The encyclopedia · Software & IT · Technical decision · 1991
TrueType won desktop fonts by opening the format and bundling it free.
Apple's 1991 TrueType used quadratic outlines, then licensed it to Microsoft so fonts shipped free in both OSes and broke Adobe's closed Type 1 grip.
Apple · Microsoft · Adobe
the move
Through the 1980s, Adobe's PostScript Type 1 fonts were the desktop reference, but the format stayed closed to all but licensed font makers, which was costly for users and the OS vendors.
Apple developed TrueType in the late 1980s as a competitor, using second-order Bezier outlines plus a hinting instruction set for crisp scaling. It shipped with Macintosh System 7 in May 1991, and Apple licensed it to Microsoft.
By bundling TrueType into both the Mac and Windows, Apple and Microsoft made scalable fonts a free system feature rather than a paid extra. Adobe's CEO called it an insult and opened Type 1, but TrueType was already the default, and OpenType later merged the two.
why it works
- Quadratic outlines were simple and fast to render
- Bundling fonts in the OS removed a licensing cost
- Having both Mac and Windows put it on nearly every desktop
- Hinting let outline fonts look good at small screen sizes
what transfers
When one vendor gates a format and charges licensees, releasing a good rival free and bundling it into the platform is how a new standard displaces the toll.
what came after
TrueType became the most common font format on classic Mac OS, macOS and Microsoft Windows. It later merged with Type 1 into OpenType, which inherited TrueType's outline model and remains the industry standard.
references
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