Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!clyde.concordia.ca!uunet!jarthur!usc!zaphod.mps.ohio-state.edu!ub!mdeck
From: dhosek@hmcvax.claremont.edu (Hosek, Donald A.)
Newsgroups: comp.text.tex
Subject: Re: Metafont and certain .mf files
Message-ID: <8152@jarthur.Claremont.EDU>
Date: 21 Aug 90 01:02:50 GMT
References: <33055@eerie.acsu.Buffalo.EDU> <1990Aug18.125641.12466@zaphod.mps.ohio-state.edu>
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Organization: Harvey Mudd College
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In article <33186@eerie.acsu.Buffalo.EDU>, mdeck@acsu.buffalo.edu (Mary Deck) writes...
>In article <1990Aug18.125641.12466@zaphod.mps.ohio-state.edu> edgar@function.mps.ohio-state.edu (Gerald Edgar) writes:

>>Just hit return and go on.  The font seems OK.  These are VERY tiny letters,
>>so how can you tell if they are a bit weird?

>That will work, but it's only a fudge, and I don't like fudges.
>(Well, this kind, anyway. :)  Being a perfectionist, if it's not
>right, it isn't ok.

>The fact that I even get this error indicates that something is amiss
>somewhere.  Who do I talk to about this?  Is there a real solution?

The fact of the matter is that many MF programmers, such as they
are, get their code working for their output device at maybe one
size and consider their work done. I have a mental list of some
not-so-borderline cases that break a lot of common fonts
(including some really odd cases, e.g., one font works at 300dpi
but breaks at 2470). Knuth's CM is one of the more robust faces
and even that has problems.

In the case of the blackboard bold letters dying on your MF run,
I'd bet large quantities of cash that the problem is due to the
largish blacker value of 0.5.  The best solution is to grab the
new VMS MF change file (yes, Mary, it's FINALLY ready) and run
the files using MF/BATCH, which will use \batchmode when
processing so those errors will just be skipped over.

and if you really want to complain, write to
tech-support@math.ams.com

-dh

---
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