looking forward to trying FreeFlight to see if it collects fonts used in Illustrator files that have been placed in InDesign

Hi pixiesmith, FreeFlight is not a collect for output utility it's a graphics file inspector for identifying bad color space of placed image files. To collect for output you need to use quarkxpress or adobe indesign, they both have collect for output capability.
If I am working with Adobe Illustrator and wish to collect my fonts all I do is save as EPS with all fonts embedded. Then when I transport or hand off that file it will carry all its fons along with it and is still completely editable.
I don't even think FreeFlight considers .ai files as a image file. AI is an application design file and should not be used as a placed graphic IMO. I work in Adobe Illustrator allot and never save my files as .ai because they are not suitable for a handoff or a placement into a layout application. If you ask prepress folks they will all recommend saving as eps with all fonts embedded no matter what your workflow or process. Then there's no need to collect the fonts, the file carries them.
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when you save as .eps with fonts embedded, InDesign does not copy and package the fonts used in the illustrator file.

If you save as an .eps without fonts embedded, InDesign WILL package the fonts used

Either way, unless you have the font installed you CANNOT edit the illustrator file (it will prompt you for the missing font), although the file will printed correctly from the Indesign file with the illustrator .eps file (with foonts embedded) placed into it.

OK, yes i see your point now. That's a hole in Adobe InDesign collect for output functionality indeed. The FreeFlight stand alone freeware application will not do this. However i think that the FreeFlight Plug-In does address this but I haven't tested it. With PDF-X-Robot i got an Adobe InDesign Plug-In called FreeFlight PlugIn. There's another piece called FreeFlight XT that comes for installing to Quark Xpress. These pieces address this stuff from inside Adobe InDesign and Quark Xpress and they use FreeFlight the freeware stand alone application to do some file inspection duties. The way I am using it with Robot, they all work together in preflight process and it's more comprehensive process. It's a complete preflight that runs automatically everytime you make PDF output with robot. Hopefully JP who develops this stuff will chime in and confirm that it addresses the collect issues you are bringing up.

FlightCheck may work for this in it's most current version but it costs like $400 or so. But everytime Adobe or Quark release you get to pay again. We used to use it here till the FreeFlight came out in an update to our PDF-X-Robot software and we began to use FreeFlight. Markzwares FlightCheck worked good for us but was slow and expensive by comparison.
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