Re: kerning/ligatures in opentype fonts

[Alexander Kobel]

On 01/16/2014 03:38 PM, David Kastrup wrote:
> Werner LEMBERG <address@hidden> writes:
>
> > > > If for a font "ff" leads to collisions, and the ligature is not
> > > > correct at that point, is it recommended to insert space or to
> > > > switch the font?
> > >
> > > Yes, at least for German.
> >
> > Uh, I mean you should insert space.  Virtually no font resolves this
> > `properly' today, I reckon.
>
> You are confused about the problem that is being discussed.  What _you_
> are talking about is not how to deal with a defective "ff" ligature, but
> rather about the typographic reasons to distinguish betweem a _working_
> "ff" ligature and two separate "ff" letters when typesetting German
> prose.

Actually that's what I wanted to ask.  Even if I didn't explain it too 
well, Werner succeeded in guessing my intentions...  My question was 
twofold:

1.)  Irregardless of whether a ligature does exist or not, what should I 
do if two letters clash?  (Solution: add space, [even if they just touch 
slightly.  Use with care.])

2. and more important to me)  As a layman, I consider it as a hint to 
trash a font if it has collisions or uneven kerning.  But if this only 
happens for combinations where a ligature exists [but should not be used 
for semantic reasons], is it still a sign of bad design?  (Answer: not 
necessarily.)

Werner, I hope you agree with my short summaries of your helpful 
explanations?


Best,
Alexander