Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!cs.utexas.edu!uunet!decwrl!adobe!dkletter
From: dkletter@adobe.COM (It's all fun and games until someone PUTS AN EYE OUT)
Newsgroups: comp.fonts
Subject: Re: How do I find out what a font is?
Keywords: Information sources
Message-ID: <5916@adobe.UUCP>
Date: 24 Aug 90 07:03:39 GMT
References: <910@massey.ac.nz> <1990Aug23.024214.6309@unx.sas.com>
Reply-To: dkletter@adobe.UUCP (It's all fun and games until someone PUTS AN EYE OUT)
Organization: Adobe Systems Incorporated, Mountain View
Lines: 40

bts@unx.sas.com (Brian T. Schellenberger) writes:

>Bitstream is a font vendor.  So are Adobe, ITC, and numerous others.
>Bitstream has a large number of fonts, and they look prety good.

actually, ITC is a "Type Foundry". Bitstream and Adobe could be considered
as such seeing as they have original typeface designs of their own, but
in general, those two are basically vendors or sorts.

why pick such a nit? because it there is a distinct difference. ITC has
been around for a VERY long time and they have either the rights to
or were the creators of many typefaces that are commonly used today.
similarly, Monotype, Berthold, Bauer, Stempel and the American Typefoundry
are/were also "Foundries" (to name a few) that other vendors such as
Linotype today sell their typefaces to the masses.

>Such a representation can be scaled and even automatically obliqued.
>And, as you speculate, they are ultimately turned into bitmaps before
>the final printing stage.

this is a bit convoluted. there are two parts to a digital typeface:
the outlines (PostScript program which defines the shapes of each
individual character in a file) and the bitmaped representation which
can be manipulated on one's computer screen. the outlines, are what
the printer needs to produce the beautiful output one sees these days.

>Precisely correct, except that with (real) PostScript the fonts and
>the font scaling technology are supplied by Adobe rather than Bitstream.

this font scaling technology is bascially PostScript at work. Bitstream
uses it as well. the difference between their typefaces and ours is
that Adobe typefaces are in the Type1 format (includes the encryption
and hinting methods) and Bitstream's are Type3.

of course, with the advent of the Black Book, anyone can produce Type1
fonts if they so desire.

-- 
"Yellow... black and rectangular... with wedged shapes inside... Oh, I see
them everywhere... Am I losing my mind?"