> >>> You can convert your BDF/PCF fonts to the "X11 bitmap only sfnt >>> (otb)" OpenType format[1], which harfbuzz does support[2]. >> >> So these aren't "my" fonts. I'm using one of the bitmapped fonts that >> ships with X in xorg-fonts-misc as my terminal font. > > `My' bitmap fonts are also packaged. Hi Ralph, With 'your' bitmap fonts I also meant fonts you use, not only those you created or maintain. Doing the conversion yourself is only meant as a workaround if you really need them now, but you could offer the converted fonts in the AUR and become a maintainer if upstream is not interested. > There doesn't seem much point packaging a font in a format that isn't > supported by most software. The xorg-fonts packages are primarily meant for applications using XLFD (can only use bitmap fonts) or Xft (FreeType based, so bitmap fonts still work). > It would seem the upstreams, GNU and X.Org, should ship those fonts > in the current and OpenType-bitmap formats That would be for the best. > > Speaking of conversion, ProgAndy mentioned an Adobe program. The Adobe program is not useful for bitmap fonts, but the conversion of postscript/type1 (.pfa, .pfb) fonts to the opentype format. I mentioned it for completeness, since support for that format has been dropped as well. > > And FontForge should be able to do it > https://fontforge.github.io/generate.html lists ‘X11 bitmap only sfnt > (otb)’ amongst the bitmap types. > I found the scripts used to convert terminus to a mixed bitmap/vector font using fontforge, mkbold-mkitalic, and potrace. If you choose a font size that matches a bitmap height, then the resulting font will use the bitmap, otherwise the generated vector outlines [see *Notes*]. You could also try to declare your fontsize in pixel with a "px" suffix. This can be adapted to create a bitmap-only font in the "otb" format as well if you remove the potrace stuff and change the output file format from ttf to otb. https://files.ax86.net/terminus-ttf/#mkttf https://github.com/Tblue/mkttf *Notes* about the relationship between font sizes and bitmap dimensions: Font size is measured in typographic points: 1pt = 1/72 in. In a standard 96 dpi environment, that would be ~1.33333 px. A 9pt font would be 12px tall. A 12pt font would be 16px tall. With a HiDPI display this is not true anymore, and with mixed DPI you might have to make sure that your chosen size resolves to an available bitmap in either case. -- Andy
