Service Pack 3 May Render Office Application Fonts Too Large

• Microsoft Windows NT Workstation version 4.0
• Microsoft Windows NT Server version 4.0
• Microsoft Windows 95

SYMPTOMS

User-written Office applications developed on non-English version platforms (for example, Access applications developed under Hebrew Windows 95) render fonts too large when run under other language versions of Windows NT 4.0 (for example the US English version) after installing Service Pack 3.

The larger text may make dialog boxes and forms unreadable if it causes text to wrap within its enclosing static text box.

The same applications run fine on earlier versions of Windows NT 4.0.

CAUSE

The font mapping algorithm was modified in Windows NT 4.0 Service Pack 3.

This improves font mapping in the majority of cases where an exact font match does not occur. However, a side effect of the new algorithm is that it may cause fonts for locales other than the operation system locale to be mapped to the Arial font.

For example, if an application requests the Hebrew Tahoma font, US English Windows NT Service Pack 3 font mapping chooses the US English Arial font, whereas earlier versions of Windows NT 4.0 would map the Hebrew Tahoma font to US English Tahoma font.

RESOLUTION

To work around this problem, use one of the following methods:

• Modify all affected text windows, using a version of the development tool that matches the locale of the target operating system (for example US English Access 97).

• Install the required fonts from the original development locale onto the target computer (for example Hebrew Tahoma fonts).

STATUS

Microsoft has confirmed this to be a problem in Windows NT version 4.0 Service Pack 3. We are researching this problem and will post new information here in the Microsoft Knowledge Base as it becomes available.