Text issues when exchanging LO files between Windows and Mac

Nortti · 25 Jan 2013, 22:57

I have an Apple computer that is a year old and I work with someone who has a new PC. We both have the latest version of LayOut, but text shifts and gets misplaced when we share LO files. Is there a way to correct this or is it just an inevitable compatibility issue between Windows and Mac OS?

Thanks!

Dave R · 25 Jan 2013, 23:03

I run into this too because I use both PC and Mac. It does seem to be due to an incompatibility between the two but I'm hoping for some help for this in the next version.

jeff hammond · 25 Jan 2013, 23:30

it's because layout is better on mac

there are a lot more native text tools in osx (justify,kern,ligature, etc.) which are subsequently available in layout.app..

if you use any of those formatting options under the text menu, i don't think it's going to translate well onto windows..

also, make sure both systems have the same font available otherwise some adjustment are going to occur there as well..

Dave R · 25 Jan 2013, 23:41

Even with the same font on both machines and nothing special done to the text on the Mac, there's an incompatibility between platforms.

jeff hammond · 25 Jan 2013, 23:47

@dave r said:

Even with the same font on both machines and nothing special done to the text on the Mac, there's an incompatibility between platforms.

ah.. ok.

(i'm just guessing anyway without first hand experience in the matter.. )

driven · 26 Jan 2013, 03:02

This will be the primary problem when 'working' on the same document on the 2 systems. Make sure you have the cross platform version of the font, most come in all flavours which adds to the confusion.
On the mac you can add a 'Collection' (there's a sample script in FontBook.app's menu) only containing 'OFT' and then use those in anything you share, remove a font from the collection if it plays up.
http://www.fileinfo.com/help/fonts_mac_windows

@unknownuser said:

OpenType - .OTF file extension. OpenType font files are also cross-platform and are based on the TrueType format. They merge all the necessary components required for Macintosh and Windows files into a single file. The Macintosh components (which includes the .AFM file) and the Windows components (.PFB and .PFM files) are all included in an OpenType font file, which means you can install and use the same font file on both Windows and Macintosh computers. For more information on OpenType fonts, view Adobe's Introduction to OpenType.

I added this site, but without adBlock it's nasty, so here's an extract...
john

PS. I ended up buying fonts for one job just to avoid this sort of issue...

caronte01 · 26 Jan 2013, 13:49

Text bounding box margins on the mac are usually bigger than on windows. This is an issue esp. with small text, dimensions, etc., since this margin is fixed, and not proportional to the text size. If you plan to work cross platform, try and keep text boxes not too "tight" on windows.

I believe it has to do with layout mac using several os native tools for text rendering, not available on windows.