Re: [ft] In freetype how can one set font size in pt, but keep resolution independent?

[Jan-Åke Larsson]

Werner LEMBERG wrote:
> Well, the very problem is that neither TrueType nor PS fonts have the
> concept of a `design size'.  This is something from the TeX world.

Correct. In the TeX world, a font designed for 5pt output is visibly
different from the same font as designed for 10pt. For instance Computer
Modern (TeX's standard font) comes in no less than eight design sizes
(5,6,7,8,9,10,12,17). If the effect you are after is that of choosing
one different from the "usual" cmr10, note that on a modern system (say
teTeX-3) Bluesky's Type1 fonts come in all these varieties also.

I have written a png driver for the dvi format and I used to worry about
this too, design sizes and suchlike. I stopped worrying once I noted
that in the dvi, the correct design sizes were specified as part of the
font selection. Relevant parts of a test run are:

@114 DRAW CMD:  FNT_DEF1 10 195060286 655360 655360 0 6 'cmmi10'
  FONT 10:      New entry created
@136 DRAW CMD:  FONT_10
  FIND FONT:    cmmi10 400
  OPEN METRICS:
'/sw/tex/teTeX/3.0/texmf-dist/fonts/tfm/public/cm/cmmi10.tfm'
  OPEN FT FONT:
'/sw/tex/teTeX/3.0/texmf-dist/fonts/type1/bluesky/cm/cmmi10.pfb'