Re: FreeType 1.4 release?

[Werner LEMBERG]

> I am in the process of updating the FT 1.2 sources in our MGL
> graphics library with the latest FT 1.3.1 stuff.  However someone
> mentioned to me that FT 1.4 is right around the corner.  Can someone
> give me details on when this will be ready?

It is ready since a few months already -- it is currently called

  ftp://ftp.freetype.org/freetype/devel/freetype-current.tar.gz

I apply small fixes here and then, but no large code modifications any
more.

> Also on a related note, I am wondering whether FT 2 beta 6 is stable
> enough to start developing with for our MGL library.  It would be
> interesting if I could build both FT 1.4 and FT 2 beta support into
> our library (the FreeType stuff ends up in binary portable DLL's, so
> this should be doable).  However since this will end up being used
> for production products in the short term, I am wary of spending
> time with FT2 if it is not really stable yet.  Comments?

A few weeks ago I was convinced that we should do an `official'
release of FT1.4, but meanwhile I've started to work on FT2
extensively, and my conviction becomes smaller and smaller...

David has said that he is in the process of porting GSUB and GPOS
support to FT2 already (GPOS support is the very difference of FT1.3
to FT1.4 regarding code).

Using FT1.4 yet makes sense if you need

  . support for many different UNIX platforms without using gcc and
    GNU make

  . support for GPOS

  . valid documentation

  . support for TTF (resp. TTO) only

  . a stable code :-)

In a few months, FT2 should be at the same level as FT1.4 is now
regarding stability, and it will contain support for PS fonts (and its
exotic variants) also.

BTW, instead of using FT2 beta 6 I strongly suggest to use the CVS
repository which contains a lot of fixes -- I'm almost daily
committing improvements (most of them are cosmetic).


    Werner