updated documentation
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<html>
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<head>
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<title>FreeType 2 Introduction</title>
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<basefont face="Georgia, Arial, Helvetica, Geneva">
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<style content="text/css">
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P { text-align=justify }
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H1 { text-align=center }
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H2 { text-align=center }
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LI { text-align=justify }
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</style>
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</head>
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<body text="#000000"
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bgcolor="#FFFFFF"
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link="#0000EF"
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vlink="#51188E"
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alink="#FF0000">
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<font size=1>http://www.freetype.org</font><p>
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<center>
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<a href="freetype.html">
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<img src="image/freetype.jpg" width=550 height=105 alt="The FreeType Project" border=0></a>
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<h1>An Introduction to FreeType 2</h1>
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</center>
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<center><table width=750 cellspacing=10 cellpadding=30><tr><td>
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<hr><p>
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DOCUMENT INDEX:<br>
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<ul>
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<li><a href="#what">What is FreeType 2 ?</a>
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<li><a href="#features">Features</a>
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<li><a href="#requirements">Requirements</a>
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<li><a href="#patents">Patents issues</a>
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</ul><p>
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<hr><p>
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<table width="100%" cellspacing=5><tr bgcolor="#CCCCEE"><td>
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<h2 align=center><a name="what">What is FreeType 2 ?</h2>
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</td></tr><tr><td>
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<p>The FreeType project is a team of volunteers who develop free, portable
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and high-quality software solutions for digital typography. We specifically
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target embedded systems and focus on bringing small, efficient and
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ubiquitous products.</p>
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<p>the FreeType 2 library is our new software font engine. It has been
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designed to provide the following important features:</p>
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<ul>
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<li><p>
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<b>A universal and simple API to manage font files:</b><br>
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<ul>
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<p>The FreeType 2 API is simple and easy to use. It supports both
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bitmapped and scalable fonts and is well-suited to manage font
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files of all formats. Unlike other font libraries, FreeType 2
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returns and manages outline font data (images & metrics).</p>
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</ul>
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</p></li>
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<li><p>
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<b>Support for several font formats through loadable modules:</b><br>
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<ul>
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<p>FreeType 2 uses <em>"font drivers"</em>. Each driver is a loadable
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module used to support one specific font format. Each driver can also
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provide specific extensions used to access format-specific features of
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the font.</p>
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</ul>
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</p></li>
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<li><p>
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<b>High-quality anti-aliasing:</b><br>
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<ul>
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<p>FreeType 2 produces etremely smooth outlines at small sizes, with its new
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anti-aliasing renderer, which produces bitmaps with 256-levels of gray.
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It uses a new algorithm that has been specifically designed to render
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small complex shapes (like glyphs) at high speed. Indeed, it's even
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faster than the monochrome renderer for small character sizes (under
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20 pixels) !!
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</p>
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</ul>
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<li><b>High portability & performance:</b><br>
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<ul>
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<p>The FreeType 2 source code is written in ANSI C and runs on any
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platform with a compliant compiler. Client applications can
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provide their own memory manager or input stream to the library
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(which means that font files can come from any place: disk,
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memory, compressed file, network, etc..).
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</p>
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</ul>
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</ul>
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<p>Note that <em>the beta of FreeType 2 is available <b>now</b></em>. For more
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info, check our <a href="download.html">Download page</a> or see the source
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and its diffs through our <a href="cgi-bin/cvsweb.cgi">CVS Web interface</a>.
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</p>
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</ul>
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</td></tr></table>
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<table width="100%" cellspacing=5><tr bgcolor="#CCCCEE"><td>
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<h2 align=center><a name="features">Features</h2>
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</td></tr><tr><td>
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<h3>Supported font formats</h3>
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<p>FreeType 2 readily supports the following font formats:</p>
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<ul>
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<li>TrueType files (.ttf) and collections (.ttc)</li>
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<li>Type 1 font files both in ASCII (.pfa) or binary (.pfb) format</li>
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<li>Type 1 Multiple Master fonts. The FreeType 2 API also provides
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routines to manage design instances easily</li>
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<li>Type 1 CID-keyed fonts</li>
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<li>OpenType/CFF (.otf) fonts</li>
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<li>CFF/Type 2 fonts</li>
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<li>Adobe CEF fonts (.cef), used to embed fonts in SVG documents
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with the Adobe SVG viewer plugin.</li>
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<li>Windows FNT/FON bitmap fonts</li>
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</ul>
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<p>Note that Apple's TrueType GX fonts are supported as normal TTFs,
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(the advanced tables are ignored).</p>
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<p>Besides, it's possible to add support for new font formats by providing
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a specific <em>font driver</em> module. Modules can be added either at
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build time (when recompiling the library), or at <em>run-time</em>;
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this allows, for example, applications to register their own
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font driver to support program-specific formats.</p>
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<h3>Patent-free automatic hinter</h3>
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<p>TrueType fonts are normally renderered (hinted) with the help of a
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specific bytecode where the behaviour of a few opcodes is patented by
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Apple. We're currently in contact with Apple to discuss the importance
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of such patents and their use in open source projects like FreeType.
