gcf@actnyc.UUCP (Gordon Fitch) (05/06/88)
A few weeks ago I posted an inquiry about font outlines which contained information about how to change them to adjust for size. I get the following, without permission of course, from "Computer Graphics World,"* a trade magazine: To preserve the design and readability of typefaces, several vendors are now offering intelligent outlines. Intelligent outlines provide more information about character shapes and relationships. This additional information, sometimes called hints or optimization rules, mimics hand tuning. OEMs and users can purchase intelligent outlines typefaces from a variety of sources in several different formats. Font Technologies (Wilmington, MA), a division of Compu- graphic, now markets Intellifont intelligent outlines and processing technology as OEM products. ....Compugraphic expects to market this product to OEMs (in object code) and to end users. Intellifont OEMs mentioned are HP, Archetype Inc. (Boston), Hampstead Computer Graphics (East Hampstead, NH), Laser Friendly (San Jose, CA), and G.O. Graphics (Burlington, MA). Similar products are said to be produced by: Bitstream (Fontware) URW (Nimbus) Flamingo Graphics (?) Adobe [via Linotype]. Generally these products seem to be for sale only to OEMs. * Computer Graphics World 119 Russell St. POB 1112 Littleton, MA 01460 (617) 486-9501
UH2@PSUVM.BITNET (Lee Sailer) (05/07/88)
In article <868@actnyc.UUCP>, gcf@actnyc.UUCP (Gordon Fitch) says: > >A few weeks ago I posted an inquiry about font outlines >which contained information about how to change them to >adjust for size. I get the following, without permission >Intellifont OEMs mentioned are HP, Archetype Inc. (Boston), stuff deleted... >Hampstead Computer Graphics (East Hampstead, NH), Laser >Friendly (San Jose, CA), and G.O. Graphics (Burlington, MA). > >Similar products are said to be produced by: > > Bitstream (Fontware) > URW (Nimbus) > Flamingo Graphics (?) > Adobe [via Linotype]. > >Generally these products seem to be for sale only to OEMs. > >* Computer Graphics World > 119 Russell St. POB 1112 > Littleton, MA 01460 > (617) 486-9501 I seems to me that it would be fair to say that METAFONT produces ``intelligent'' fonts. Can't you take an existing font and make it a little fatter, or skinnier, or change the aspect ratio slightly, and so on and thus make it look better (or worse, probably, if I did it) at a new size? MetatFont is part of the Public Domain TeX distribution, and runs on every computer ever built in the entire galaxy, including IBM mainframes.
henry@utzoo.uucp (Henry Spencer) (05/11/88)
> MetatFont is part of the Public Domain TeX distribution, and runs on every > computer ever built in the entire galaxy, including IBM mainframes. Well, no, not every computer. The computer needs to have a large address space, plenty of memory, and a tolerant Pascal compiler. Otherwise, okay. -- NASA is to spaceflight as | Henry Spencer @ U of Toronto Zoology the Post Office is to mail. | {ihnp4,decvax,uunet!mnetor}!utzoo!henry
richard@gryphon.CTS.COM (Richard Sexton) (05/12/88)
In article <868@actnyc.UUCP> gcf@actnyc.UUCP (Gordon Fitch) writes: >A few weeks ago I posted an inquiry about font outlines >which contained information about how to change them to >adjust for size. I get the following, without permission >of course, from "Computer Graphics World,"* a trade magazine: > > To preserve the design and readability of typefaces, several > vendors are now offering intelligent outlines. Intelligent > outlines provide more information about character shapes and > relationships. This additional information, sometimes called > hints or optimization rules, mimics hand tuning. > > OEMs and users can purchase intelligent outlines typefaces > from a variety of sources in several different formats. > Font Technologies (Wilmington, MA), a division of Compu- > graphic, now markets Intellifont intelligent outlines and > processing technology as OEM products. > > ....Compugraphic expects to market this product to OEMs > (in object code) and to end users. > >Intellifont OEMs mentioned are HP, Archetype Inc. (Boston), >Hampstead Computer Graphics (East Hampstead, NH), Laser >Friendly (San Jose, CA), and G.O. Graphics (Burlington, MA). > I just got a blurb in the mail about Compugraphic's Intellifont. It seems to be a PC programme that takes an outline and rasterizes it into a bitmap and downloads it to your HP LazyJet. They have 100 outlines out of their 1700 font library. Is it just me or is HP building PostScript piece by piece ? Is it that if they slap postscipt on their laser, they no longer have a unique product ? It's now an expensive laser like all the other ones, with nothing to recomend it ? I guess having 100 new fonts is nice, and HP users can finally scale fonts to an arbitrary size, but they still can't do things like render text on an arbitrary path, or bend them over cubes. I guess you get what you pay for. -- noalias went. it really wasn't negotiable richard@gryphon.CTS.COM rutgers!marque!gryphon!richard