[bug #64612] consider an environment variable for general resources/inclusions

[Deri James]

Follow-up Comment #2, bug #64612 (project groff):

Just checking if I am understanding this correctly. GROFF_FONT_PATH will still
point to a directory containing groff font resources for each post-processor.
Individual directories for each output driver contain groff stuff (DESC,
download, groff fonts, i.e. TR) and possibly postscript fonts which are
defined in the download file such as freeeuro.pfa.

GROFF_INCLUDE_PATH will hold directories to search when the postscript font
resides outside the groff environment, e.g. /usr/share/fonts/Type1, and the
entry in the download file only includes a filename, no path.

Normally, when wanting to give access to a system installed Type 1 font for
groff, site-font would hold the groff font and download would contain the path
to the system installed postscript font. The only time you need to duplicate
real font data within the groff environs is when the font needs to be
converted to be a type 1 font from .tth, .otf or .woff.

This is is exactly what BuildFoundries does, inserts the path to the system
installed versions into the download file, not duplicating the font file. I
see no objection to implementing GROFF_INCLUDE_PATH into the groff pantheon of
environment variables, but for grops and gropdf it is only used for including
files in the output, it is not needed for locating fonts, the download file is
sufficient.

My personal road map for gropdf, after adding support for TrueType fonts and
friends, includes a way of dynamically building a groff font cache so you can
use any font installed on your system and it will build the groff font file on
the fly if you have never used the font before, I've figured out all the hows,
just the dos now!


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