time a "corrupt" looking unmapped glyph which I deleted), re-save the font file, and after that get no more "invalid" messages. I think the save-file action corrects something in the bowels of the font. Give it a try and see if it helps. Last edited by GrannyGrump; 07-11-2016 at 10:03 PM.

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07-11-2016, 04:18 AM	#2
JSWolf Resident Curmudgeon Posts: 74,037 Karma: 129333114 Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Roslindale, Massachusetts Device: Kobo Libra 2, Kobo Aura H2O, PRS-650, PRS-T1, nook STR, PW3	You want to adjust kerning and/or side barings. http://designwithfontforge.com/en-US...d_Kerning.html

07-11-2016, 06:19 AM	#3
GrannyGrump Obsessively Dedicated... Posts: 3,200 Karma: 34977896 Join Date: May 2011 Location: JAPAN (US expatriate) Device: Sony PRS-T2, ADE on PC	I know very little about font editing, but I use a freeware editor Type Light to make small custom fonts for dingbats, dividers, and such. It is not comprehensive, like Font Forge, but doesn't crash if you breathe on it, and does what I need. It does have a tool to let you increase spacing of glyphs, but it must be done one character at a time. So that would be tedious. Vertical spacing can be changed globally very easily in Type Light. I am not sure if even FontForge has a way to globally increase horizontal spacing.

07-12-2016, 01:46 AM	#6
doubleshuffle Unicycle Daredevil Posts: 13,924 Karma: 185041098 Join Date: Jan 2011 Location: Planet of the Pudding Brains Device: Aura HD (R.I.P. After six years the USB socket died.) tolino shine 3	Thanks. I'll try that.

07-12-2016, 03:40 PM	#7
doubleshuffle Unicycle Daredevil Posts: 13,924 Karma: 185041098 Join Date: Jan 2011 Location: Planet of the Pudding Brains Device: Aura HD (R.I.P. After six years the USB socket died.) tolino shine 3	Managed to get it done. Seems selecting all glyphs and editing the bearing at once messed up too much down in the bowels of the font (as you so nicely put it); selecting just the groups of glyphs I needed and editing just those did the trick. When I feel up to it, I might even add some kerning. I can only recommend getting the latest version of Fontforge - it is running absolutely stable for me, while the older version I had crashed whenever I was thinking I was getting somewhere.