OpenType fonts were created by Adobe's collaboration with Microsoft and presented in 1996. However they were released in the market after 2000, when this technology was supported by the new programs.
Like TrueType, OpenType fonts consist of a single file, and contain either PostScript Type 1 (OpenType-CFF), or TrueType information (OpenType-TTF). OpenType technology is compatible with Unicode system, and therefore may contain over 65,000 characters and supports multiple, different languages, like TrueType technology.
But what distinguishes the OpenType Pro fonts from TrueType is the addition of many typographic elements, known as features and integrated all in one file. These features may be the lining, old style or tabular figures, small caps, superscripts/subscripts, combinations of characters - ligatures, alternates, etc.
In fact, this technology allows designers to create composite fonts - although simple OpenType do not contain any of these features and are actually a simple conversion of old Postscript fonts.
Many of the fonts in this site contain in their new OpenType versions some of these features, and several of them are available in special editions Pro. The latter, in addition to the many special features available, supports more than 50 different languages. The advantages of OpenType fonts are only possible with programs that support this particular technology. Today, the latest versions of Adobe (Illustrator CS+, InDesign CS+, Photoshop CS+) support the OpenType features, while the same is true for newer versions of QuarkXPress (7+) and MS Office.
The OpenType files are cross-platform and operate in both Windows (2000 onwards) and Mac OS X environment.