Re: Free Fonts

From: Christopher John Fynn (cfynn@gmx.net)
Date: Wed Dec 03 2003 - 23:03:41 EST

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    "Philippe Verdy" <verdy_p@wanadoo.fr> wrote:

    > As FreeType does not offer to its users such a license, it cannot implement
    > hinting mechanisms in its renderer. So FreeType cannot use fonts hinted with
    > Apple technology. This means that font authors cannot seriously sell hinted
    > font designs to FreeType users, and these fonts will only work in compliant
    > environment that include such a license such as Windows, MacOSX, and
    > possibly other vendor-supported environemnts.

    As far as I can see there is nothing in the patents to stop FreeType rendering
    TrueType fonts containing hinting instructions so long as it doesn't make use
    of these hinting instructions. These patents don't prevent it making use of
    the basic glyph outline instructions in a font .

    > The only alternative seems to be hinting fonts with something else than
    > moving control points; for example by embedding bitmaps of glyphs at small
    > sizes, so that no control points are involved in this operation, or by
    > providing alternate sets of glyphs, but this breaks the continuity of the
    > font at any intermediate size, even if antiscaling is used to limit this
    > effect.

    You can always use the method used in Type 1 fonts which are truly "hints"
    rather than the control point moving instructions used in TrueType fonts.

    - Chris



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