Linotype GmbH and its parent company, Monotype Imaging Holdings Inc., have collaborated to unveil the FontExplorer X Pro and FontExplorer X Server font management solutions. FontExplorer X Pro debuts for Macintosh platforms and includes features geared for creative professionals. Capabilities extend to networked environments when FontExplorer X Pro is coupled with FontExplorer X Server, which provides workgroup administrators centralized control over font management and access rights. The Server edition also includes access to more than 4,000 OpenType fonts from the Linotype, Monotype and ITC libraries.
“Customer feedback has been exceptionally positive surrounding the user friendliness, feature set and quick performance of Linotype’s original FontExplorer X,” said Frank Wildenberg, managing director of Linotype GmbH. “These qualities, including the intuitive user interface of FontExplorer X, have been enhanced and carried forward into the Pro and Server editions. While the new Pro version targets the discerning demands of creative professionals, the Server edition allows network administrators to oversee a worry-free, font managed environment, while also enjoying use of a vast collection of Linotype, Monotype and ITC fonts.”
John Seguin, executive vice president of Monotype Imaging Inc., said, “The complete package represents an industry first – customers can now rely on an integrated solution that combines font management with font acquisition capabilities across the organization. It’s fitting that such a comprehensive product would come from a team of professionals whose business revolves around fonts. With more than 200 years of combined typographic experience, Linotype and Monotype Imaging can clearly stand behind FontExplorer X as font experts.”
FontExplorer X Pro
Designed for easy organization and management of fonts, FontExplorer X Pro includes a host of features designed to enable precise control of fonts. Users are able to activate and deactivate fonts based on established criteria, such as activating user-defined fonts when opening Adobe InDesign, Illustrator or QuarkXPress applications, and then deactivating the fonts when applications are closed. Users may set up access to typefaces from a certain typeface foundry or all fonts tagged with a user-defined keyword. At any time, users may examine complete character sets of fonts, as well as the shapes and forms of individual characters. Users may also compare kerning pairs or create sample paragraphs to see how a font will look before committing to its use. When seeking new fonts, users may access an integrated, online store to browse and render typefaces in user-defined text strings, before licensing and downloading the fonts. Backup capabilities enable users to save font configurations, including pre-determined font sets and preferences.
FontExplorer X Server
FontExplorer X Server combines the Pro client edition with network administration capabilities, in addition to access to fonts in the Linotype, Monotype and ITC libraries. Users are able to collaborate with others on the network to streamline workflow efficiency. Working in either Macintosh or Microsoft Windows server environments, administrators can distribute fonts and font sets over the network and allow identified users to customize font sets and preferences for their local use. Administrators can also organize fonts on the server according to specified groups – such as work groups, departments, job type and projects – and assign privileges to individual users and groups accordingly. As new font families are added, fonts can be installed quickly across the network. Backup functions enable administrators to recover fonts as well as font settings.
FontExplorer X Server can also monitor font usage across the organization, allowing administrators to compare usage against corresponding font licenses, and remove fonts deemed redundant or unnecessary. Companies seeking advanced levels of font license control can turn to Monotype Imaging’s Fontwise solution – a font license management service that can work in parallel with FontExplorer X.
Commenting on the new FontExplorer X application suite, Juergen Bamberg, senior design director at Landor Associates in Hamburg, said, “Finally, a functional font tool that allows central, server-based management. Intelligent features make working with fonts more tangible and font selection easier. FontExplorer X pointed out ways to streamline our workflow, from saving time by activating project-necessary fonts on various workstations to making sure we were up-to-date on our licenses.”
Availability, pricing and support
Available for Macintosh computers running Mac OS X 10.4 or later, English and German versions of FontExplorer X Pro may be downloaded and purchased from www.fontexplorerx.com at a discounted introductory price of $39 U.S. or €39 (including VAT) or
This article was last modified on January 4, 2022
This article was first published on January 6, 2009
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