Visio 2003 does not recognize fonts that are not TrueType fonts (911978)


The information in this article applies to:

  • Microsoft Office Visio Professional 2003
  • Microsoft Office Visio Standard 2003

SYMPTOMS

You try to use a font that is not a TrueType font in Microsoft Office Visio 2003. For example, you try to use a font that has an .otf or .ofn extension. However, Visio 2003 does not recognize the font.

CAUSE

Visio 2003 supports only TrueType fonts. TrueType fonts have a .ttf extension. Visio 2003 does not support all the fonts that other Microsoft Office 2003 programs may support.

WORKAROUND

To work around this behavior, use a TrueType font with Visio 2003.

STATUS

This behavior is by design.

MORE INFORMATION

The Adobe OpenType format is an extension of the TrueType SFNT format that supports Adobe PostScript font data and new typographic features. Adobe OpenType fonts that contain PostScript data have an .otf extension. However, TrueType-based OpenType fonts have a .ttf extension. For more information about Adobe's OpenType fonts, visit the following Adobe Web site:

http://store.adobe.com/type/opentype/main.html

Microsoft provides third-party contact information to help you find technical support. This contact information may change without notice. Microsoft does not guarantee the accuracy of this third-party contact information.

Important Consider the following scenario. You have a Visio drawing that was created in an earlier version of Visio. The Visio drawing contains a font that is not a TrueType font. When you open the drawing in Visio 2003, the name of the original font is displayed in the Font box on the toolbar. However, Visio 2003 substitutes the font with the Arial font. The Arial font is a TrueType font. If you want to retain the original font in the Visio drawing, use one of the following methods:
  • Keep a separate copy of the drawing.
  • Do not save the drawing in Visio 2003.
Additionally, printer fonts, bitmap fonts, and PostScript fonts are not supported in Visio 2003. To make sure that most characters in your drawing are displayed without requiring a font substitution, you may want to install a Unicode font to use with Visio 2003.

For more information about TrueType fonts, visit the following Microsoft Web site:

http://www.microsoft.com/typography/default.mspx

For more information about fonts that are installed when you install Microsoft Office, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

837463 Fonts that are installed with Office

For more information about how to troubleshoot a similar issue, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

893307 The text in your Visio 2003 drawing no longer uses a custom font after you save the drawing to a Visio 2002 drawing format

The third-party products that this article discusses are manufactured by companies that are independent of Microsoft. Microsoft makes no warranty, implied or otherwise, regarding the performance or reliability of these products.
Modification Type:MinorLast Reviewed:2/2/2006
Keywords:kbdisplay kbtshoot kbprb KB911978 kbAudEndUser
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