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The_Prodigy1982
The_Prodigy1982
New Participant
July 15, 2016
Answered

Ethnocentric font not working properly in Creative Cloud... please help!

  • July 15, 2016
  • 2 replies
  • 1593 views

I've been using the Ethnocentric font - that I downloaded from somewhere a long time ago - for my company logo for years now... but I created my current logo with the outdated Fireworks app.
(I always found Illustrator way too difficult to use, sticking to Fireworks instead)

- Now I'm finally switching to Illustrator, in order to re-create the old logo's that I have, this time in a decent vector quality (rather than pixel quality that I had with Fireworks).

However, I'm already bumping into a font issue... in the old Fireworks app, I could easily edit the Ethnocentric font into regular/italic/bold.
But in Illustrator I can only access regular.

* Now I've searched Google for options, and it seems that I have to buy a newer version of the Ethnocentric font?
I found out the Ethnocentric font (modern version dated from 2010) is created by the company Larabie Fonts/Typodermic Fonts.
When I go to their website, and look for the Ethnocentric font, I get redirected to Ethnocentric Fonts | Fontspring​ (complete package sold for $71).

--> Can I be sure, that when I buy this complete package... that all the regular/italic/bold will actually work across all modern Creative Cloud apps??
I don't want to bump into the same issue again, finding out that only the regular font works.

My configuration;

Mac late 2015

OS X 10.11.5
Adobe Creative Cloud v3.7.0.272

    This topic has been closed for replies.
    Correct answer Dov Isaacs

    We know of no reason why these fonts shouldn't work as advertised! 

    Remember that in Illustrator (as well as InDesign and Photoshop), font names have two parts, the font family name and a style name, where the style name is not limited to regular, italic, bold, and bold italic, but can also can include other attributes including width (condensed, semicondensed, expanded, etc.) in conjunction with italic, bold, etc. The attributes of italic, bold, and bold italic aren't baked into these applications.

    One possible reason for your old font “not working” as you expect it to is that Adobe graphic arts applications (unlike Microsoft Office, other enterprise applications, and maybe even Fireworks) don't provide an automatic method of producing faux italic, bold, and bold italic when all you have is the base “regular” style. If all you had was one typeface for Ethnocentric, then the behavior you are experiencing in Illustrator is correct and as-designed. You could conceivably do some hacking around with your text to get faux italics (actually oblique) and bold. Italics can be simulated by making the text oblique (directly in InDesign, indirectly in Illustrator). Bold can be simulated by stroking the font in addition to filling it. For bold italics, combine the two methods. In fact, that is the way the other applications produce such faux styles.

    That having been said, I would strongly recommend licensing the actual styles you need and not having to hack around. The Ethnocentric font family is available for $71 (includes 12 styles, each of which is $9). This is relatively inexpensive. The time you save from not having to fiddle around to product faux styles must be worth much more than that!

              - Dov

    2 replies

    Abambo
    Abambo
    Community Expert
    October 4, 2022

    @Md2613556481z7 What is your question?

    ABAMBO | Hard- and Software Engineer | Photographer
    Dov Isaacs
    Dov IsaacsCorrect answer
    Brainiac
    July 15, 2016

    We know of no reason why these fonts shouldn't work as advertised! 

    Remember that in Illustrator (as well as InDesign and Photoshop), font names have two parts, the font family name and a style name, where the style name is not limited to regular, italic, bold, and bold italic, but can also can include other attributes including width (condensed, semicondensed, expanded, etc.) in conjunction with italic, bold, etc. The attributes of italic, bold, and bold italic aren't baked into these applications.

    One possible reason for your old font “not working” as you expect it to is that Adobe graphic arts applications (unlike Microsoft Office, other enterprise applications, and maybe even Fireworks) don't provide an automatic method of producing faux italic, bold, and bold italic when all you have is the base “regular” style. If all you had was one typeface for Ethnocentric, then the behavior you are experiencing in Illustrator is correct and as-designed. You could conceivably do some hacking around with your text to get faux italics (actually oblique) and bold. Italics can be simulated by making the text oblique (directly in InDesign, indirectly in Illustrator). Bold can be simulated by stroking the font in addition to filling it. For bold italics, combine the two methods. In fact, that is the way the other applications produce such faux styles.

    That having been said, I would strongly recommend licensing the actual styles you need and not having to hack around. The Ethnocentric font family is available for $71 (includes 12 styles, each of which is $9). This is relatively inexpensive. The time you save from not having to fiddle around to product faux styles must be worth much more than that!

              - Dov

    - Dov Isaacs, former Adobe Principal Scientist (April 30, 1990 - May 30, 2021)
    The_Prodigy1982
    The_Prodigy1982Author
    New Participant
    July 15, 2016

    Thank you very much for your answer... I decided to buy a license to the font, since indeed it's worth being worry-free now.
    I just tested it, and it works flawless!!
    Besides, I only need Ethnocentric, for all the other editing I normally use system default fonts, such as Verdana, Arial and such... so the $71 isn't a deal breaker.

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