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</p>
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<p>In the meantime, we have developped our own alternative technology that
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is capable of automatically hinting scalable glyph images. It is
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now part of the FreeType 2 source tree as the "autohint" module,
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and is used to hint glyphs when the bytecode interpreter is disabled
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(through a configuration macro when building the engine). Note that
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the auto-hinter is also used to handle glyphs in other formats like
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CFF and Type 1.</p>
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<p>The auto-hinter provides pretty good results (in some cases, it even
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significantly improves the output of poorly hinted fonts) but we'll
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continue to improve it with each new release of FreeType to achieve
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the highest possible quality.</p>
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<h3>Modular design:</h3>
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<p>The design of FreeType 2 is extremely modular as most features are
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supported through optional modules. This means it's easily possible to
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only compile the features you need. As each module is between
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10 and 20 Kb in size, it's possible to build a bare-bones
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font engine that supports anti-aliasing in about 30 Kb !!</p>
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<p>Configuration is performed by modifications of only two header
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files (one to select global features, another one to select modules)
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and don't need tweaking of source code. Note that it is however
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possible to provide your own implementation of certain components.</p>
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<p>For example, when building on Unix, the engine will automatically
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use memory-mapped files when available on the target platform,
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thus significantly increasing font file i/o.</p>
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<p>Due to its very flexible design, it is possible to add, remove and
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upgrade modules at run-time.</p>
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<h3>Advanced glyph management</h3>
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<p>The API comes with a standard extension used to extract individual
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glyph images from font files. These images can be bitmaps, scalable
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bezier outlines or even anything else. (e.g. bi-color or metafont
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glyphs, as long as they're supported by a module).</p>
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<p>Each scalable glyph image can be transformed, measured and
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rendered into a monochrome or anti-aliased bitmaps easily
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through a uniform interface.
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This allows client applications to easily cache glyphs or
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perform text rendering effects with minimal difficulty
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(look at the FreeType 2 Tutorial to see how to render
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rotated text with very few lines of code).
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</p>
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<h3>Advanced font access</h3>
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<p>The FreeType 2 API is useful to retrieve advanced information from
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various fonts:</p>
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<ul>
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<li>vertical metrics are available whenever found in the font file</li>
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<li>kerning distances are available when found in the font file. It
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is also possible to "attach" a given additional file to a given
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font face. This is useful to load kerning distances from an
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.afm file into a Type 1 face for example.</li>
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<li>provides ASCII glyph names whenever available in the font
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(TrueType, OpenType, Type1, etc..)</li>
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<li>provides access to important tables for SFNT-based font formats
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(i.e. TrueType, OpenType, CEF, etc..), like the name table,
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font header, maximum profile, etc...</li>
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<li>automatic synthesis of Unicode-based character maps for
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those fonts or formats that do not provide one. This is
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extremely useful with Type 1 fonts which are normally
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limited to a stupid 256-characters encoding.</li>
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</ul>
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<h3>Simple & clean API</h3>
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<p>The FreeType 2 high-level API is simple and straightforward, as it
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has been specifically designed to make the most commmon font operations
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easy</p>
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<p>As a comparison, the number of function calls needed to perform a
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the tasks of font face creation/opening and glyph loading/rendering
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has been reduced by a factor of 4 !!</p>
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<p>The API is also independent of any font-format specific issue, though
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it provides standard extensions to access format-specific tables and
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information. More extensions can also be easily added through new
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modules</p>
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<h3>Robust & Portable code</h3>
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<p>Because it is written in industry-standard ANSI C, FreeType 2 compiles
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on all platforms with a compliant compiler. Because the default build
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only relies on the C library, it is free of any system-specific
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dependencies, even if it is possible to "enhance" certain components
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by providing a specific implementation.</p>
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<p>The code doesn't use global or static variables. Client applications
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can provide their own memory manager. Font files can be read from
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a disk file, memory, or through a client-provided input stream. This
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allows to support compressed font files, remote fonts, fonts embedded
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in other streams (e.g. Type42 fonts), etc..</p>
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<p>An advanced i/o sub-system is used to optimise file access, as well
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as reduce memory usage of the library when the file is memory-based
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( ROM, RAM, memory-mapped ).</p>
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<h3>Open Source & Vendor Independence</h3>
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<p>Finally, FreeType 2 is released under its own BSD-like open source
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license, one of the less restricting licenses available, and this
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means that:</p>
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<ul>
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<li><p>
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It can be included in all kinds of products, be they proprietary
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or not.
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</p></li>
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<li><p>
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As any module can be added or replaced anytime, any third party
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vendor has the ability to provide its own set of modules (under
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its own license) in order to support proprietary font formats or
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more advanced features (e.g. a new auto-hinter, or a new
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anti-aliasing renderer for LCDs or TV screens).
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</p></li>
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</ul>
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<p>One could even imagine an application using the FreeType 2 API with
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a "wrapper" module used to access system-specific fonts (like through
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the Windows GDI). This would mean native font support with more portable
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application code (as simply changing the wrapper module would be required
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to port the application to another system).</p>
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</td></tr></table>
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<table width="100%" cellspacing=5><tr bgcolor="#CCCCEE"><td>
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<h2 align=center><a name="requirements">Requirements</h2>
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</td></tr><tr><td>
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<p>FreeType 2 is written in ANSI C and should compile with no problems
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on a great variety of platforms. We have taken care of removing all
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compilation warnings from major compliant compilers. Detailed compilation
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instructions are provided in the software archive.</p>
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<p>This version of the library has been succesfully compiled and run
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under the following systems: Dos, OS/2, Windows, Macintosh, Unix
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(including the 64-bits DEC Unix, a.k.a. "True64"). You should not
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encounter major problems compiling it on any other kind of platform.
