exporting OpenType-SVG from Glyphs directly

[schriftgestalt]

It is possible to export a single line OpenType-SVG font directly from Glyphs:

In the instances (in Font Info > Exports) you add a "Color Layers to SVG" custom parameter and make sure the checkbox is set.

Then draw your letters with open path and apply a stroke thickness (in the lower right). Then duplicate the layer in layer panel and make it a color layer (right click the copied layer and click "Color").

Then export the font and use it as described in the Relief repo.

There is one small issue with this method right now. You need to sync the outlines in the main layer and the color layer. But that could be done by a script that copies the outlines from the main layer to the color layer.

I just had a look and made some adjustments that makes it much easier. So no duplication of layer any more. That will be in an update soon.

[isdat-type]

Hi Georg, thanks for your interest in the project!

Nice to know that Glyphs App is able to export single-line / single-stroke fonts out of the box and nice to know that the workflow for syncing classic closed contours OTF and open path SVG layers in Glyphs will be improved in a near future... It's true that at the start of our research 2 years ago at isdaT we didn't look that much in that direction, we were more looking at retro stuff like FontForge that still supports deprecated formats like old original SVG, Inkscape / Hershey Text Extension being strong in fablabs environments.

Did you have a look at our SingleLine_otf-svgMaker Python script for Robofont?

Hope that your contribution will permit to enlarge the amount of single-line monolinear fonts available and permit to get more (type)designers involved.

[am-apparat]

Hi Georg,
is this update implemented by now? I'm interested in the steps necessary to export true single line fonts from Glyphs at the moment?
Thanks!

[schriftgestalt]

Those changes I mentioned are implemented.

But there are no "true single line" fonts, yet. Some apps use a hack or two to get is somehow working. Where do you try to use the fonts?

[am-apparat]

Thanks! I would like to use it in Inkscape to control a pen plotter. At the moment I use Elias Hanzer's Script (https://eliashanzer.com/edition/) in Illustrator and Copy the paths to Inkscape. I wonder, if there is a way to directly type a single line font made in Glyphs into Inkscape.

[isdat-type]

Inkscape only uses single line fonts in the (old) SVG format with Hershey Text extension; Inkscape is not using (yet) the OTF-SVG format (need to check if recent improvements). If you are designing a typeface in Glyphs, export an UFO file first, then generate a SVG from FontForge (precise process described in our Readme file or in the PDF manual in /documentation).

Both Relief & Mistral SingleLine fonts available on isdaT-type are working out of the box in all Adobe apps, no script nor additional plugin needed. To achieve a precise typographic layout, use for example our SingleLine OTF-SVG fonts in Indesign, vectorize the layout, export a PDF and from that PDF export a SVG file through Illustrator or Inkscape that any plotter machine can read.