Path: utzoo!attcan!uunet!know!zaphod.mps.ohio-state.edu!swrinde!emory!mephisto!mcnc!thorin!threonine!fritsch
From: fritsch@threonine.cs.unc.edu (Dan Fritsch)
Newsgroups: comp.windows.ms
Subject: Re: converting fonts to Windows format
Keywords: converting fonts windows format
Message-ID: <16044@thorin.cs.unc.edu>
Date: 14 Sep 90 14:17:36 GMT
References: <37185@ut-emx>
Sender: news@thorin.cs.unc.edu
Lines: 58

In article <37185@ut-emx>, allred@ut-emx (Kevin L. Allred) writes:
> There have been plenty of questions raised about fonts and windows.  I
> personally have a deskjet plus printer, and have sympathized greatly
> with others suffering the frustration of finding out that windows
> won't print bitmapped fonts on a PCL printer (only windows vector
> fonts and resident printer fonts). 
> ... 
> The alternative is to wait until True Type becomes a reality, and buy
> the upgrade (There's nothing like holding your breath for vaporware :-(
> ).  Frankly, I would rather not wait that long when lots of wonderful
> font families are available in the public domain just waiting for
> someone to convert them to windows & suitable printer font format.
> 

 I few weeks back I posted a review of my experiences with several
programs providing font solutions for users of PCL printers. I have
a Deskjet + and am currently using two programs. The first is a
software postscript interpreter called GoScript Plus which comes
with the 35 standard postscript fonts. I have downloaded the fonts.lzh
file from cica.cica.indiana.edu and now have the matching screen
fonts to go with the GoScript fonts. To use GoScript, I simply select
the PostScript driver and print to a file which I must later print
from GoScript (as a standard DOS application). GoScript does not 
currently provide a windows driver, but simply processes (rasterizes)
a postscript language file and sends it as a graphics file to almost
any printer.

 The second program I use is called SuperPrint (by Zenographics).
Superprint uses outline fonts from Adobe (Type I), Bitstream, Compugraphic,
and Nimbus Q and can generate any point size printer font from these
outlines. Fonts from different vendors can be used on the same page
with no problem. A seperate utility allows you to create matching screen
fonts for any of the installed outlines and at any desired point size.
SuperPrint currently supports Laserjets, Deskjets and Paintjets and
a few other devices (no dot matrix at this time). It comes with Nimbus Q
versions of Helvetica, Times, Century Schoolbook and Courier, Compugraphic's
Futura, and Bitstream's Charter Roman. If you purchase SuperPrint before
November 1, they will send you a set of fonts that completes the standard
postscript set for $50.00.

Goscript Plus is available for around $200, while I picked up SuperPrint at
an educational discounted price of $140.00. In my opinion, both programs
are great for Deskjet owners. GoScript demands that you purchase it's own
fonts (proprietary format), while SuperPrint works with almost any font
vendor's format. Also, GoScript does not have its own screen fonts - you
must get postscript matching screen fonts elsewhere.

 I would like to see how Adobe Type Manager (if it ever ships) and Bitstream's
new font engine work under Windows. These programs will supposedly generate
screen and printer fonts on-the-fly for almost any printer. I'd like to know
how fast these products are at generating screen fonts and how many fonts are
bundled with them (Adobe Type I and Bitstream fonts are extremely expensive).

Regards.

Bitstream's 
- Dan Fritsch			(fritsch@cs.unc.edu)