mf2pt1: Future Work
3 Future Work
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One avenue for future work is to enable the font designer to specify Type 1
font hints directly in the Metafont font program. Hinting is a way for
a font designer to specify how a font should be rendered at low
resolutions, for example, at typical monitor resolutions. In Metafont,
this is done by controlling the way that points are mapped to pixel
locations, using commands such as *define_corrected_pixels*,
*define_blacker_pixels*, and *lowres_fix*. Type 1 fonts are hinted in a
completely different manner. Type 1 hints distinguish key character
features, such as stems and dots, from decorations which can be
discarded at low resolutions. The PostScript interpreter uses that
information to determine how to map points to pixels. Although 'mf2pt1'
employs FontForge to autohint the fonts it generates, the approach is
mechanical and unlikely to hint as well as a human can do manually. It
would be convenient for 'mf2pt1' one day to provide Metafont commands
for *hstem*, *vstem*, *dotsection*, and the other Type 1 hints. That
way, hints will no longer need to be re-added manually every time
'mf2pt1' regenerates a Type 1 font.
Another future addition to 'mf2pt1' is the addition of more font
encodings. The following are the encodings that 'mf2pt1' will most
likely accept:
'TeXMathItalicEncoding'
Upper- and lowercase Greek and Latin letters, old-style digits, and
a few symbols and accents.
'TeXMathSymbolEncoding'
A variety of symbols, as well as calligraphic Latin majuscules.
'TeXMathExtensionEncoding'
Variable-sized symbols, such as braces, integrals, and radicals.
'AdobeExpert'
Small caps, currency symbols, old-style digits, and various
superior and inferior letters and digits.
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