Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!mailrus!cornell!uw-beaver!zephyr.ens.tek.com!tektronix!reed!barry
From: barry@reed.UUCP (Barry Smith)
Newsgroups: comp.text.tex
Subject: Re: Textures question
Message-ID: <15320@reed.UUCP>
Date: 9 Aug 90 17:53:15 GMT
References: <0093AE22.A6D58A80@uclapp.physics.ucla.edu> <27878@netnews.upenn.edu> <0093AE45.4DA805A0@uclapp.physics.ucla.edu> <27892@netnews.upenn.edu> <0093AE7D.ADDF3D20@uclapp.physics.ucla.edu>
Reply-To: barry@reed.UUCP (Barry Smith)
Organization: Blue Sky Research, Portland OR
Lines: 30
Keywords: bitmap outline fonts
Summary: ALL fonts are BITMAP fonts...

In article <0093AE7D.ADDF3D20@uclapp.physics.ucla.edu> jprice@uclapp.physics.ucla.edu (John Price) writes:
>	I have run Textures on a Mac here at school, with a Deskwriter, and 
>the output is indeed very good for a bitmap font.  However, the Deskwriter 
>is capable of much better.  Using the Deskwriter fonts, (which, I believe, 
>are outline fonts), the quality is noticeably better.  
>
It's interesting to see this viewpoint, which seems to be widely held: that
"outline" fonts are somehow qualitatively superior to "bitmap" fonts. This
point of view has often been expressed to me by people who, on questioning,
already have the understanding that ALL fonts printed to a raster/matrix
printer MUST, at some point, become "bitmap" fonts.  So what are they seeing?
Two possibilities: (1) they're really comparing type faces, not renderings,
e.g., Computer Modern Roman vs. Times-Roman; or (2) they prefer a bolder
typeface, which most outline renderings will give in comparison to Metafont
renderings of Computer Modern, which is a relatively delicate face. [A 300 dpi
rendering of CMR10 that approximates the "true color" of the face will appear
very light in comparison to, say, Times Roman as typically rendered.]

With specific reference to the DeskWriter, I've found that smooth, hard-finish
paper (Hammermill Laser Plus, for example) improves the print quality
dramatically compared to typical copier bond, much more of a difference than
the typical laser printer.

In any case, Textures can (1) work with ATM, and the DeskWriter; (2) work with
the DeskWriter outline fonts, without ATM; (3) work with the DeskWriter, and
MF-rendered CM fonts, and (4) work with ATM, and our CM/PostScript Type 1
outline fonts.  ["All of the above" is the correct answer.]

Barry Smith, Blue Sky Research
barry@reed.edu