Re: cvs emacs scales fonts to awfully big?

[Peter Tury]

Hi,

thanks again for your quick and detailed answer!

On jan. 3, 01:17, Peter Dyballa <Peter_Dyba...@Web.DE> wrote:
> Am 02.01.2009 um 22:41 schrieb Peter Tury:
>
> > However, none of these affected Emacs: it still uses 11.8pt high fonts
> > (previously it was 12pt)!?

I deduced these from `describe-face's result for 'default' face. It
told: "Height: 118" (previously: 120). Doesn't this show the used font
size? (After the customization mentioned earlier, now it tells:
"Height: 79". This is fine for me.)

> The actual font used can be determined by typing C-u C-x = on some  
> character.

It gives me (after the customization, i.e. when I have normal size
fonts):
        character: ( (40, #o50, #x28)
preferred charset: ascii (ASCII (ISO646 IRV))
       code point: 0x28
           syntax: ()   which means: open, matches )
         category: a:ASCII
ASCII graphic characters 32-126 (ISO646 IRV:1983[4/0]) l:Latin r:Roman
Japanese roman
      buffer code: #x28
        file code: #x28 (encoded by coding system undecided-unix)
          display: by this font (glyph code)
    xft:-unknown-DejaVu Sans Mono-normal-normal-normal-*-14-*-*-*-m-0-
iso10646-1 (#x0B)
...

Does this mean 14pt size?

When starting by Emacs -Q (i.e. in case of awfully big characters) it
gives:

        character: a (97, #o141, #x61)
preferred charset: ascii (ASCII (ISO646 IRV))
       code point: 0x61
           syntax: w    which means: word
         category: a:ASCII
ASCII graphic characters 32-126 (ISO646 IRV:1983[4/0]) l:Latin r:Roman
Japanese roman
      buffer code: #x61
        file code: #x61 (encoded by coding system utf-8-unix)
          display: by this font (glyph code)
    xft:-unknown-DejaVu Sans Mono-normal-normal-normal-*-21-*-*-*-m-0-
iso10646-1 (#x44)
...

21pt?

> You could also invoke M-x describe-fontset RET RET.
>
> > On 2008 dec. 28, 01:38, Peter Dyballa <Peter_Dyba...@Web.DE> wrote:
>
> >> In KDE and GNOME there are rule settings about appropriate font
> >> sizes. An optimised bitmapped font for 100 DPI is larger than the
> >> same font for 75 DPI. When the X11 font path has the 100 DPI font
> >> before the 75 DPI fonts than these larger fonts are used.
>
> > How can I check if this is the case now for me? (I use Gnome on Ubuntu
> > 8.10.)
>
> xset -q

Yes, 100dpi libraries are indeed before the 75dpi ones. Should I
change somehow their order? How is this possible?

> >> GNU Emacs  23.0.60 uses libXft. When a 100 DPI display is assumed  
> >> by Xft then
> >> quite large 75 DPI fonts might be used ...
>
> > I think now this can be ruled out in my case (becasue of my
> > ~/.Xresources settings; see above).
> > Am I right?
>
> Do you see these settings from 'xrdb -q | grep <some setting>' ?

Yes, both of my manual settings (Xft.dpi and Emacs.FontBackend) can be
seen as I set them (129 and xft).

> To me it looks as if GNU Emacs creates its startup fontset from  
> either an X resource Emacs*font

I checked  xrdb -q | grep Emacs and it contains only colors (except
what I set manually -- fontbackend). Should I check something else
too?

> This can be  
> overwritten with font or fontset settings from initial-frame-alist  
> and default-frame-alist. You can try this also on the command line:
>
>         emacs [usual options etc] -xrm 'Emacs*font: <some XLFD>' &
>
> XLFD = X Logical Font Description, /usr/X11/share/X11/doc/hardcopy/
> XLFD/xlfd.PS.gz

I'll try this, thanks for the hint! (Now I get the huge fonts when I
start Emacs with -Q for this "troublshooting", so I got rid of my
normal -frame-alist settings...; otherwise the customization saved
into .emacs results in smaller fonts.)

> Another option is to use the fonts menu (S-mouse-1). Here you can  
> decrease the font size. Once you've found something useful you could  
> choose "Save Options" from the Options menu. Could be it saves  
> something meaningful in your init file!
>
> Have you tried to read the Emacs manual? C-h i ... There is also info-
> apropos.

Thanks, I tried these. As I wrote, I have a solution what works, so I
can use Emacs. What I use now is the permanet customization of the
'default' face.

Now I would like to know if it is a bug that normal working can be
achieved only by some manual customizations? (In other words: I think
Emacs should find the proper font sizes as other applications find
them by default.)

Thanks,
P