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In all cases, contact us if you do.</p>
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<p>Note that a small set of demonstration programs is also separately
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available. They include a tiny graphics sub-system that is used to
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display and show-off the library's capabilities on the following
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platforms: X11, MacOS, OS/2 & Windows.</p>
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<p>Please visit our <a href="http://www.freetype.org/download.html">
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Download section</a> to access the software archives.</p>
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</ul>
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</td></tr></table>
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<table width="100%" cellspacing=5><tr bgcolor="#CCCCEE"><td>
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<h2 align=center><a name="patents">Patents issues</h2>
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</td></tr><tr><td>
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<p>The FreeType 2 source code includes a TrueType bytecode interpreter that
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is covered by the Apple patents. However, this piece of code is never
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compiled by default in this release (unlike in previous betas) making
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a default build of the library <em>entirely patent-free !!</em></p>
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<p>Note that in order to compile the interpreter, one needs to define
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the configuration macro <tt><b>TT_CONFIG_OPTION_BYTECODE_INTERPRETER</b></tt> configuration
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macro in the file "<tt>ftoption.h</tt>". More details are available in
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the software archive. Note that the use of the interpreter is normally
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protected by US, UK and French patents. In the event you'd absolutely
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need it, you may have to <a href="mailto:patents@apple.org">contact
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Apple legal department</a> for licensing conditions, depending on your
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location and the places you distribute/sell your products.</p>
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<p>Please do not ask us any detailed information regarding licensing, as
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we're still discussing with Apple this issue, we're unable to inform
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the public of what's currently going on..</p>
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</td></tr></table>
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<hr>
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<p>
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<a href="index.html">Back to FreeType homepage</a><p>
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</td></tr></table>
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</body>
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</html>
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<html>
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<head>
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<title>FreeType 2 FAQ</title>
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<basefont face="Georgia, Arial, Helvetica, Geneva">
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<style content="text/css">
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P { text-align=justify }
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H1 { text-align=center }
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H2 { text-align=center }
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LI { text-align=justify }
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</style>
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</head>
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<body text="#000000"
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bgcolor="#FFFFFF"
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link="#0000EF"
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vlink="#51188E"
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alink="#FF0000">
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<font size=1>http://www.freetype.org</font><p>
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<center>
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<a href="freetype.html">
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<img src="image/freetype.jpg" width=550 height=105 alt="The FreeType Project" border=0></a>
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<h1>The FreeType 2 FAQ</h1>
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</center>
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<center><table width=750 cellspacing=10 cellpadding=30><tr><td>
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<hr><p>
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DOCUMENT INDEX:<br>
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<ul>
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<li><p><a href="#general">General</a>
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<ul>
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<li><a href="#general-dead">I thought the FreeType project was dead. It this true?</a></li>
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<li><a href="#general-long">Why did it take so long to release FreeType 2?</a></li>
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<li><a href="#general-unix">Is FreeType 2 a Unix-only project?</a></li>
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<li><a href="#general-x11">When will X11 support anti-aliased glyphs?</a></li>
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<li><a href="#general-ft1">Is FreeType 2 backwards compatible with 1.x?</a></li>
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<li><a href="#general-edit">Can I use FreeType 2 to edit fonts or create new ones?</a></li>
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</ul></p>
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</li>
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<li><p><a href="#builds">Compilation & Configuration</a>
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<ul>
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<li><a href="#builds-compile">How do I compile the FreeType 2 library?</a></li>
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<li><a href="#builds-config">How do I configure my library build?</a></li>
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<li><a href="#builds-modules">How do I select the modules I need?</a></li>
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<li><a href="#builds-flat">How do I compile all FreeType 2 files in a single directory?</a></li>
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</ul>
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</p></li>
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<li><p><a href="#library">Using the FreeType 2 library</a></p></li>
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<li><p><a href="#autohint">The FreeType 2 Autohinter</a>
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<ul>
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<li><a href="#autohint-license">Under which license is the auto-hinter released ?</a></li>
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<li><a href="#autohint-work">How does auto-hinting work in FreeType 2 ?</a></li>
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<li><a href="#autohint-cjk">Why doesn't the auto-hinter work well with CJK fonts ?</a></li>
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</ul>
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</p></li>
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<li><p><a href="#other">Other questions</a>
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<ul>
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<li><a href="#other-antialias">What is the anti-aliasing algorithm used in the FreeType 2 renderer?</a></li>
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<li><a href="#other-opentype">When will FreeType 2 support OpenType ?</a></li>
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</ul></p>
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</li>
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</ul><p>
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<hr><p>
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<table width="100%" cellspacing=5><tr bgcolor="#CCCCEE"><td>
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<h2 align=center><a name="general">General questions & answers</h2>
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</td></tr><tr><td>
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<a name="general-dead">
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<h3>I.1. I though the FreeType project was dead. Is this true?</h3>
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<ul>
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<p>Well, not exactly :-) It's true that the TrueType patents issues
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have been less than a graceful event to handle but it didn't not
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really killed the project per se, as Apple hasn't made an official
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statement yet regarding the use of the patented "technology" in
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open source projects (or other products).</p>
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<p>We have thus continued updating FreeType 1.x, and started developping
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FreeType 2 with the idea of providing this time a completely patent
|
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free font engine. However, we largely preferred not to broadly
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communicate about it until we've got a satisfying implementation
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to show.</p>
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</ul>
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<a name="general-long">
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<h3>I.2. Why did it take so long to release FreeType 2?</h3>
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<ul>
|
||||
<p>Several factors come to mind. The first one is that FreeType 2 is
|
||||
a much more complex and dense project that was mostly developed
|
||||
on non-working hours. And surely some important changes in the
|
||||
life (like marriage, new jobs and kids) of some the FreeType
|
||||
developers cannot be ignored :-)</p>
|
||||
|
||||
<p>A second one is that a first version of the library was designed
|
||||
one year ago (and already worked with a multitude of font drivers),
|
||||
though with a design that was judged by its authors as well as
|
||||
beta testers as not enough flexible or consistent. In short, it worked
|
||||
well but we were not exactly proud of it (call us perfectionists).
