Doc/index.html - platform/external/fonttools - Gitiles

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 <HEAD>

 <TITLE>FontTools</TITLE>


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 <H1>FontTools</H1>

 <A HREF="http://fonttools.sourceforge.net/">FontTools</A> is a suite of tools and
 libraries for manipulating fonts. It is written
 in Python and has a BSD-style, open-source licence -- see LICENSE.txt. It's hosted at
 <A HREF="http://sourceforge.net/">sourceforge.net</A>.

 <P>
 It currently reads and writes TrueType font files, reads PostScript Type 1 fonts
 and more. It contains two command line programs to convert TrueType fonts to an
 XML based format (called TTX) and back.

 <H3>Scope</H3>

 FontTools' functionality is aimed towards font developers and font tool developers.
 It can of course be used to just access fonts (outlines, metrics, etc.) but it is
 not optimized for that. It will be further developed so it can be the core of any
 font editor. And that's exactly what it will be for our upcoming major rewrite of
 <A HREF="http://www.robofog.com/">RoboFog</A>, our (commercial) PythonPowered font
 editor for MacOS.

 <H3>Installation</H3>

 You need the following software to use FontTools:

 <UL>
 <LI>
   <B>Python</B>. The fresh versions as well as older versions (You need 2.0 or higher) can be obtained here:
   <A HREF="http://www.python.org/download/">http://www.python.org/download/</A>
   or here:
   <A HREF="http://sourceforge.net/projects/python/">http://sourceforge.net/projects/python/</A>

   <P>Windows: grab the Windows installer, run the full install.
   <BR>Un*x: follow the build instructions.
   <BR>MacOS: grab the installer, run "Easy Install"
 <P>
 <LI>
   The <B>Numeric Python</B> extension (you don't need this under MacOS, since 	it's
   included in the MacPython installer). Get a fresh version from the download page,
   linked from here:
     <A HREF="http://sourceforge.net/projects/numpy/">http://sourceforge.net/projects/numpy/</A>
   <P>Windows: grab the "Numeric-*.exe" archive, it's an installer. Make sure the
   Python version in the archive name (eg. "2.1") matches the Python version you have.
   <BR>Linux/Un*x: get a source archive and run this command from the unpacked directory:
   <BR><TT>python setup.py install</TT>
 <P>
 <LI>
   <B>PyXML</B>, a set of XML tools:
     <A HREF="http://sourceforge.net/projects/pyxml/">http://sourceforge.net/projects/pyxml/</A>

   <BR>Installation should be very similar to installing Numeric Python, see above.

 </UL>


 Now run the "setup.py" script from the FontTools archive. This will install
 all the modules in the right places, as well as tries to compile the one (optional)
 C extension contained in FontTools. (XXX: need precompiled Mac and Windows binaries,
 *or* a way to skip compilation when there's no compiler available.)

 <P>Additional Mac instructions:
 De-binhex "TTX.rsrc.hqx" by dropping it onto StuffIt expander. (Or use your
 own preferred method)
 The "TTX.py" script included in this archive is the Mac-only main program:
 Drop it onto the "BuildApplet" app inside the Python folder; this will
 produce the TTX applet.


 <H3>User documentation</H3>

 <P>For Unix and DOS there are three command line programs:
 <UL>
 	<LI>ttdump -- dumps a TrueType (or OpenType) font file to TTX format.
 	<LI>ttcompile -- compiles a TTX file back into a TTF (or OTF) file.
 	<LI>ttlist -- lists minimal info about each table in a font.
 </UL>
 They can all work with multiple input files. There are some extra
 options which are explained by the 'usage' text; use the -h option to
 display  it. The setup.py script installs them as global tools, the
 source is in the Tools directory.

 <P>For MacOS there's a application called TTX. If you drop a TrueType
 file onto it, it will convert it to XML. If you drop an XML file onto
 it, it will convert it back to TrueType. Please read the additional
 README file in the Mac subdirectory, since it behaves quite differently
 than the command line programs described below.

 <P>Adam Twardoch contributed a Windows registry script (ttx_shellext_win32.py) which
 makes the two above tools available under the Right Mouse Button. I haven't tested
 these myself, but I'm very interested in hearing about the results!

 <H3>Note about glyph names and TrueType GlyphID's</H3>

 TrueType fonts use glyph indices (GlyphID's) to refer to glyphs in most places.
 While this is fine in binary form, it is really hard to work with for
 humans. Therefore we use names instead.

 <P>The names are derived from what is found in the 'post' table. It is
 possible that different glyphs use the same PS name. If this happens, we
 force the names to be unique by appending "#n" to the name (n being an
 integer number). The original PS names will still be maintained by the
 'post' table, so even though we use a different name internally, we are
 still able to write the 'post' table back in original form. If there is
 no proper 'post' table available, names will be derived from a Unicode
 cmap (if available) in conjuction with the Adobe Glyph List (see fontTools/agl.py).

 <P>Because the order in which glyphs are stored inside the TT font is
 important, ttLib maintains an ordered list of glyph names in the font.

