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Windows 10 and open type fonts

inthesignbiz

New Member
This has probably been discussed previously.

I have Flexi pro 7 installed on a windows 10 computer.
None of my open type fonts work.
They do show up in the font preview.

What is the solution to fix this issue?

For the record, I HATE windows 10. Just so you know.
 

inthesignbiz

New Member
I thought about that but, it seems that every time I upgrade a program, I find that it's not that much better than the old one.
Spent a lot of money and got little benefit.
 

WildWestDesigns

Active Member
Flexi is on version 12 now, so I'm willing to bet that it just isn't supported on Win 10 at all.

If you don't want to upgrade to 12, then either use it on an older computer with an OS that's supported for ver. 7 or run an older OS that is supported as a VM on a newer computer (what I do, but it depends on the specs of said newer computer).

If I'm not mistaken Flexi 7 is setup for 2003 Server, XP and Vista, outside of those OSs anything could have been deprecated in newer OSs that might make it harder to run especially with regard to Win 10 in it's rolling release beta update form.
 

studio 440

New Member
This has probably been discussed previously.

I have Flexi pro 7 installed on a windows 10 computer.
None of my open type fonts work.
They do show up in the font preview.

What is the solution to fix this issue?

For the record, I HATE windows 10. Just so you know.
or as a last option convert o t fonts to true type format a pain and you have to do one at a time and only if true type supports the conversion
 

WildWestDesigns

Active Member
Or can you right click the Flexi icon, run in XP Compatibility mode?


Compatibility mode may work, it just depends on if anything has been removed. For instance, even though on 64 bit you have Win 95 and Win 98 compatibility mode, if the program in question has any 16 bit code in it (even if it's just an installation stub), it won't work because there is no 16 bit code in a Win 64 bit install. 32 bit Windows is a different story.

Things like that.
 

Ian Stewart-Koster

Older Greyer Brushie
I found a 64 bit system would not run older Roland Camm-1 plotters, not in compatibility mode, and not as a Virtual machne either.
The answer was to buy an older WinXP 32 bit system, and another as a spare, while they're cheap!
 

WildWestDesigns

Active Member
not as a Virtual machne either.
The answer was to buy an older WinXP 32 bit system, and another as a spare, while they're cheap!

There is no difference between running a virtual 32 bit Win system and keeping an older 32 bit Win box. As long as you can pass through the necessary hardware to the VM. As far as the machine goes, it is communicating on a 32 bit Win environment.

Running a VM would be far better then having to worry about keeping legacy computer components working.

Personally, I would hate to have to keep sourcing physical components to run Win 98, when it's far easier to use computers that are current and VM off that.

Bare in mind, I'm talking about VMing a legacy Windows OSs, not running a current OS as a VM (I could read your comment Ian as if that's what you were thinking that I was talking about, that may not be what you meant, but I could read it as such, so I'm just making sure that it was known I was talking about VMing a legacy OS, not a current one, that would, as you mention, serve no purpose).
 
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Ian Stewart-Koster

Older Greyer Brushie
The 64 bit system would not let the Virtual XP Machine talk to the Com1 serial port nor the LPT
We lost over a day trying every workaround we could find.
It was not happy with the 32 bit drivers either.
 

WildWestDesigns

Active Member
The 64 bit system would not let the Virtual XP Machine talk to the Com1 serial port nor the LPT
We lost over a day trying every workaround we could find.
It was not happy with the 32 bit drivers either.

What specific program were you using for the VMing?

I use VirtualBox for direct VMing, when running Win 98, I use VirtualBox for the Vista VM, then within Vista I use VirtualPC 2007 to run Win 98 (to my knowledge Win 98 is no longer supported on programs say VMWare and Parallels (I don't use Mac, so this option is irrelevant to me) and VirtualBox never supported it) and I'm able to get Com ports to work.

Now, VirtualPC is no longer used to my knowledge since after XP Mode for Win 7 Pro (and up) users. So that's why I'm thinking if you are using a Windows VM solution, that may be the problem.
 

WildWestDesigns

Active Member
VMware I used...

That is strange. VMWare is usually pretty good. When I first moved over to Linux, I did a demo of the full version of that and it was far more refined the VirtualBox, I'm surprised that COM ports didn't work.

Now, I don't know if Player is limited in that regard, but I'm surprised to read that COM ports didn't work on the full version.
 

inthesignbiz

New Member
Thank you all so much for the input!
We run 9 computers and only one has windows 10.
The others are XP.
I may be an old dog but I much prefer XP to the newer.
 

copps

New Member
I have installed a windows 10 Host and at VM with VmwareWorkstation Windows98SE - there is running the CAMM-1 with Procut1+ Software.
 

