Scan & Fix 50 registry issues FREEMainType User Reviews
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"The only genuinely great font manager for Windows."
Version: MainType 5.0
Pros
Fast, intuitive, rock-solid. Caching of font data is effective, persistent. One-click and batch/folder font installation and removal. Thorough font integrity check.
Cons
Not freeware. Developer name sounds like it refers to bad decisions made on drugs.
Summary
I was a graphic designer for a bunch of years before my music career took off, and I still insist on doing my own site design, tee shirts, posters, etc. Just can't let it go. So while it is no longer a daily struggle, having a solid way to deal with my legacy collection of 12,000 typefaces remains a quality-of-life issue for me. I found MainType a few years ago and was astounded, not so much that someone had finally gotten it right, but that NO OTHER SOFTWARE SEEMED ABLE TO. It was the end of a decade of searching for the right utility. I had been assuming up to that point that something deep inside of Windows just made it impossible to maintain a functional secondary font database with a logical, usable interface. But it is not impossible. MainType pulls it off. I won't look back.
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"MainType is the best Font Manager I know!"
Version: MainType 5.0
Pros
All Word Processors, Desktop Publishing and Web Design Software installs without asking for permission dozens of fonts nobody wants and nobody needs. With MainType it's a breeze to get rid of this font garbage! I also appreciate the clean ant tidy GUI.
Cons
No cons at all.
Summary
I use MainType especially for cleaning jobs (see Pros). But with MainType you can do a lot more. MainType does all what you expect from a good Font Manager.
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"For my over 100,000 font, no other comes close."
Version: MainType 5.0
Pros
With large collections, finding that ONE needed right now is of premium value. MainType allows almost instant access to my active fonts, or by Panose divisions for Text, Script, Decorative, or Symbol fonts + All my Dan X Solo fonts, Seasonal Fonts, Special collections, fonts by foundry's, fonts I have created, . . .
What ever I want!
And then I can assign up to 5 stars to each font for even more rapid access to the font I need!Cons
It does NOT weave straw into gold.
Summary
This is by far the best of all I have tried.
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"Best Font manager I know"
Version: MainType 5.0
Pros
Fast, especially since the database addition in version 4
Shows all info needed, including labeled character layouts for unicode supplementsCons
None really. The app has always been reliable.
Summary
As a typographer and press manager, I've used MainType through all versions (1-5) and consistently have found it meets my font management needs -- version upgrades making it even better. Over the years I've looked at many tryout and freeware font managers, but have always found MainType superior.
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"Full-featured, Fast, Organized; MainType does it all!"
Version: MainType 5.0
Pros
Fast.
It is NOT a simple font-viewer; it is a SYSTEM FONT MANAGER.
That means that you use MainType to interface any and all fonts on your system.
Ever used Visual Studio? Just like VS, with MainType, you CAN PUT PANELS ANYWHERE! There are lots of panels, and you can choose what you want, and put it where you want.
See all your fonts in their own face, and LARGE. You can see every glyph, too. If you have a large monitor, you will fall in love.
Works *very well* with InDesign.
It does everything you can possibly think of that has anything to do with viewing, using and managing fonts (if you want to edit them or create them, you need to get High Logic's FontCreator).
The developers are friendly and responsive. The forums are active. The developers do, indeed, consider your feature requests and bug reports. This is a fact.
What do I like best? I like being able to see everything at once - all is immediately available. This is GTD if I ever saw it.Cons
There were some cons with the earlier versions of 3 and 4, but since they have fixed all the ones I thought of for version 5, I won't mention them!
You only get to choose from two interface themes.
Some folks just want a simple font-viewer. This is a font-viewer/manager/organizer. It may be more than what some people want. Maybe High-Logic should consider making a free application for just viewing (without the management). But if that is all they want, MainType is not for them. This is most certainly a professional tool.Summary
A freeware-junkie am I. I try out everything that is free and new - I mean, just about everything. One of the first programs I ever needed was a font manager, and being the good junkie that I am, I tried all the ones I could find. Then I happened upon MainType, which was shareware - this is because I couldn't find for free what I wanted. MainType did it all. I've never looked back.
I have been using MainType since version 3. I was a beta tester for version 4 (so I could get a free license!), and now I am using version 5.
Other than my testing and some communications over time, I have no relation to the authours (in other words, I am not getting paid to write this). -
"Outstanding Windows font manager!"
Version: MainType 4.5
Pros
1. Does all of the usual font management tasks extremely well. The user interface is very clear, and shows font information well.
2. You can install (font persists through reboot), and load (font available throughout session, lost on reboot) with one mouse click.
3. As far as I'm concerned, the most outstanding feature of Main Type 4.5 is its ability to show whether you've grouped a font or not - in other words, have you entered the font into a category you've created? Main Type allows you to create an unlimited number of font categories and subcategories, and sort your fonts into them. When you add a font or fonts to your system, they show up in the 'Grouped' column as 'No' (or not grouped), until you add them to one of the groups you created. This allows you to see - at a glance - whether you've added the font(s) to your private classification system or not. This feature alone prevents a huge amount of frustration - separating newly-added fonts from the old previously-added ones!Cons
Price: $89.00. However, it is unfair to complain about this, as other (non-free) font managers are also priced in the $60 to $100 range, and are nowhere as good as Main Type 4.5.
Summary
If you have a large number of fonts on your system, Main Type 4.5 allows you to load, install, and classify them quickly, with minimum frustration. The grouping feature is outstanding!
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"Easy to use fontviewing and installing program"
Version: MainType 4.5
Pros
Easy, easy, easy and easy. You can see the fonts how they are. With one click you can install the font in windows font folder. And the service is excellent!
Cons
No cons discovered!
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"Excellent tool, especially if you have LOTS of fonts."
Version: MainType 4.0
Pros
This is a very fast database-based font manager, so it loads in a couple of seconds even if you have thousands of fonts. The layout is completely adjustable, and installing or uninstalling fonts is a snap. It includes a plugin for InDesign (CS5-6) and plugins for Illustrator and Photoshop are coming soon.
Cons
The interface is powerful and flexible, so it takes a little getting used to, but once you know your way around it's extremely efficient.
Summary
I've used several win7 font managers, and this one ended up as my favorite. Trying out a new font manager is a huge nuisance, but since MainType is so fast, it was a pleasure to discover it. Customer service is also fast and personal. The publisher also has a forum that's reviewed by the developers.
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"I did not like this, so I uninstalled it immediately!"
Version: MainType 3.0
Pros
Don't have any thing good to say.
Cons
Most everything about this program I disliked.
Summary
Find another program even if you have to pay for it.
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"A fabulous piece of software for designers."
Version: MainType 3.0
Pros
I love High-Logic's software. MainType is a utility for ordering and sorting font collections. It is very easy to use, has an intuitive interface, and is generally very efficient at what it does.
Cons
Arranging font groups doens't quite do what I expected.
Summary
High-Logic's type production products are among the best I have tried. Furthermore, it is very easy to get help from High-Logic when needed; they are an extremely friendly and approachable company. Their software, taken as a whole, integrate very well, and for the price they are both affordable and very powerful.
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