Path: utzoo!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!cs.utexas.edu!samsung!crackers!m2c!umvlsi!umaecs!amh!aptagliabue
From: aptagliabue@amherst.bitnet
Newsgroups: comp.sys.mac.misc
Subject: Re: Kanji/kana on a Deskwriter??
Message-ID: <12405.27dd704c@amherst.bitnet>
Date: 13 Mar 91 00:20:27 GMT
References: <9764@hub.ucsb.edu>
Distribution: comp.sys.mac.misc
Lines: 56

In article <9764@hub.ucsb.edu>, 6600star@ucsbuxa.ucsb.edu (Matthew Staroscik)
 writes:
> I've got a Macintosh and a Hewlett-Packard Deskwriter. I use Teach Text
> and the Japanese system files to do my Japanese word processing, but I want to
> t
> ake advantage of the Deskwriter's high resolution. Does anybody know if HP
> makes
>  a Japanese font package for the Deskwriter? How about an Adobe font package
> com
> patible with Adobe Type Manager?

There are several packages of high resolution fonts available in Japan. Two
of them that I know of work with outline fonts a la PostScript, although
the quality is not as good at high resolutions. ATM does not work with
the Kanji-version of PostScript. What I know about the various packages
follows.

MacFont is the package I use. It uses scaleable font outlines which look fine 
up to about 30pt, then they start to appear a little jagged, although not 
nearly as bad as bitmapped fonts.  The package consists of two fonts,
Minoo and Karasuma. Minoo is Gothic-style and Karasuma is Minchoo. (For those
not familiar with Japanese typographical styles, Gothic looks like a kanji-
version of Helvetica, Karasuma is like Times.) The package is compatible
with all Macs (Plus up) and both QuickDraw and PostScript printers. It
requires KanjiTalk 6.0.2 or higher, 4MB of memory, and at least 8MB of
hard disk space. List price is 20000 yen, although I got mine for 15000 yen
at T-Zone in Akihabara. MacFont is published by DynaWare. Their address is
Nishi 2-2-4 Funaba CommArt Hill, Minoo-shi, Osaka-fu 562. Tel. 0727-27-2051. 
They have an office in Tokyo at 2-7-6 Kudanshita Minami, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo-to
102. Tel. 03-3222-7822.

The other outline font package I know of is called Parametric Font. I don't
know who makes it. It also lists for Y20000, street price Y18000. I can't
tell you much more.

Bridge Soft makes bitmapped fonts specifically optimized for the DeskWriter.
They're called TurboFonts, but become very expensive because each size is a
separate package, so you have Mincho 10, Mincho 12, Gothic 10, Gothic 12,
Maru-Gothic 10, and Maru-Gothic 12 (a rounded-off version of regular Gothic).
Each package comes with the font four-times larger for hi-res printing. They
each cost 7000-9000 yen, so getting the whole set would cost a lot. If you're
interested, the Bridge fonts as well as the DeskWriter are reviewed in
depth in the Sept 1990 issue of Gekkan MacPower (one of Japan's three big
monthly Mac magazines; the other two are MacJapan and MacLife). I don't know
Bridge Soft's address.

If you're interested in decorative kanji fonts, S-D Engineering produces
a wide range of styles which are 72pt bitmapped fonts, so they look great
at 18pt and 36pt and are OK at 72pt. S-D's address is Matsuhara Bldg,
Minami 3-joo Nishi 12-choome, Chuo-ku, Sapporo-shi 060. Tel. 011-281-3651.

I hope this helps. Let me know any other questions you might have.

Drew Tagliabue
Amherst College, Amherst, MA
aptagliabue@amherst.bitnet