How To Embed Fonts for Use On Another Machine

[Ed.Macke]

I will frequently create a project in Illustrator, and then go to our local library to use with their laser printer.

The problem is that when I go to the library and open my .ai project in their Illustrator, it can't find fonts that their computer doesn't have. In the past, I've simply made sure to copy any .ttf or .otf font files to my thumb drive and install them on their computer (I don't think there's any licensing concerns since it's all in a VM so after I log off the fonts are no longer installed).

I recently discovered Adobe Fonts (fonts.adobe.com), and I've installed several fonts and used the Creative Cloud Desktop app to enable them for "other local apps". But I can't find the .ttf or .otf files anywhere, so my question is: if I use an Adobe Font in my Illustrator project, and open that project at the library where that font isn't installed, how do I fix that problem?

[Bobby Henderson]

When Adobe Fonts are installed on a computer for use by all apps the fonts are not resident or accessible in a computer. They're still essentially a cloud-based thing. The fonts can't be copied and installed on another computer.

If you're going to print a document on the laser printer at your library you'll have to use a work-around solution. The first option is creating a PDF of your Illustrator document just for printing. That can embed the font data within the PDF and be printed successfully. Another option: adding the necessary fonts on the library's Adobe Illustrator installation. That solution would only work if the library has a current copy of Illustrator via a Creative Cloud account and if the library managers would allow visitors to add/install fonts with their account. Third option: saving a copy of the Illustrator document with all the type converted to outlines and opening that copy on the library's installation of Illustrator.

[Ed.Macke]

Thanks, Bobby.

The biggest issue is that I frequently find myself needing to make minor tweaks to the project once I'm there. The PDF approach makes that impossible. The convert-to-outline approach would work unless I needed to tweak the text itself (e.g. type something new)

The install-from-the-cloud approach might work - the library is pretty cooperative with that kind of thing but I'd have to ask and make sure it works.

For installing from the cloud, do you know how it works when I open the document and an Adobe font isn't available? Does it notice that and say something like "hey, you've got a missing font - click here to re-download from Adobe Fonts"?

Of course, Option 4 is to just use Google Fonts, which allows you to download the .ttf / .otf file and install it. 🙂

[Bobby Henderson · Accepted solution]

If the fonts used in the Illustrator document are synced via Adobe Fonts you should be able to add them on the library's computer if it's running the current version of Illustrator. Normally when a missing font is available to sync via Adobe Fonts a dialog box will provide that option when opening the Illustrator file. I'm doing that very thing increasingly more often with customer provided art files in my work place.

Regarding Google Fonts, some of the typefaces available at Google Fonts are available to sync via Adobe Fonts as well. But there can be differences. A version of a typeface at Adobe Fonts may have static styles while a variable version is available to download at Google Fonts. Fonts get updated from time to time. I've occasionally had technical issues with fonts downloaded directly from Google Fonts, but the same ones from Adobe Fonts would work correctly. I'd go back to Google Fonts a few months later, try downloading the typeface again and it would work properly.

[Ed.Macke]

I was hoping that upon opening Illustrator, it would detect that an Adobe font wasn't installed and offer to fix the problem for you. From what you're saying, that sounds like that's exactly what it does.

The next time I head over to the library, I'll bring a test document to try out the process.

Thanks for the quick recap of Adobe vs. Google fonts! I kind of figured that all things being equal the Adobe fonts would be better quality than the Google.

[Ed.Macke]

Just to verify, that is actually what happens.

I installed the "Market Pro" font from Adobe Fonts using the Creative Cloud Desktop app, created an Illustrator project using the font, closed the project, and then deleted the "Market Pro" font.

When I opened the project, I was presented with a dialog box:

I clicked the "Activate Font" button, and it quickly and easily installed the font.

Now I just have to make sure the process works at the library with their account, computer, etc.

[Bobby Henderson]

Let me know if there are any problems.

Regarding Google Fonts on the Adobe Fonts service versus those at the Google Fonts web site, in most cases the type families are going to be identical. However there are times the Google Fonts web site will have an advantage of posting a new build of a certain typeface before it appears on Adobe Fonts. I don't know if Adobe has the same kind of direct access to the type designers' work that Google has.

The Adobe Fonts service also carries a limited number of typefaces from Google Fonts, 127 to be exact. The Google Fonts site currently has 1576 type families.

Ultimately I'd recommend visiting both the Adobe Fonts web site and Google Fonts web site on a fairly regular basis to see what's new or what has been updated. It seems the general public is growing more aware of Google Fonts. Over the past year or so I've seen a large uptick in the use of Google Fonts in customer provided artwork.