Trying to extract Monaco.ttf for use on Linux/Windows

Question

Level 1

21 points

Trying to extract Monaco.ttf for use on Linux/Windows

Hi:

I use Apple's Monaco font almost exclusively in Terminal.app have resisted using Menlo. I would like to extract the ttf file for this font from the combined dfont file. I've used fondu and DfontSplitter. Both produce the same results (file size), but the resulting .ttf file is unreadable by Linux or Windows. What's up with the TTF file that's contained in the dfont file?

Someone online suggested I use the free fontforge program to process the dfont file, but it also produces an "invalid" font file.

Thanks,

-Clint

MacBook Pro, Mac OS X (10.7.3)

Posted on Jan 30, 2013 4:02 PM

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Answer 1

Jan 30, 2013 5:54 PM in response to Clint Olsen

Clint,

On Ubuntu, launch Software Center and search for Fondu, then install it.

Get the Monaco.dfont over to your home directory on the Linux box.

Run the following command in Terminal:

Fondu Monaco.dfont

This quietly creates the Monaco.ttf font and a bunch of *.bdf ASCII files.

Copy the Monaco.ttf into ~/.fonts or /user/share/fonts/truetype/apple/Monaco.ttf depending on local or system use. The apple directory is purely organizational and will need to be created.

Update: This font created on Linux is not a valid font file under Windows 7.

Using the above process, I got both vim and LibreOffice on Ubuntu to use the Monaco font.

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Answer 2

Jan 30, 2013 6:21 PM in response to Clint Olsen

Clint,

Got cut off by the Support Community dropping connection...

Update.

Ignore Fondu.

Look at DfontSplitter instead. Windows and Mac GUI versions. Mac version ttf output works (I tested it) on latest releases of Ubuntu and Fedora, but not on Windows. Windows .ttf font compatibility will require DfontSplitter for Windows.

DfontSplitter works fine on Mountain Lion ... it just isn't gatekeeper friendly yet. Right-button click on app, open it, and it will then work. Launches a drag and drop window for depositing the .dfont file. You should tell it where to write out the .ttf file.

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Answer 3

Clint Olsen Author

Level 1

21 points

Jan 30, 2013 11:35 PM in response to VikingOSX

Thanks for offering suggestions in your post. I'm using MacOS Lion, and I tried both DfontSplitter and fondu on the Mac, and both produced the same Monaco.TTF which was unreadable on Windows 7 and Linux.

Are you saying that running DfontSplitter or fondu on another platform other than the Mac might produce different results?

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Answer 4

Jan 31, 2013 7:34 AM in response to Clint Olsen

I installed latest DfontSplitter on Mountain Lion. Dragged and dropped the Monaco.dfont onto DfontSplitter and it silently output the Monaco.ttf.

I put that Monaco.ttf in my VirtualBox shared folder.

Ubuntu 12.10: Monaco.ttf installed in ~/.fonts folder. Works fine in Vim and LibreOffice Writer.

Fedora 18: Same results as Ubuntu.

As I mentioned, the Monaco.ttf font generated on OS X by DfontSplitter is invalid on Windows 7. You will need to install DfontSplitter for Windows, then feed it the Monaco.dfont file from OS X, to get a valid Monaco.ttf on Windows.

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Answer 5

Kurt Lang

Level 9

62,052 points

Jan 31, 2013 8:03 AM in response to Clint Olsen

A .dfont is a font format unto itself, there is no embedded .ttf file. You need to convert the font to the .ttf format, which is what VikingOSX is leading you to.

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