|
||||
It has then be significantly reworked to become what we're now
|
||||
distributing as FreeType 2</p>
|
||||
|
||||
<p>Finally, it would have been hard to distribute such a library without
|
||||
an alternative technology to replace the patented bytecode interpreter.
|
||||
This involved significant research work that could only be performed
|
||||
correctly full-time, and we had to found a company to fund such a
|
||||
development and still make it available under a BSD-like license.
|
||||
Huge thanks to <a href="http://www.catharon.com">Catharon Productions, Inc.</a>
|
||||
for their commitment to this project.</p>
|
||||
|
||||
<p>And of course, we added support for more font files, and we'll
|
||||
continue to as long as the specs are available and that we find an
|
||||
interest in it. For example, FreeType 2 is to date the only
|
||||
software library available on the market that supports the new
|
||||
Adobe "CEF" font format.</p>
|
||||
</ul>
|
||||
|
||||
<a name="general-unix">
|
||||
<h3>I.3. Is FreeType 2 a Unix-only project?</h3>
|
||||
<ul>
|
||||
<p>Absolutely not, even though many people still seem to think so :-)
|
||||
FreeType 2, just like version 1.x, can be compiled on any platform with
|
||||
an ANSI compiler. Some beta versions of the library are even heavily
|
||||
used in brand new OSes (see the <a href="http://www.atheos.cx">AtheOS
|
||||
</a> screenshots for examples).</p>
|
||||
|
||||
<p>The library is itself mainly developped on several platforms
|
||||
(Windows & Linux, though a great deal has also been achieved on OS/2)
|
||||
and the code is highly generic and modular to adapt even the most
|
||||
strict environments like low-memory embedded systems.</p>
|
||||
|
||||
</ul>
|
||||
|
||||
<a name="general-x11">
|
||||
<h3>I.4. When will X11/XFree support anti-aliased text?</h3>
|
||||
<ul>
|
||||
<p>This question isn't exactly related to FreeType as we have no direct
|
||||
connection to the XFree people, but we've been asked so frequently
|
||||
about it that it deserves a prominent place in this FAQ :-)</p>
|
||||
|
||||
<p>FreeType has been capable of anti-aliasing since version 1.0. The
|
||||
reason why XFree doesn't support it is directly related to the
|
||||
limitations of the design and specification of X11. More specifically:</p>
|
||||
|
||||
<ul>
|
||||
<li><p>
|
||||
X11 assumes that all glyph images are monochrome bitmaps,
|
||||
hence the X font library and server are unable to send anything
|
||||
else to the X server.
|
||||
</p></li>
|
||||
|
||||
<li><p>
|
||||
Even if the X font library/server was able to generate anti-aliased
|
||||
bitmaps (and this has been already done through extensions), the X
|
||||
rendering model doesn't allow translucent composition of "gray" pixmaps
|
||||
onto an arbitrary drawable.
|
||||
</p></li>
|
||||
</ul>
|
||||
|
||||
<p>As both the font and rendering models of X11 are limited, it's basically
|
||||
impossible to draw anti-aliased glyphs without performing <em>huge</em>
|
||||
hacks within the server.</p>
|
||||
|
||||
<p>Note that Keith Packard, from XFree fame, has recently started working
|
||||
on a new rendering model for X11 in order to support new features
|
||||
(mainly transparency and anti-aliased fonts). This will be provided
|
||||
through protocol extensions. The question of knowing wether legacy X
|
||||
applications will be able to display anti-aliased text is still very
|
||||
uncertain.
