4/23 Fonts: Bitmap & Outline Roll call Video: Outline Fonts Lecture: –bitmap fonts –outline fonts

Fonts: General Fonts are sets of stylized letters. They matter only to the monitor, printer, and people. Inside the computer, the letters are just ASCII code, not a particular shape or style.

Bitmapped vs. Outline Fonts Bitmapped fonts come in specific sizes. They are actually dot-matrix layouts of letters. Outline fonts are geometric designs for how a letter looks.

Bitmapped Fonts: A Pro & A Con Pro: –faster to process than outline fonts Con: –lack flexibility: limited to “stepped” sizes McGwire image courtesy of Prisoner image courtesy of

Bitmapped Fonts: Simplicity! The computer sends ASCII code to the printer. The printer uses the information in its ROM to print the corresponding bitmap on the page. 41h = A

Outline Fonts Outline fonts consist of mathematical descriptions of each character, called algorithms. Other algorithms are used for alterations to a letter: bold, italic, etc.

Outline Fonts Some typefaces include hints, special instructions for certain situations, such as really, really tiny printing, etc.

Outline Fonts The font is a description of the outline only. The software sets the area inside to black (or red, or striped, or…).

Outline Fonts: Pros & A Con Pros: The flexibility is vast with outline fonts, and the quality of the printed letters is often better. Con: Much slower than bitmapped fonts when printing: the entire page is treated as a graphic.