User Guide

Glyph Window
325
Links
Stem hints are not connected to the outline - they exist in a different layer.
This allows you to use hints as pairs of guidelines while you work on an
outline. But if you change the outline after hints are set you have to set all
the hints again to reflect the outline changes. Another kind of stem hint,
called a link, may help in this case.
Links connect two outline nodes, using the position of the nodes and the
distance between them, to define a stem hint. If you move one of the nodes
connected by a link the link will automatically reflect the changes. Links
can also be either vertical or horizontal:
Horizontal link
Vertical links
Links are extremely useful when you are working with Multiple Master
fonts. In these fonts each point has several “layers”, called masters, which
represent different styles of the font. If you try to set hints in Multiple
Master fonts, you will have to manually define the hints’ positions in each
master. But with links you can just connect two outline nodes and hints
will be generated automatically for each master when you export your font.
Refer to the “Multiple Master Fonts” chapter for more information about
links.