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
</ul>
|
||||
|
||||
<a name="general-ft1">
|
||||
<h3>I.5. Is FreeType 2 backwards compatible with FreeType 1.x?</h3>
|
||||
<ul>
|
||||
<p>Not directly, though we had the project to provide an optional binary
|
||||
compatibility layer on top of it in order to easily re-link applications
|
||||
with the new version. However, this idea has been dropped as it is
|
||||
possible to install and use the two versions independtly on any
|
||||
system (read: no namespace conflicts).</p>
|
||||
|
||||
<p>The FreeType 2 API is a lot simpler than the one in 1.x while being
|
||||
much more powerful. We thus encourage you to adapt your source code
|
||||
to it as this should not involve much work.</p>
|
||||
|
||||
</ul>
|
||||
|
||||
<a name="general-edit">
|
||||
<h3>I.6. Can I use FreeType 2 to edit fonts or create new ones?</h3>
|
||||
<ul>
|
||||
<p>The answer is a definitive NO, because the library was specifically
|
||||
designed to <em>read</em> font files with small code size and very
|
||||
low memory usage.</p>
|
||||
|
||||
<p>We thus do not plan to support editing or creation in the font
|
||||
engine in any way, as this would imply a complete rewrite. This
|
||||
doesn't mean that we won't introduce a font editing/creation library
|
||||
in the future, as this really depends on how many people are asking
|
||||
for it (or how much they would be willing to pay for it), as well as
|
||||
the time of the FreeType developers.</p>
|
||||
|
||||
<p>Do not expect anything in this direction until we officially announce
|
||||
something though. There are other axis of development for this project
|
||||
(like text-layout capabilities, glyph caching, etc..) that may be more
|
||||
important to us at the moment..</p>
|
||||
</ul>
|
||||
|
||||
</td></tr></table>
|
||||
|
||||
<table width="100%" cellspacing=5><tr bgcolor="#CCCCEE"><td>
|
||||
<h2 align=center><a name="builds">Compilation & Configuration</h2>
|
||||
</td></tr><tr><td>
|
||||
|
||||
<a name="builds-compile">
|
||||
<h3>II.1. How do I compile the FreeType 2 library?</h3>
|
||||
<ul>
|
||||
<p>The library can be compiled in various ways, and a detailed documentation
|
||||
is available in the file "<tt>freetype2/docs/BUILD</tt>". However, we'll
|
||||
summarize the process to a few cases:</p>
|
||||
|
||||
<h3>a. by using the command-line 2 build system</h3>
|
||||
|
||||
<p>The engine comes with a sophisticated build system that is used
|
||||
to configure and compile a build of the library. You'll need
|
||||
<em>GNU Make</em> installed on your platform (NOTE: It will <b>not</b>
|
||||
work with other Make tools).</p>
|
||||
|
||||
<p>Basically, you'll need to invoke <tt>make</tt> a first time in the
|
||||
top-level FreeType 2 directory in order to setup the build. This will
|
||||
detect your current platform and choose a configuration sub-makefile to
|
||||
drive the build. A specific compiler can be selected on some platforms
|
||||
by providing an additional target. For example, on Win32:</p>
|
||||
|
||||
<ul>
|
||||
<li><b><tt>make visualc</tt></b> will select the Visual C++ compiler</li>
|
||||
<li><b><tt>make lcc</tt></b> will select the Win32-lcc compiler</li>
|
||||
</ul>
|
||||
|
||||
<p>Note that on Unix, the first time make is called, a configure script
|
||||
located in "<tt>freetype2/builds/unix</tt>" will be run in order to
|
||||
automatically detect the platform & compiler.</p>
|
||||
|
||||
<p>A summary will be displayed showing the detected platform and compiler
|
||||
selected. You'll then be able to start the build by invoking <tt>make</tt>
|
||||
a second time. In case of problem, consult the <tt>BUILD</tt> document.</p>
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
<h3>b. by direct compilation</h3>
|
||||
|
||||
<p>You can also directly compile the library from the command line by
|
||||
using these simple rules:</p>
|
||||
|
||||
<ul>
|
||||
<li><p>
|
||||
You should place the directories "<tt>freetype2/include</tt>" and
|
||||
"<tt>freetype2/src</tt>" in your include path in order to compile
|
||||
any component of the library. You can also add the system-specific
|
||||
build directory (i.e. "<tt>builds/<em>system</em>/</tt>") in the
|
||||
case where an alternate implementation of some of the components
|
||||
is available there (e.g. the memory-mapped i/o implementation
|
||||
on some Unix systems).
|
||||
</p></li>
|
||||
|
||||
<li><p>
|
||||
The components of the library are located in sub-directories of
|
||||
"<tt>src</tt>", for example: "<tt>src/base</tt>",
|
||||
"<tt>src/truetype</tt>", etc..
|
||||
</p></li>
|
||||
|
||||
<li><p>
|
||||
Each component is normally compiled through a single C file that
|
||||
"wraps" other sources in the component's directory. For example,
|
||||
your should compile the TrueType font driver by compiling the
|
||||
file "<tt>src/truetype/truetype.c</tt>". The list of C files to
|
||||
compile for a feature-complete build of the library is given in
|
||||
the <tt>BUILD</tt> document.
|
||||
</p></li>
|
||||
</ul>
|
||||
|
||||
<h3>c. in a graphical IDE</h3>
|
||||
<ul>
|
||||
<p>Well, the process is vastly similar to the one described in b.,
|
||||
except that you need to set the include paths, source code paths,
|
||||
etc.. in dialog boxes before running the compilation.
