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Variable Font Preview (for Glyphs 2) for GlyphsApp features:

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Involved Masters

Version 2.0

Beta

With this new feature you’re equipped for understanding even the most complex fontmaster-axes-setups, since it not only shows the involved masters for your currently dialed in interpolation.

You can see the percentage % of how much each master influences the current interpolation.

The color of the interpolation represents the involvement of each masters.

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Center Preview Glyph

Version 2.0

Sometimes it can be handy to have the interpolation behind your letter be centered no matter what. Well, here you are.

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Numerical Values

Version 2.0

Moving sliders only? Not really futuristic!
Naturally you can now adjust the values in the number labels as well. Simply type your desired values into the text fields.

And it doens’t stop there:
Use your arrow keys ⬇⬆ if you fancy to increment or decrement in single steps.
Hold the shift key to increment in steps of 10 or shift+cmd for steps of 100.

Extrapolation:
Using the text fields also empowers you to extrapolate beyond your axes limits, holy moly. And: Extrapolated values will be shown in gray to indicate that they’re probably not what you really want.

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Link To Selected Master

Version 1.0.2

If you activate this setting, the interpolation and the sliders will always follow your currently selected master. Very helpful to quickly dial them in for a starting point to continue your tweaking business.

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Jump to Instances

Version 2.0

Once you need to set the sliders to any of your instances, you’ll find this feature come in super handy. Select any of the instances in the context menu and the sliders will snap into their proper position.

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Make Instance

Version 1.0.2

Yep! Exactly that: Make an instance from your very current slider setup. Could that be done any quicker? I don’t think so.

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Right To Left

Version 1.0.4

Beta

Working on Arabic or Hebrew variable fonts? Or any other right-to-left (RTL) writing system? No worries, I got you covered right here. Give it a try.

Shown font: FiraGO Arabic.

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Virtual Masters

Version 2.0

Beta

You want to reduce the amount of masters but still change the appearance of some glyphs? That’s what virtual masters are for. Variable Font Preview is capable of presenting the result to you.

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Show Nodes

Version 1.0.2

Tune into the visual complexity as you wish! Depending on the stage in your workflow you might want to adjust what to see and what to hide. The nodes of your interpolation and/or the involved masters are definite toggle candidates.

Oh, and their size can be adjusted in the GlyphsApp preferences.

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Glyph Swapping

Version 1.0.1

You want to swap incompatible layers entirely on certain settings? The preview will deal with your bracket layers with ease.

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Change Size and Color

Version 1.0.1

It’s as easy as pie to change the preview size and color, since they are attached to the built-in preview settings of Glyphs. However you can also just grab the upper preview and drag it to resize.

PS: The example font is IBM Plex Thai Looped, which is by the way not even set up as variable font. That works, too! Cool, eh?

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Streamlined User Interface

Version 2.0

Lots of thinking and work went into streamlining the user interface for your greatest pleasure and ease of use. Elements that are not used too often went into a context menu, out of your sight when you don’t need them, providing you with more space to work, enjoy and observe your drawings.

Variable Font Preview (for Glyphs 2)
Variable Font Preview (for Glyphs 2)
Variable Font Preview (for Glyphs 2)

A GlyphsApp plugin (not for Glyphs 3*)

Variable Fonts are the next big thing in (web) typography. So next and so big, that their potential isn’t even fully discovered by designers. What is clear already is that they bring incredible new opportunities do design and web experiences. Along with those new chances come challenges for the type designers who create v-Fonts:

Juggling with crazy, unprecedented master setups and keeping all possible outcomes with variable axes in sight became a mind-boggling and sheer unsolvable task. Until now!

With this GlyphsApp plug-in you can now immediately preview what your variable font will look like with any axis settings, see the live result while drawing, spot interpolation issues. It works with ordinary Multiple Master fonts just as well.

Version 2.0 is entirely rewritten in native Apple code, which brings not only an incredible performance boost, but also eases up the maintaining und updating process. That means more comfort for you.


Features:

  • Live preview of any variable font setting without exporting any font files.
  • Preview the content of your Edit Tab as well as your current glyph.
  • See the masters involved in the current interpolation.
  • Easily spot interpolation issues that can be hard to find otherwise.
  • Glyph swapping (»bracket trick« layers) can be previewed.
  • Works with ordinary Multiple Master fonts as well.
  • Huge (10k+ glyphs) fonts are no problem at all.
  • Show/hide the nodes of the interpolation.
  • Quickly set sliders to your masters or instances.
  • Make an instance from current slider setup.
  • Preview virtual masters.


Compatibility:

Glyphs 3:

There is a version for Glyphs 3 now, you can get that one directly in the plugin manager of Glyphs 3. Download a fully functional, time limited tiral version and if you like it, purchase directly from there.

Mac OS 10.14 Catalina: will work but needs you to change some OS settings.
Mac OS 10.13: will work.
Mac OS 10.12: I got a version for this at hand. Let me know if you need it!
Mac OS 10.11 (El Capitan): not supported.
Mac OS 10.10 (Yosemite): not supported.

Installation:

Find the installation and troubleshoot guide here.

ChangeLog
Bugs & Limitations

Get it here:

×

    2.0

  • Rewritten from scratch in Objective-C
  • New Feature: Add Virtual Master Support
  • New Feature: Option to center drawn glyph
  • New Feature: Enter your values in the Slider Label. Change Values with Arrow Keys (Shift/Cmd+Shift for 10/100 steps)
  • You can extrapolate through doing so, the label text will color to indicate that an extrapolation is happening
  • Streamlined UI:
    • + Only sliders for the existing axes are shown. Give you more space in your edit view
    • + Buttons are now hidden and reformed into a right click context menu. You won't access to them too often, so that declutters the panel
  • Panel doesn't detach from window anymore when the caret is at the end of a line. (However it will still fail to live update the preview in that caes, due to the Glyphs API)
  • New Feature: Nodes in preferences size
  • New Feature: Display involved Masters (Beta)
  • New Feature: Dial in any of your font’s instances
  • New Feature: Right-To-Left Support (Beta)
  • BugFix: Update Sliders on Axes change
  • BugFix: Update Sliders on Axes Values Change (in Master settigns)

    • 1.0.4

  • Add support for right to left (RTL).

    • 1.0.2

  • Add optional display of nodes. Default: On.
  • Add optional display of lines along which the nodes go (delta directions). Default: Off
  • Fix not responding or laggy color changes.
  • Fix blurry controlls. They should be crisp now.
  • Fix non-working drag Preview to resize. (Could be broken now for older Glyphs builds than around 1184).
  • Changed views architecture for Glyphs build up from 1184.
  • Performance is smooth again in Glyphs build up from around 1184 (Mac OS Mojave).

    • 1.0.1

  • Runs smooth with any amount of open fonts now.
  • Sliders update immediately now when you change your values in font info.
  • Slider No.6 does do its job now.
  • Does not work on Mac OS El Capitan (10.11.6) nor on Yosemite (10.10.5). Only tested on Mac OS High Sierra (macOS 10.12+)
×

Please look out for the *Beta* tags.
Those features are in development and could produce unpredicted results.

These will be solved in future updates:

  • In certain setups the preview can be a bit more forgiving than the *actually exported font*. Meaning it shows nice interpolations which might not be accessible in the real font. This is due to the GlyphsApp API and I am working on improvent.
  • For the time being of GlyphsApp 2, you are limited to 6 axes for now.
  • No kerning yet. Planned to be implemented.

Or buy me a coffe :)

Related projects:
Font Spy Show Stems Show Recyclers
← IBM Plex Thai Loopless ←
Show Stems → →