Font management under Mac OS X is something of a nightmare if you're a graphic artist, designer, or a font-junkie. With Mac OS 9 it was relatively straightforward and you used an application like SuitCase to sort, set and enable your fonts in Quark or Illustrator or PageMaker. Then along came Mac OS X, with multiple font locations, different types of fonts to support, and 'hard-wired' system fonts that clashed with publishing classics.

The traditional font utilities scrambled to re-work their products but in many instances the end result was messy and unpredictable and just plain didn't work.

Enter Linotype FontExplorer X. Anyone in publishing will know the respected name of the font 'foundry', and who better to produce a font management utility than them. It offers simple to use, complete professional font management with an iTunes-style interface that plugs in to your Quark and Adobe software - and best of all it's FREE! [The interface cleverly links into the online Linotype font store much like iTunes links into the iTunes store, so that buying the fonts you need is a breeze - that's the 'catch' if you're looking for one!].

FontExplorer X, has just been updated to add support for Adobe Creative Suite 3 applications, plus fix a whole slew of bugs and add enhanced features. It's highly recommended.

Get it here.

Other links:

• FontExplorer X website
• The (Unofficial) Discussion Board : community help site
• Real World Font Management with Linotype FontExplorer X : excellent article on setting up and usage
• Applelinks.com : review

Tags: Freeware, QuarkXPress, Adobe CS3, Utility