Patents for Font hinting under review

This is something very interesting and cool  ( Scoble has even written about how Linux fonts dont look as good as Mac or Windows.) Sandeep has  written about this issue before. And this blog has carried information about how to turn font-hinting on, installing mac fonts here and here.

Sandeep writes on his Datum blog: “The basic issue is that certain basic patents in font hinting are owned by Apple. Though it has been good to never pursue them against Freetype – the font rendering engine for Linux – it was still a contentious issue.

However, now these patents could be expired – which does not mean Linux has to use these… but it removes roadblocks to leapfrog to advanced techniques based on these fundamental algorithms. This idea is [being] submitted to Ubuntu for legal counsel to enable this to happen.”

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Install Mac Fonts in Ubuntu

If you have used a Macintosh before and want to know if you could install those Mac fonts like AppleGaramond, Aquabase, LITHOGRL, Lucida Grande, Lucida Mac, lucon, and MacGrand on you Ubuntu Linux desktop, then rejoice because you easily could. Just follow these simple steps on installing and then using Mac fonts on Ubuntu:

Installing the fonts:

1. From the Linux terminal, download Mac fonts with this command:

$ wget http://ubuntu-debs.googlecode.com/files/macfonts.tar.gz

2. Untar or extract the downloaded file:

$ tar zxvf macfonts.tar.gz

3. Move macfonts folder to the /fonts directory:

$ sudo mv macfonts /usr/share/fonts/

4. Reload the font cache:

$ sudo fc-cache -f -v

Using the fonts:

You can now test or use the fonts by going to System –> Preferences –> Appearance, and then clicking on the “Fonts” tab. Here is a sample setup on using the Mac fonts:

Application font: Lucida MAC 10
Document font: Lucida MAC 10
Desktop font: Lucida MAC 10
Window title font: LucidaMacBold 10
Fixed width font: Lucida Console 10

That’s about it. Enjoy your new fonts.

You may also like this article: Download 100+ Free Fonts for Ubuntu

This posting courtesy of Tech Source From Bohol

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How to get beautiful Mac OSX quality fonts in Ubuntu

This posting from Oh my God, its still breathing, caught my attention. I haven’t implemented it yet, not wanting to increase the RAM and CPU overhead on my already strained system. What is the pay-off? If you’re typesetting, this could be a lifesaver, if you’re just surfing, there is no real need to have every bell and whistle turned on. But nice  knowing it is possible. Also, anybody know what the Hardy Heron defaults are, or how to backup and reinstall the fontconfig safely? Methinks there is a lot more here than meets the eye, and somebody should write a nice fontconfig application -DRL

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