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
</ul>
|
||||
|
||||
</ul>
|
||||
|
||||
<a name="builds-config">
|
||||
<h3>II.2. How do I configure my build of the library?</h3>
|
||||
<ul>
|
||||
<p>Each build of the library is configured through two header files
|
||||
located in "<tt>include/freetype/config</tt>":</p>
|
||||
|
||||
<ul>
|
||||
<li><p><b><tt>ftoption.h</tt></b><br>
|
||||
This file contains various configuration macros whose definition
|
||||
can be toggled on a per-build basis. Each macro is heavily
|
||||
commented in this file's comment, and we invite you to refer
|
||||
to it directly.</p></li>
|
||||
|
||||
<li><p><b><tt>ftmodule.h</tt></b><br>
|
||||
This file contains the list of all the modules that are initially
|
||||
registered (added) when the function <b><tt>FT_Init_FreeType</tt></b>
|
||||
is called. See the next answer to know how to change it and
|
||||
why it may be important.</p></li>
|
||||
</ul>
|
||||
|
||||
<p>Alternatively, some specific implementations of some FT2 components
|
||||
can be provided in a "<tt>builds/<em>system</em>/</tt>" directory
|
||||
(e.g. the Unix-specific <tt>ftsystem.c</tt> that uses memory-mapped
|
||||
file for i/o).</p>
|
||||
</ul>
|
||||
|
||||
<a name="builds-modules">
|
||||
<h3>II.3. How do I select the modules I need in my build?</h3>
|
||||
<ul>
|
||||
<p>The function <tt><b>FT_Init_FreeType</b></tt> creates a new instance
|
||||
of the FT2 library and registers a set of "default" modules before
|
||||
returning to the calling application. Its default implementation
|
||||
is in the file "<tt>src/base/ftinit.c</tt>".</p>
|
||||
|
||||
<p>The list of default modules used by <tt>ftinit.c</tt> is located in
|
||||
the configuration file "<tt>include/freetype/config/ftmodule.h</tt>".
|
||||
It is normally automatically generated by the build system by
|
||||
invoking the "<tt><b>make modules</b></tt>" command in the top
|
||||
level FT2 directory (note: only works with GNU Make, you can
|
||||
edit the file by hand otherwise). It does so by parsing all
|
||||
sub-directories of "<tt>src</tt>" that contain a file named
|
||||
<tt>module.mk</tt>.</p>
|
||||
|
||||
<p>Note that a specific port or project is free to provide its own
|
||||
implementation of <tt>ftinit.c</tt> in order to ensure a different
|
||||
initialisation sequence. For example, one could do something like:</p>
|
||||
|
||||
<ul>
|
||||
<li><p>compile each module as a shared library (DLL or .so) with
|
||||
a common "entry point" to retrieve a pointer to its
|
||||
module class (there is already some code that allows this
|
||||
when compiling each module).</p></li>
|
||||
|
||||
<li><p>place these modules in a directory like
|
||||
"<tt>/usr/lib/freetype2/modules/</tt>"</p></li>
|
||||
|
||||
<li><p>provide an implementation of <tt>ftinit.c</tt> that would
|
||||
scan the directory for valid modules.</p></li>
|
||||
</ul>
|
||||
|
||||
<p>This example only emphasize the flexibility that is left to
|
||||
developers when building the library.</p>
|
||||
|
||||
</ul>
|
||||
|
||||
<a name="builds-flat">
|
||||
<h3>II.4. How do I compile all FreeType 2 files in a single directory?</h3>
|
||||
<ul>
|
||||
<p>Some projects may need, for the sake of simplicity or ease of
|
||||
building, to compile the FT2 library with all source files
|
||||
copied to a single directory. This is possible.</p>
|
||||
|
||||
<p>To do so, you'll need to copy all source files located under
|
||||
"<tt>src</tt>" to your own directory (you must retain the
|
||||
include files in a distinct hierarchy though), then compile
|
||||
each of the FreeType 2 component with the macro
|
||||
<tt><b>FT_FLAT_COMPILE</b></tt>. This will change the way
|
||||
<tt><b>#include</b></tt> works during the build.</p>
|
||||
</ul>
|
||||
|
||||
</td></tr></table>
|
||||
|
||||
<table width="100%" cellspacing=5><tr bgcolor="#CCCCEE"><td>
|
||||
<h2 align=center><a name="library">Using the FreeType 2 library</h2>
|
||||
</td></tr><tr><td>
|
||||
|
||||
</td></tr></table>
|
||||
|
||||
<table width="100%" cellspacing=5><tr bgcolor="#CCCCEE"><td>
|
||||
<h2 align=center><a name="autohint">The FreeType 2 auto-hinter</h2>
|
||||
</td></tr><tr><td>
|
||||
|
||||
<a name="autohint-license">
|
||||
<h3>IV.1. Under which license is the FreeType 2 auto-hinter released</h3>
|
||||
<ul>
|
||||
<p>The auto-hinter was initially designed and implemented under contract
|
||||
for <a href="http://www.catharon.com">Catharon Productions, Inc</a>
|
||||
which gladly accepted to released it under an open-source license
|
||||
compatible with the FreeType one.</p>
|
||||
|
||||
<p>This license can be found in "<tt>src/autohint/CatharonLicense.txt</tt>"
|
||||
and requires that you cite Catharon Productions in your documentation
|
||||
(just like you do with FreeType) when using the auto-hinting module.</p>
|
||||
|
||||
<p>Other than that, you still have the same freedom than with the good old
|
||||
FreeType license. Enjoy !</p>
|
||||
</ul>
|
||||
|
||||
<a name="autohint-work">
|
||||
<h3>IV.2. How does the auto-hinter works ?</h3>
|
||||
<ul>
|
||||
<p>Well, a complete description would be difficult. Have a look at the
|
||||
dedicated <a href="autohinting/index.html">auto-hinter pages</a> on the FreeType
|
||||
site, as they describe most of its details with graphics and explanations.