WildWestDesigns

Active Member
I have installed a windows 10 Host and at VM with VmwareWorkstation Windows98SE - there is running the CAMM-1 with Procut1+ Software.
If you ever update your VMWare, make sure that they haven't removed Win98 support. I believe that they have deprecated support for that OS. I would definitely keep on eye on that with later versions to make sure that they haven't removed it in a newer version.
 

WildWestDesigns

Active Member
This is one of the reasons I have been anti flexi and all those others except CDR and AI
Well, they may be less so inclined (depending on what area one is talking about), the same issues (or ones along similar lines) can rear their ugly heads as well with those two.

There is a way around it, but for some, it may be too cumbersome to try to deal with yet something else to learn when there are years/decades of the old knowledge base and/or file formats.
 

Bobby H

Arial Sucks.
Flexi is good for sending artwork to a vinyl cutter/plotter or doing certain things to prep files to send over to EnRoute. As a design tool, Flexi is badly dated -especially with how it handles fonts. It doesn't provide much support for advanced OpenType features, much less support newer formats like OTF Variable fonts. This is a common problem for just about all sign industry specific "CAS" software. The situation is pretty stupid. Applications like Flexi are pretty expensive. Typefaces are pretty important in sign design. So why aren't "CAS" software vendors like SAi on the cutting edge of font technology? When it comes to type these applications are literally stuck in the 1990's.

Heck, Inkscape supports most OTF features and even Variable fonts, and that's an open source application. Affinity Designer doesn't support OTF Variable fonts (yet), but at least it covers the bases on extended "pro" features of standard OpenType fonts. Adobe Illustrator has fully supported extended features of OTF since the first "CS" version of Illustrator in 2003; OTF Variable and SVG Font support was added with AI CC 2018 (released Oct 2017). CorelDRAW has fully supported extended OTF features since version X6; OTF Variable support was added with CDR 2020.

Back in the 2000's I quit using Flexi on my own work desktop and put the license on another PC connected to a routing table. Even way back then there were various things I could do better in CorelDRAW and/or Adobe Illustrator. I had already been generating my scale drawing client sketches within CorelDRAW for several years. So it just made sense to start doing most of the full size design work within CorelDRAW too. I couldn't do as much full size work within Adobe Illustrator, but certain unique features made it valuable, along with a superior type engine. It took Corel about a decade to catch up on the OpenType thing.
 

WildWestDesigns

Active Member
Flexi is good for sending artwork to a vinyl cutter/plotter or doing certain things to prep files to send over to EnRoute. As a design tool, Flexi is badly dated -especially with how it handles fonts. It doesn't provide much support for advanced OpenType features, much less support newer formats like OTF Variable fonts. This is a common problem for just about all sign industry specific "CAS" software. The situation is pretty stupid. Applications like Flexi are pretty expensive. Typefaces are pretty important in sign design. So why aren't "CAS" software vendors like SAi on the cutting edge of font technology? When it comes to type these applications are literally stuck in the 1990's.
Even with programs that are industry specific programs along the lines of Flexi (just for different industries) are not only equally as expensive (or I can think of one that is twice as much for the full version), but equally behind the times in terms of functionality when they add design functionality that can be handled with Ai/Draw directly within the program. Not so much the UI, that aforementioned one that I was thinking that is twice as much as Flexi, has updated the UI. In fact, they were so gungho with the UI, they changed it the last two versions in a row (and for me, not necessarily in a positive direction, but that is just me).

As to why, very easy. There really isn't a mainstream competition that most people in the industry would know about to have as an alternative (or there isn't an alternative period) that would force them to change, to innovate unless they are able to buy their innovation. There may be plugins for Ai/Draw that will give some functionality sending to the cutter/printer/engraver etc, but they will still lack some of the more advanced features that dedicated programs have in those areas. It just depends on what ones needs are. But for the most part, a plugin is still dependent on another program as well. Nothing really beats true integration and depending on the plugin system, that may not be doable with the host program (some programs it is, some it depends on how much the plugin vendor pays for source code access etc, but not all).

I have to wonder, while design is important step before getting to this programs, I have to wonder if the design implementation directly in these programs, are more for down and dirty quick design needs versus needing a whole specific suite of tools. Otherwise, development should be more rapid compared to what they are, if they are really trying to implement a full design suite, making their program a one stop program. Which very few programs, truly implement that in such a way that they do it justice. Best to stick with one thing and that one thing well. Sucks for users on one hand, but it also makes the individual experience better on another.
 
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