Keystroke for ligatures in Quark 6.5 (Mac OS)
mara06 (2454 points) | Tue, 2007-11-27 20:30This is driving me NUTS! I have Ligatures checked in the Preferences box, "Break Above" set at 1. Kerning of my fi combo is set at 0. The font is Times New ROman (don't ask -- not my choice). I can't get the ligature to kick in. I've tried opening another doc, using a different font, the Alt+Shift+5 keystroke -- nothing gives me the fi ligature. Any suggestions, folks? I'm on deadline.
Mara
Mara
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First, I thought you were moving to InDesign? :)
This thread might help you, though the initial post is from someone in Q7:
http://www.quark.com/service/forums/viewtopic.php?t=17099
Looks like you might need to manage your system fonts for Times and make sure there aren't any duplicates loaded. Do you use FontExplorer? You can use Tools/Manage System Fonts to leave only the required system fonts in your system/fonts folder.
At the very least you could try reaching the Quark person for more help. Looks like this ligatures thing is a known issue.
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Powerpoint is not a design application
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Dirt and Rust
Yes, I've seen more than a few threads on this in various Quark forums. The problem was apparently solved in Quark 7, but I screeched to a halt at 6.5 so I could start dealing more with InDesign. This is a project I felt more confident I could do inn Quark, though, since my skill level in InDesign is still below expert.
It's interesting that you think a duplicate font issue might be behind this. I don't use any font management software because I've had bad experiences with Font Manager and other apps in the past. I keep only System fonts in my Sytem folder. All my working fonts are in User/Library/Fonts. And as I mentioned before, switching out the font to any of several types (pardon the pun) didn't make a difference.
My printer's production team fixed it for me in 7. They didn't even know what a ligature is -- I had to tell them, and now they're all a-twitter about their newfound typographic knowledge. That takes care of the deadline issue, but I would still love to know why something so basic and simple is now anything but. I guess this is one of the reasons why InDesign, despite its Byzantine configuration and awkward typographic features, has eaten up Quark's market share.
Mara
I'm surprised you don't manage your fonts; it's probably bogging down your system! You basically have to load all of your fonts every time you turn on your computer when you really only need certain ones at any given time.
I recommend the free FontExplorer from Linotype. I've used it for 3+ years without issue. It manages your system fonts folder, which should only have about 10 fonts in it necessary for system functions, and moves everything else out of there. You can then create a MY FONTS or similarly named folder. I like to put folders A-Z inside that and then put the font folders in those.
Font management is important because it helps avoid browser and font issues such as your ligature issue. Font conflicts are one of the biggest pains we designers face and they can cause all sorts of weird problems; problems that might not seem logical.
More on System Font Management and why it's important.
How to Clean your Font Directories:
"The problem with these fonts is that their names conflict with commonly used PostScript fonts. And, in the case of identically named fonts, application behavior varies. Some applications (such as QuarkXPress and Adobe Photoshop) will follow the system rules: Use fonts in the Classic folder first, then the Users folder, then the /Library folder, then /System/Library. We'll ignore the /Network/Library/Fonts folder for the moment, because hardly anyone in production is using it (yet). Other applications (such as Adobe InDesign) seem to prefer the system-wide /Library/Fonts folder over the user's own ~/Library/Fonts folder when duplicate font names are found."
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Powerpoint is not a design application
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Dirt and Rust
Thanks. I'll look into that. I do have only the bare basic system fonts in the System fonts folder, but of course, every font I own is in the Fonts folder in my User Library folder. I'm sure this is slowing me down and causing problems.
So you don't find it awkward to go poking around in off-side folders, rather than having everything in one place, to see what font you might want to use on a new job?
Mara
Oh I have all my fonts in one place, organized A-Z like I said; just not in the system/library/fonts folder. :) The font management tool makes it so you don't have to dig through your font folders. You load them all into it and you can preview fonts and make sets for different jobs:
http://www.creativetechs.com/iq/use_your_font_managers_preview_window.html
Did you get the job done in the end?
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Powerpoint is not a design application
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Dirt and Rust