 <H3>Feedback</H3>

 Please join the fonttools-discussion mailing list at SourceForge. Subscription
 info can be found if you follow the "Mailing Lists" link at the
 <A HREF="http://sourceforge.net/projects/fonttools/">SourceForge project page</A>.
 You can also email me directly at <A HREF="mailto:just@letterror.com">just@letterror.com</A>.

 <P>
 If you want to follow the development of FontTools closely, or would like to
 contribute, you can also subscribe to the fonttools-checkins mailing list.

 <H3>Anonymous CVS-access</H3>

 The FontTools sources are also accessible through CVS, see the
 the <A HREF="http://sourceforge.net/projects/fonttools/">SourceForge project
 page</A>. Let me know if you'd like to become a co-developer.

 <H3>Developer documentation</H3>

 Sorry, documentation beyond doc strings in the source code is still on my to-do list...
 Below follows a brief overview of what's there.

 <P>
 <H3>The library</H3>

 Cross-platform
 <UL>
 	<LI>fontTools.t1Lib -- Provides a Type 1 font reader. Writing is a planned feature.
 	<LI>fontTools.ttLib -- Extensive TrueType tools. Reads and writes. This is the flagship
 	    of FontTools, it's by far the most mature component. Contains a completely modular
 	    TTF table converter architecture. See ttLib/tables/table_API_readme.txt.
 	<LI>fontTools.afmLib -- And AFM file reader/writer.
 	<LI>fontTools.cffLib -- Reads CFF fonts. Writing is a planned feature.
 	<LI>fontTools.unicode -- A simple (but large) module that translates
 	    Unicode values to their descriptive names. Still Unicode 2.0.
 	<LI>fontTools.agl -- Interface to the Adobe Glyph List: maps unicode values
 	    to glyph names and back.
 </UL>

 Mac-specific
 <UL>
 	<LI>fontTools.fondLib -- A reader/writer class for Mac FOND resources.
 	<LI>fontTools.nfntLib -- Reads Mac NFNT bitmap font resources.
 </UL>

 <H3>Thank-you's</H3>

 (in alphabetical order)
 Erik van Blokland, Petr van Blokland, Jelle Bosma, Vincent Connare,
 Simon Daniels, Hannes Famira, Greg Hitchcock, Jack Jansen, Antoine Leca,
 Werner Lemberg, Peter Lofting, Dave Opstad, Laurence Penney,
 Guido van Rossum, Adam Twardoch.

 <H3>Copyrights</H3>

 FontTools/TTX -- 1999-2002 Just van Rossum; Letterror (just@letterror.com)

 </BODY>
 </HTML>
	<HTML>
	<HEAD>

	<TITLE>FontTools</TITLE>


	</HEAD>
	<BODY bgcolor="#FFFFFF">

	<H1>FontTools</H1>

	<A HREF="http://fonttools.sourceforge.net/">FontTools</A> is a suite of tools and
	libraries for manipulating fonts. It is written
	in Python and has a BSD-style, open-source licence -- see LICENSE.txt. It's hosted at
	<A HREF="http://sourceforge.net/">sourceforge.net</A>.

	<P>
	It currently reads and writes TrueType font files, reads PostScript Type 1 fonts
	and more. It contains two command line programs to convert TrueType fonts to an
	XML based format (called TTX) and back.

	<H3>Scope</H3>

	FontTools' functionality is aimed towards font developers and font tool developers.
	It can of course be used to just access fonts (outlines, metrics, etc.) but it is
	not optimized for that. It will be further developed so it can be the core of any
	font editor. And that's exactly what it will be for our upcoming major rewrite of
	<A HREF="http://www.robofog.com/">RoboFog</A>, our (commercial) PythonPowered font
	editor for MacOS.

	<H3>Installation</H3>

	You need the following software to use FontTools:

	<UL>
	<LI>
	<B>Python</B>. The fresh versions as well as older versions (You need 2.0 or higher) can be obtained here:
	<A HREF="http://www.python.org/download/">http://www.python.org/download/</A>
	or here:
	<A HREF="http://sourceforge.net/projects/python/">http://sourceforge.net/projects/python/</A>

	<P>Windows: grab the Windows installer, run the full install.
	<BR>Un*x: follow the build instructions.
	<BR>MacOS: grab the installer, run "Easy Install"
	<P>
	<LI>
	The <B>Numeric Python</B> extension (you don't need this under MacOS, since it's
	included in the MacPython installer). Get a fresh version from the download page,
	linked from here:
	<A HREF="http://sourceforge.net/projects/numpy/">http://sourceforge.net/projects/numpy/</A>
	<P>Windows: grab the "Numeric-*.exe" archive, it's an installer. Make sure the
	Python version in the archive name (eg. "2.1") matches the Python version you have.
	<BR>Linux/Un*x: get a source archive and run this command from the unpacked directory:
	<BR><TT>python setup.py install</TT>
	<P>
	<LI>
	<B>PyXML</B>, a set of XML tools:
	<A HREF="http://sourceforge.net/projects/pyxml/">http://sourceforge.net/projects/pyxml/</A>

	<BR>Installation should be very similar to installing Numeric Python, see above.

