[comp.sys.mac.hypercard] HC 2.0 & TrueType: SLOW?

tisu@quads.uchicago.edu (Seth Tisue) (05/20/91)

I recently installed TrueType on my SE/30, and set about changing many of the
fonts in my HyperCard stacks to TT fonts in preparation for System 7.
However, I've found that this slows screen updating in HyperCard to a complete
crawl; a stack that once could show 3-4 cards per second, now takes 3-4
seconds per card to traverse.  (Each card had some 36 pt Courier, some 24
pt Helvetica, some 14 pt Helvetica Bold, and some 14 pt Times.)

What I am wondering is, can this slowdown by eliminated by giving HC a larger
memory partition, or by having more free Multifinder memory?  I have only have
2MB RAM, so I can't test this out by myself (no room).

My other question about TrueType is, is it possible to use the TrueType version
of a font simultaneously with some of its bitmaps?  i.e., can one install
the Times TT font, and then install a 14 point Times bitmap, so whenever
you need that font in that size, you can bypass TrueType for extra speed?  If
so, how careful to you need to be about font ID's and so forth -- does it
just work, or does it take some tinkering with?

-- 
---- Seth Tisue                     USMail: c/o Plaster Cramp Press  
---- (tisu@midway.uchicago.edu)                       P.O. Box 5975
"Please to be restful.  It is only a few           Chicago IL 60680
crazies who have from the crazy place outbroken."    --------------

billing@ccu.umanitoba.ca (Wayne Billing) (05/20/91)

In <1991May19.202407.10132@midway.uchicago.edu> tisu@quads.uchicago.edu (Seth Tisue) writes:

>I recently installed TrueType on my SE/30, and set about changing many of the
>fonts in my HyperCard stacks to TT fonts in preparation for System 7.
>However, I've found that this slows screen updating in HyperCard to a complete
>crawl; a stack that once could show 3-4 cards per second, now takes 3-4
>seconds per card to traverse.  (Each card had some 36 pt Courier, some 24
>pt Helvetica, some 14 pt Helvetica Bold, and some 14 pt Times.)

(some deleted)
>-- 
>---- Seth Tisue                     USMail: c/o Plaster Cramp Press  
>---- (tisu@midway.uchicago.edu)                       P.O. Box 5975
>"Please to be restful.  It is only a few           Chicago IL 60680
>crazies who have from the crazy place outbroken."    --------------

I too am running HC on an SE/30 but I went straight to full System7 and I
haven't noticed any change in screen speed. Just a guess but what you are
seeing may be a side-effect of TrueType under System6.(?!!?)

Just thought I'd let you know. Hope it helps.
Wayne
billing@ccm.UManitoba.CA

-- 
This is a test
#################
#######

rmh@apple.com (Rick Holzgrafe) (05/21/91)

In article <1991May19.202407.10132@midway.uchicago.edu> 
tisu@quads.uchicago.edu (Seth Tisue) writes:
> Each card had some 36 pt Courier, some 24
> pt Helvetica, some 14 pt Helvetica Bold, and some 14 pt Times.

Hm - I'm no expert, but I'm not too surprised if it slowed down a bit 
under TrueType. To display TT fonts, the system must interpret ("render") 
the TT to create a proper-size bitmap font, which it holds in temporary 
memory (the "cache"). Once rendered, so long as that bitmap stays in the 
cache, further printing in that font, size, and style should be quick. But 
bigger point sizes take up more room in the cache. And each of your cards 
has four different fonts, two in large sizes; I bet the cache simply can't 
hold it all, and the bitmaps therefore can't be remembered from one card 
to the next. So on each card, the bitmaps are being rendered all over 
again!

And before you ask - I have no idea how to increase the font cache size, 
if that's even possible. (Anybody out there know?)

> is it possible to use the TrueType version
> of a font simultaneously with some of its bitmaps?  i.e., can one install
> the Times TT font, and then install a 14 point Times bitmap, so whenever
> you need that font in that size, you can bypass TrueType for extra 
speed?  If
> so, how careful to you need to be about font ID's and so forth -- does it
> just work, or does it take some tinkering with?

Yes, you can, and yes, it just works. :-)

The System will use the correct-size bitmap font if it is available; else 
it will use a TrueType font appropriately scaled.

Hope this helps.

==========================================================================
Rick Holzgrafe              |    {sun,voder,nsc,mtxinu,dual}!apple!rmh
Software Engineer           | AppleLink HOLZGRAFE1          rmh@apple.com
Apple Computer, Inc.        |  "All opinions expressed are mine, and do
20525 Mariani Ave. MS: 3-PK |    not necessarily represent those of my
Cupertino, CA 95014         |        employer, Apple Computer Inc."

tisu@quads.uchicago.edu (Seth Tisue) (05/21/91)

In article <1991May20.050608.22849@ccu.umanitoba.ca> billing@ccu.umanitoba.ca (Wayne Billing) writes:

>I too am running HC on an SE/30 but I went straight to full System7 and I
>haven't noticed any change in screen speed. Just a guess but what you are
>seeing may be a side-effect of TrueType under System6.(?!!?)

As it turns out, the slowness was due to a combination of things... the main
problem was that I didn't have the bitmap fonts installed for the TrueType
fonts (I didn't know you could have both at once), so TT was wasting time
rendering small type sizes.  Also, having free Multifinder memory helps a lot;
since I recently got System 7, I'm able to do this using virtual memory.
-- 
---- Seth Tisue                     USMail: c/o Plaster Cramp Press  
---- (tisu@midway.uchicago.edu)                       P.O. Box 5975
"Please to be restful.  It is only a few           Chicago IL 60680
crazies who have from the crazy place outbroken."    --------------