Mac OS X and old font files

[gunverth]

We've set up a really nice solution with Sync and RightFont at an ad agengy. They use the "Live list" functionality". Works like a charm!...until somebody needed to use "that old font file from 1994 for a project".

Up until now every font file were OTF or TTF. These old font files are PS type 1 and consists of "suitcase" for displaying the right characters on screen (FFIL) and a supporting printer font (LWFN). They're both resource fork files. No data fork. They still work flawlessly on a workstation and is indeed indentified as "font files". They can be copied from a CD to the hard drive and between local hard drives with problems. They can not however be mailed as ZIP files, sent by FTP or put on a network drive (even OS X Server with AFP) without getting crippled.

They also cannot be synced with Sync. They end up being "UNIX Executable" on other Sync clients. The file is intact ("diff" shows it's the same file) but you can't use it. Tinkering with "chmod" doesn't help either. This clearly has something to do with extended attributes or maybe beyond that. Any font file from the "old world" will end up "UNIX Executable" on a Sync client (All Mac OS X 10.10-10.11)

I've run through the "StreamsList"and "com.apple.ResourceFork" is listed. Any ideas how to sync old font files intact?

[Helen]

Can you send a sample of the file to support though this webform, and tell them from where to where you sync them? If the file doesn't get attached, just let them know and they'll give a link to server for uploading, or you can use any other means, public servers,  to share a file. Don't forget to mention this forum post. 
 

And a side note: files Streams is editable and you can add/remove xattrs there. 
check what xattrs file has on source and what xattrs are missing on destination after syncing. add those to Stream. To list xatts you may use any utility you like/know xattrs (ls -@l, xattr, mdls - this one also gives much info about each xattr). 

[gunverth]

Thank you!

I'll try looking at the xattrs first and then uploading a zip file. It seems to work sending with zip if you zip them TWICE, like an extra container. Strange behaviour, but these files are literally 30 year old "software", so I'm not surprised.

[desynced]

Hate to dig up on an old thread, but I'm having the same exact issue. Postscript fonts and Font Suitcase files are turned into Unix executable and TextEdit Document, respectively. Was there a resolution for this issue?

[fictionpdx]

Hate to re dig this up, but so far this is the only post I have found about the issue - having the same exact issue here in 2020 - what is the fix ?

[benwiggy]

MacOS will use the Unix Executable icon for any file that has the executable 'x' attributes set, and which is not identified as any other file type. As T1 fonts don't have file extensions, MacOS doesn't easily know what they are.  However, it may not matter that the printer file shows as an executable. 

Make sure that your suitcase has the file extension .suit. 

Make sure that com.apple.ResourceFork and com.apple.FinderInfo are in your StreamsList file.

My T1 fonts seem to be synching OK.

However, Apple now describes T1 PostScript as 'legacy fonts'. Adobe have already stopped supporting them in Photoshop, and will not recognise them in all their apps from 2023. Resource forks were deprecated on macOS as far back as Lion.

https://helpx.adobe.com/uk/fonts/kb/postscript-type-1-fonts-end-of-support.html

[Dogthis]

I am having the same or similar issue. I have found that all of my post script fonts that didn't have extensions have been converted to .exec files. I am a graphic designer and my font library is my life. 100s if not a 1000 or more fonts have been compromised. Is there a way to restore them? I'm just sick about it.