	</UL>


	Now run the "setup.py" script from the FontTools archive. This will install
	all the modules in the right places, as well as tries to compile the one (optional)
	C extension contained in FontTools. (XXX: need precompiled Mac and Windows binaries,
	or a way to skip compilation when there's no compiler available.)

	<P>Additional Mac instructions:
	De-binhex "TTX.rsrc.hqx" by dropping it onto StuffIt expander. (Or use your
	own preferred method)
	The "TTX.py" script included in this archive is the Mac-only main program:
	Drop it onto the "BuildApplet" app inside the Python folder; this will
	produce the TTX applet.


	<H3>User documentation</H3>

	<P>For Unix and DOS there are three command line programs:
	<UL>
	<LI>ttdump -- dumps a TrueType (or OpenType) font file to TTX format.
	<LI>ttcompile -- compiles a TTX file back into a TTF (or OTF) file.
	<LI>ttlist -- lists minimal info about each table in a font.
	</UL>
	They can all work with multiple input files. There are some extra
	options which are explained by the 'usage' text; use the -h option to
	display it. The setup.py script installs them as global tools, the
	source is in the Tools directory.

	<P>For MacOS there's a application called TTX. If you drop a TrueType
	file onto it, it will convert it to XML. If you drop an XML file onto
	it, it will convert it back to TrueType. Please read the additional
	README file in the Mac subdirectory, since it behaves quite differently
	than the command line programs described below.

	<P>Adam Twardoch contributed a Windows registry script (ttx_shellext_win32.py) which
	makes the two above tools available under the Right Mouse Button. I haven't tested
	these myself, but I'm very interested in hearing about the results!

	<H3>Note about glyph names and TrueType GlyphID's</H3>

	TrueType fonts use glyph indices (GlyphID's) to refer to glyphs in most places.
	While this is fine in binary form, it is really hard to work with for
	humans. Therefore we use names instead.

	<P>The names are derived from what is found in the 'post' table. It is
	possible that different glyphs use the same PS name. If this happens, we
	force the names to be unique by appending "#n" to the name (n being an
	integer number). The original PS names will still be maintained by the
	'post' table, so even though we use a different name internally, we are
	still able to write the 'post' table back in original form. If there is
	no proper 'post' table available, names will be derived from a Unicode
	cmap (if available) in conjuction with the Adobe Glyph List (see fontTools/agl.py).

	<P>Because the order in which glyphs are stored inside the TT font is
	important, ttLib maintains an ordered list of glyph names in the font.

	<H3>Feedback</H3>

	Please join the fonttools-discussion mailing list at SourceForge. Subscription
	info can be found if you follow the "Mailing Lists" link at the
	<A HREF="http://sourceforge.net/projects/fonttools/">SourceForge project page</A>.
	You can also email me directly at <A HREF="mailto:just@letterror.com">just@letterror.com</A>.

	<P>
	If you want to follow the development of FontTools closely, or would like to
	contribute, you can also subscribe to the fonttools-checkins mailing list.

	<H3>Anonymous CVS-access</H3>

	The FontTools sources are also accessible through CVS, see the
	the <A HREF="http://sourceforge.net/projects/fonttools/">SourceForge project
	page</A>. Let me know if you'd like to become a co-developer.

	<H3>Developer documentation</H3>

	Sorry, documentation beyond doc strings in the source code is still on my to-do list...
	Below follows a brief overview of what's there.

	<P>
	<H3>The library</H3>

	Cross-platform
	<UL>
	<LI>fontTools.t1Lib -- Provides a Type 1 font reader. Writing is a planned feature.
	<LI>fontTools.ttLib -- Extensive TrueType tools. Reads and writes. This is the flagship
	of FontTools, it's by far the most mature component. Contains a completely modular
	TTF table converter architecture. See ttLib/tables/table_API_readme.txt.
	<LI>fontTools.afmLib -- And AFM file reader/writer.
	<LI>fontTools.cffLib -- Reads CFF fonts. Writing is a planned feature.
	<LI>fontTools.unicode -- A simple (but large) module that translates
	Unicode values to their descriptive names. Still Unicode 2.0.
	<LI>fontTools.agl -- Interface to the Adobe Glyph List: maps unicode values
	to glyph names and back.
	</UL>

	Mac-specific
	<UL>
	<LI>fontTools.fondLib -- A reader/writer class for Mac FOND resources.
	<LI>fontTools.nfntLib -- Reads Mac NFNT bitmap font resources.
	</UL>

	<H3>Thank-you's</H3>

	(in alphabetical order)
	Erik van Blokland, Petr van Blokland, Jelle Bosma, Vincent Connare,
	Simon Daniels, Hannes Famira, Greg Hitchcock, Jack Jansen, Antoine Leca,
	Werner Lemberg, Peter Lofting, Dave Opstad, Laurence Penney,
	Guido van Rossum, Adam Twardoch.

	<H3>Copyrights</H3>

	FontTools/TTX -- 1999-2002 Just van Rossum; Letterror (just@letterror.com)

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