|
||||
You could also look at the source code if you want to :-)</p>
|
||||
|
||||
<p>To give a few details, the auto-hinter is used to perform grid-fitting
|
||||
on scalable font formats that use bezier outlines as their primary glyph
|
||||
image format (this means nearly all scalable font formats today). When
|
||||
a given font driver doesn't provide its own hinter, the auto-hinter is
|
||||
used by default. When a format-specific hinter is provided, it is still
|
||||
possible to use the auto-hinter using the
|
||||
<tt><b>FT_LOAD_FORCE_AUTOHINT</b></tt> bit flag when calling
|
||||
<tt>FT_Load_Glyph</tt>.</p>
|
||||
|
||||
<p>The auto-hinter currently doesn't use external hints to do its job,
|
||||
as it automatically computes global metrics (when it "opens" a font
|
||||
for the first time) and glyph "hints" from their outline. Note that
|
||||
we plan the ability to specify external hints, given that it is based
|
||||
on a constraint system. That could be used to support native hints
|
||||
in Type 1/Type 2 fonts, for example.</p>
|
||||
</ul>
|
||||
|
||||
<a name="autohint-cjk">
|
||||
<h3>IV.3. Why does the auto-hinter doesn't work correctly with CJK fonts ?</h3>
|
||||
<ul>
|
||||
<p>The auto-hinter was first designed to manage and hint latin-based fonts,
|
||||
as they consist of most of the fonts available today. It doesn't hint
|
||||
asian fonts, as well as a few other complex scripts, because we didn't
|
||||
put enough research on the topic yet. Hinting CJK isn't really more
|
||||
difficult than latin, just different with a set of different constraints
|
||||
(basically, more distortion of glyphs is acceptable as long as certain
|
||||
features like triple-stem positions are respected more strictly..).</p>
|
||||
|
||||
<p>We thus plan to handle such a case rather rapidly.. Please be patient.</p>
|
||||
</ul>
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
</td></tr></table>
|
||||
|
||||
<table width="100%" cellspacing=5><tr bgcolor="#CCCCEE"><td>
|
||||
<h2 align=center><a name="other">Other questions</h2>
|
||||
</td></tr><tr><td>
|
||||
|
||||
<a name="other-antialias">
|
||||
<h3>V.1. What is the anti-aliasing algorithm used by FreeType 2 ?</h3>
|
||||
<ul>
|
||||
<p>The algorithm has been specifically designed for FreeType. It is
|
||||
based on ideas that were originally found in the implementation
|
||||
of the <a href="http://www.levien.com/libart">libArt</a> graphics
|
||||
library to compute the <em>exact pixel coverage</em> of a vector
|
||||
image with absolutely now sub-sampling/filtering.
|
||||
</p>
|
||||
|
||||
<p>However, these two implementations are radically distinct and use
|
||||
vastly different models. The FreeType 2 renderer is optimized
|
||||
specifically for rendering small complex shapes, like glyphs, at
|
||||
very high speed while using very few memory; while libArt shines
|
||||
at general shape/polygon processing, especially large ones.</p>
|
||||
|
||||
<p>The FT2 anti-aliasing renderer is indeed <em>faster</em> than the
|
||||
monochrome renderer for small character sizes (typically < 20 pixels).
|
||||
This is explained because the monochrome renderer must perform two
|
||||
passes on the outline in order to perform drop-out control according
|
||||
to the TrueType spec (we could drop this requirement later though).</p>
|
||||
|
||||
<p>We'll try to document its design in a later document, though this is
|
||||
not a priority for now.</p>
|
||||
</ul>
|
||||
|
||||
<a name="other-opentype">
|
||||
<h3>V.2. When will FreeType 2 support OpenType ?</h3>
|
||||
<ul>
|
||||
<p>Well, the engine already reads OpenType/CFF files perfectly. What it
|
||||
doesn't do is handle "OpenType Layout" tables yet.</p>
|
||||
|
||||
<p>FreeType 1 comes with a set of extensions that are used to load
|
||||
and manage OpenType Layout tables. It even has a demonstration program
|
||||
named "<tt>ftstrtto</tt>" used to demonstrate its capabilities that
|
||||
runs pretty smooth.</p>
|
||||
|
||||
<p>For FreeType 2, we have decided that the layout operations provided
|
||||
through these tables is better placed in a specific text-layout library,
|
||||
(many people having asked for such a thing). This new engine would not
|
||||
depend on FT2 explicitely and will be developed as a separate project.
|
||||
We plan to announce it in a few weeks with all gory details,
|
||||
once the definitive 2.0 release of FreeType has been made.</p>
|
||||
</ul>
|
||||
|
||||
</td></tr></table>
|
||||
|
||||
<hr>
|
||||
<p>
|
||||
<a href="index.html">Back to FreeType homepage</a><p>
|
||||
|
||||
</td></tr></table>
|
||||
</body>
|
||||
</html>
|
|
@ -542,10 +542,11 @@
|
|||
</font>
|
||||
|
||||
<p>The parameter <tt>render_mode</tt> is a set of bit flags used
|
||||
to specify how to render the glyph image. Set it to 0 to render
|
||||
a monochrome bitmap, or to <tt>ft_render_mode_antialias</tt> to
|
||||
generate a high-quality (256 gray levels) anti-aliased bitmap
|
||||
from the glyph image.</p>
|
||||
to specify how to render the glyph image. Set it to 0, or the
|
||||
equivalent <tt>ft_render_mode_normal</tt> to render a high-quality
|
||||
anti-aliased (256 gray levels) bitmap, as this is the default.
