Re: Remapping fonts in the server [was: Support for symbol fonts]

From: Juliusz Chroboczek (jec@dcs.ed.ac.uk)
Date: Wed Jul 28 1999 - 13:54:32 EDT


>> The X server will be extended by a simple conversion function that
>> can generate on-the-fly legacy encodings such as CP1252, KOI-8,
>> CP1252, JIS X 208, etc. from the ISO 10646-1 encoded source fonts.

EvdP> I'm pretty sure you are aware of the Han unification issues, but I think
EvdP> you would be more successful if you treat CJK with care. I.e. when
EvdP> making a JIS X 0208 font available, make sure the glyphs are
EvdP> "Japanese-style" and not Chinese.

That's not our resort. A font will be remapped only if the transfor-
mation is mentioned in a configuration style (similar to `fonts.dir',
but with a syntax allowing for options). Chosing The Right Thing for
CJK glyphs (or any other subtleties related to the fact that Unicode
is not a glyph encoding) will be handled by who- or whatever writes
this file (typically a human or an installation program).

As a general rule, I've been trying to follow the approach that any
script- or encoding-dependent issues should be dealt with in the
client or in /ad hoc/ configuration files, so that users can easily
provide support for their language. Currently, the only exception to
this rule is handling of the ISO 8859 series of encodings, which are
hardwired in the code (most users find this exception convenient).

(Erik, if you're interested, I'll be glad to send you -- by private
mail -- a detailed description of my design. The server interface is
pretty much frozen (I did sweat blood over it), but the syntax of the
new file is open to discussion.)

Sincerely,

                                        J.



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