Xref: utzoo comp.text:4401 comp.fonts:664
Path: utzoo!attcan!uunet!jarthur!dhosek
From: dhosek@jarthur.Claremont.EDU (Donald Hosek)
Newsgroups: comp.text,comp.fonts
Subject: Re: TeX and Computer Modern (?) typefaces
Summary: I like CM, but here are some alternatives...
Keywords: computer modern
Message-ID: <1641@jarthur.Claremont.EDU>
Date: 16 Jul 89 19:48:31 GMT
References: <2973@nmtsun.nmt.edu>
Reply-To: dhosek@jarthur.UUCP (Donald Hosek)
Organization: Harvey Mudd College, Claremont, CA
Lines: 81

In article <2973@nmtsun.nmt.edu> kelly@jupiter.nmt.edu (Sean Kelly) writes:
>I'm really impressed with the sophistication of Knuth's masterwork,
>TeX, but I'm rather disappointed to find that on our system all
>we have are American and Computer Modern fonts (which look about the
>same to me).  But ...
>
>Why are the Computer Modern fonts called `computer modern' when they
>look more like Pre-electricity Antique?!?  Even the sans serif (cmss10)
>looks more dated than my great aunt Olga (apologies to her)!

First a correction: AM stands for "almost modern". It is the precursor
to CM (computer modern), and really should not be used. (It would be sort
of like insisting on using CPM, even though you have a 386 machine with
MS-DOS capability... the same idea, but the newer stuff works better).

The Modern style itself is in fact over 200 years old. If you can get a 
hold of volume E of Computers & Typesetting (Computer Modern Typefaces)
there is an excellant introduction detailing the history of Modern and
explaining what distinguishes a Modern typeface. The big problem with
CM (and in fact all Modern typefaces) is that it is rather fragile due to
the presence of many fine details. At 300dpi, the results can look quite
bad, especially on a writes-white printer (all Xerox printers, and most
printers over 10-12ppm are writes-white).

However, if you can get access to a higher resolution output device, you'll
see that CM is, in fact, a rather attractive face. (Look at it in the
TeX & MF manuals... now is that so bad? One person I know in the UK who
printed some sample sheets using CM on a typesetter for the first time
suddenly converted from the anti-CM camp to the pro-CM camp in a flash).

>So I picked up a copy of {\sl The METAFONTbook}, and found, to my
>dismay, that DEK outdid himself again with unbounding sophistication!
>I just wanted to sit down with a copy of a typeface book and make a nice
>simple serifed style more to my liking, and found out that I have
>to learn _another_ language!  Argggh!

I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but typeface design is not exactly
something you can pick up in a weekend. Yes, you have to learn another 
language, but did you really expect otherwise? The only way to do it
without learning another language would be to do the whole mess 
visually, and anyone who's worked with a bitmap editor for any extended
time knows how painful THAT can be.

>I'm getting desparate.  I know TeX is better than our WYSIWYG system,
>Interleaf.  But my friends who insist on using Interleaf still
>outdo my creations with TeX just because their typestyles look
>much more up-to-date and nice.
>
>Where can I find Times Roman?  Century Oldstyle?  Futura?  Anything?!?
>Is there somewhere I can anonymously FTP all necessary information?
>Or perhaps the Metafont source code?  HELP!!

The MF source for the CM fonts should be available at your site. It's
very valuable as a model of what a character program should look like.
None of the "traditional" typefaces are available at this time in 
MF format, although it is possible to get the Bitstream faces converted
to TeX-style bitmaps. Also, many device drivers allow use of printer-
resident faces.

The big problem with these techinques is math. Put simply, nothing offers
the range of math characters provided by TeX. And few faces look good with
TeX math due to differences in sizes and weights. 'tis a pity.

There are _some_ alternatives. At sun.soe.clarkson.edu in the directory
pub/tex-fonts, there is a collection of all the PD MF faces available. Most
are specialty fonts (e.g. elvish, electronic symbols, and the like). THere
are two text faces however...

Pandora is an interesting face which is midway between a serifed and 
sans-serifed face. It should work with CM math. However, it is an
experimental face and is not available in many sizes.

Concrete is an "Egyptian" variant of CM. It was first used in _Concrete
Mathematics_ by G--- (I forget his name), Patashnik, and Knuth. It was
designed to work with the Euler math fonts from the AMS. There is no 
boldface.

There are also many fonts in bitmap form available from the Metafoundry.
I don't have an address, but maybe someone on the net, could put it up.

-dh