|
||||
You can alternatively use <tt>ft_render_mode_mono</tt> if you
|
||||
want to generate a 1-bit monochrome bitmap.</p>
|
||||
|
||||
<p>Once you have a bitmapped glyph image, you can access it directly
|
||||
through <tt><b>glyph->bitmap</b></tt> (a simple bitmap descriptor),
|
||||
|
@ -675,10 +676,23 @@
|
|||
of (0,0) will be used). The vector coordinates are expressed in
|
||||
1/64th of a pixel (also known as 26.6 fixed floats).</p>
|
||||
|
||||
<p><em>NOTA BENE: The transform is applied every glyph that is loaded
|
||||
through <tt>FT_Load_Glyph</tt>. Note that loading a glyph bitmap
|
||||
with a non-trivial transform will produce an error..</em></p>
|
||||
<font color="red">
|
||||
<p>NOTA BENE: The transform is applied to every glyph that is loaded
|
||||
through <tt>FT_Load_Glyph</tt> and is <b>completely independent
|
||||
of any hinting process.</b> This means that you won't get the same
|
||||
results if you load a glyph at the size of 24 pixels, or a glyph at
|
||||
the size at 12 pixels scaled by 2 through a transform, because the
|
||||
hints will have been computed differently (unless, of course you
|
||||
disabled hints).</em></p></font>
|
||||
|
||||
<p>If you ever need to use a non-orthogonal transform with optimal
|
||||
hints, you first need to decompose your transform into a scaling part
|
||||
and a rotation/shearing part. Use the scaling part to compute a new
|
||||
character pixel size, then the other one to call FT_Set_Transform.
|
||||
This is explained in details in a later section of this tutorial.</p>
|
||||
|
||||
<p>Note also that loading a glyph bitmap with a non-identity transform
|
||||
will produce an error..</p>
|
||||
<hr>
|
||||
|
||||
<h3>
|
||||
|
@ -721,7 +735,7 @@
|
|||
if (error) continue; // ignore errors
|
||||
|
||||
// convert to an anti-aliased bitmap
|
||||
error = FT_Render_Glyph( face->glyph, ft_render_mode_antialias );
|
||||
error = FT_Render_Glyph( face->glyph, ft_render_mode_normal );
|
||||
if (error) continue;
|
||||
|
||||
// now, draw to our target surface
|
||||
|
@ -790,7 +804,7 @@
|
|||
for ( n = 0; n < num_chars; n++ )
|
||||
{
|
||||
// load glyph image into the slot (erase previous one)
|
||||
error = FT_Load_Char( face, text[n], FT_LOAD_RENDER | FT_LOAD_ANTI_ALIAS );
|
||||
error = FT_Load_Char( face, text[n], FT_LOAD_RENDER );
|
||||
if (error) continue; // ignore errors
|
||||
|
||||
// now, draw to our target surface
|
||||
|
@ -815,12 +829,15 @@
|
|||
|
||||
<li><p>
|
||||
We do not use <tt>FT_LOAD_DEFAULT</tt> for the loading mode, but
|
||||
the two bit flags <tt><b>FT_LOAD_RENDER</b></tt> and
|
||||
<tt><b>FT_LOAD_ANTI_ALIAS</b></tt>. The first flag indicates that
|
||||
the glyph image must be immediately converted to a bitmap, and
|
||||
the second that it should be renderer anti-aliased. Of course, this
|
||||
is also a shortcut that avoids calling <tt>FT_Render_Glyph</tt>
|
||||
explicitely but is strictly equivalent..
|
||||
the bit flag <tt><b>FT_LOAD_RENDER</b></tt>. It indicates that
|
||||
the glyph image must be immediately converted to an anti-aliased
|
||||
bitmap. This is of course a shortcut that avoids calling
|
||||
<tt>FT_Render_Glyph</tt> explicitely but is strictly equivalent.</p>
|
||||
|
||||
<p>
|
||||
Note that you can also specify that you want a monochrome bitmap
|
||||
instead by using the addition <tt><b>FT_LOAD_MONOCHROME</b></tt>
|
||||
load flag.
|
||||
</p></li>
|
||||
</ul>
|
||||
|
||||
|
@ -857,7 +874,7 @@
|
|||
FT_Set_Transform( face, &matrix, &pen );
|
||||
|
||||
// load glyph image into the slot (erase previous one)
|
||||
error = FT_Load_Char( face, text[n], FT_LOAD_RENDER | FT_LOAD_ANTI_ALIAS );
|
||||
error = FT_Load_Char( face, text[n], FT_LOAD_RENDER );
|
||||
if (error) continue; // ignore errors
|
||||
|
||||
// now, draw to our target surface (convert position)
|
||||
|
@ -909,6 +926,9 @@
|
|||
for the case where the transform is the identity.. Hence it can
|
||||
be used as a replacement (but a more powerful one).</p>
|
||||
|
||||
<p>It has however a few short comings that we will explain, and solve,
|
||||
in the next part of this tutorial.</p>
|
||||
|
||||
<hr>
|
||||
|
||||
<h3>
|
||||
|
|
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Reference in New Issue