How to Convert a Windows TTF to the Mac

Thousands of TrueType fonts are available on the Internet, a huge portion of which are Windows TTF files. This may be frustrating for Macintosh users who want to use them. In addition, if you routinely exchange documents with a Windows user, you need to install Windows fonts in order to view your documents properly on both ends. In earlier version of the Macintosh operating system, converting Windows TTF files required additional software. However, OS X automatically recognizes the resource fork of Windows TTF files, so you no longer need to translate Windows TrueType fonts before installing them.

Things You'll Need

• Windows TTF (TrueType) font file
• Mac OS X 10.4 or later
• TextEdit

Instructions

1. Double-click the icon for your Macintosh's hard drive. Locate the OS X System folder.

2. Open the OS X System folder. Double-click the Library folder and find the Fonts folder.

3. Drag your Windows TTF file to the Fonts folder.

4. Click the "Authenticate" button in the pop-up window. Type in your OS X user password and click "OK."

5. Open TextEdit. Press the "Command" (Apple) key and the "T" key to bring up the font menu. Scroll through the list of fonts until you find the name of the font you just added in order to verify that it's installed properly.

Tips & Warnings

• PC fonts that you download from websites are often compressed into a ZIP file to keep the font information intact. Double-click the ZIP file to decompress it and show either the Windows TTF file or a folder that contains the TTF file.

• Free TrueType fonts often have limited character sets, so your font might be missing lesser used characters such as the © copyright symbol or the ™ trademark symbol.

References

• Apple: The Fonts Folder