Does Firmware 3.12.0 have a new font rendering engine?

buffaloseven · 01-20-2015, 12:38 PM

I seem to recall way back in the 1.x and 2.x days it was highly recommended to upload TrueType (.ttf) fonts to the /fonts folder for optimal display quality (particularly if you have your device hacked to enable the advanced font controls for side-loaded fonts). I've been playing around with 3.12 and noticed a lot of my fonts not rendering properly. I tried a lot of things to try and improve how they looked but nothing seemed to work.

On a lark, I decided to just remove them all and upload OpenType (.otf) versions of them and voila, all the problems were gone. The fonts render as legibly as the system fonts, either by themselves or with the advanced font control hack installed.

Did something change in the firmware with how fonts were rendered? Was there more going on than just combining the sharpness & weight sliders together?

I guess if you find some of your side-loaded fonts rendering poorly, try using a .otf version of it to see if it fixes the problem.

JSWolf · 01-20-2015, 01:15 PM

I've been using TTF fonts and they render just fine on my H2O.

It could be the fonts in question being not all that good. That's just a guess.

Can you tell us which fonts are not displaying properly in case any of them are free or anyone has any of them to try?

buffaloseven · 01-20-2015, 01:39 PM

Most of them aren't free. I do some design work that relies on a lot of various typography, so I have a library of fairly high-quality fonts (HF&J, FF, a few other smaller foundries). Although ones that I noticed a big difference was Athelas & Elena, which comes pre-installed on any modern Mac.

Just looking over my list of fonts, I believe "Andada" is a free font that renders slightly better with OTF versus TTF, but it definitely wasn't the most dramatic. Biggest differences were with serifed fonts; the ones that were dramatically better to my eyes were Calluna, Elena, Tiempos Text & Tisa.

EDIT: I might run into some time tomorrow night that I could test it and take a few screenshots. Not sure yet. Also I'm running on a Kobo Aura.

buffaloseven · 01-20-2015, 01:45 PM

As an aside, if you have a Mac, Elena makes for a very nice reading font in my opinion.

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JSWolf · 01-20-2015, 02:04 PM

Try using ADe with a box standard ePub and embedded TTF fonts. That should work. It does work here for me on my H2O. Give it a try and see what happens.

frostschutz · 01-20-2015, 02:26 PM

So far I only noticed one font rendering error on the H2O, with a single font, ant it may be the fault of the font itself. Using Linux Libertine TTF, in the bold or bold italic variant, the number 5 appeared crooked. It was visible in the 'Chapter 5' heading of don't ask me which book. I'd have to hunt it down in order to get a screenshot, but it was minimal enough (considering the lack of bold in regular text) to be silently ignored.

jackie_w · 01-20-2015, 06:25 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by frostschutz

So far I only noticed one font rendering error on the H2O, with a single font, ant it may be the fault of the font itself. Using Linux Libertine TTF, in the bold or bold italic variant, the number 5 appeared crooked.

Just in case it's of any interest. I've found the 4 ttf members of the Linux Libertine G family render very nicely on my H20 (I seem to remember I did fatten up the Regular and Italic files a bit before loading to the Kobo but it probably wasn't necessary).

Regarding ttf vs. otf, I've found the experience very variable. Some sideloaded otfs have not worked at all with the TypeGenius feature (e.g. the version of MinionPro I have) and some have no problem at all (e.g. the version of Amasis I copied from my old PRST1).

On the otherhand I have a couple of ttf fonts (CelticEels and Medici Text) that I like to use when fancy initial dropcaps seem appropriate (e.g. epic fantasy). The ttf versions have always looked pretty good on my Sony eink devices and in Android apps but they rendered badly on the Kobos until I converted them to otf. Now they look good again. Who knows how/why it all works as it does

JSWolf · 01-20-2015, 06:39 PM

WHat's the best way to convert from TTF to OTF without buying a font editor?

jackie_w · 01-20-2015, 06:46 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JSWolf

WHat's the best way to convert from TTF to OTF without buying a font editor?

I don't know about 'best' but I just googled 'convert ttf to otf' and tried the online converter service at the top of the list. I can't remember which one it was. I do remember that not all the fonts I tried would convert but the 2 dropcap fonts did which was all I really cared about at the time.

JSWolf · 01-20-2015, 06:51 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jackie_w

I don't know about 'best' but I just googled 'convert ttf to otf' and tried the online converter service at the top of the list. I can't remember which one it was. I do remember that not all the fonts I tried would convert but the 2 dropcap fonts did which was all I really cared about at the time.

I don't know how well this site works, but it seems to allow many different font format conversions.

http://everythingfonts.com/ttf-to-otf

01-20-2015, 12:38 PM	#1
buffaloseven Watching the Sky Posts: 239 Karma: 634112 Join Date: Sep 2012 Location: Winnipeg, MB Device: Kobo Aura	Does Firmware 3.12.0 have a new font rendering engine? I seem to recall way back in the 1.x and 2.x days it was highly recommended to upload TrueType (.ttf) fonts to the /fonts folder for optimal display quality (particularly if you have your device hacked to enable the advanced font controls for side-loaded fonts). I've been playing around with 3.12 and noticed a lot of my fonts not rendering properly. I tried a lot of things to try and improve how they looked but nothing seemed to work. On a lark, I decided to just remove them all and upload OpenType (.otf) versions of them and voila, all the problems were gone. The fonts render as legibly as the system fonts, either by themselves or with the advanced font control hack installed. Did something change in the firmware with how fonts were rendered? Was there more going on than just combining the sharpness & weight sliders together? I guess if you find some of your side-loaded fonts rendering poorly, try using a .otf version of it to see if it fixes the problem.

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01-20-2015, 01:15 PM	#2
JSWolf Resident Curmudgeon Posts: 79,497 Karma: 145863170 Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Roslindale, Massachusetts Device: Kobo Libra 2, Kobo Aura H2O, PRS-650, PRS-T1, nook STR, PW3	I've been using TTF fonts and they render just fine on my H2O. It could be the fonts in question being not all that good. That's just a guess. Can you tell us which fonts are not displaying properly in case any of them are free or anyone has any of them to try?

01-20-2015, 01:39 PM	#3
buffaloseven Watching the Sky Posts: 239 Karma: 634112 Join Date: Sep 2012 Location: Winnipeg, MB Device: Kobo Aura	Most of them aren't free. I do some design work that relies on a lot of various typography, so I have a library of fairly high-quality fonts (HF&J, FF, a few other smaller foundries). Although ones that I noticed a big difference was Athelas & Elena, which comes pre-installed on any modern Mac. Just looking over my list of fonts, I believe "Andada" is a free font that renders slightly better with OTF versus TTF, but it definitely wasn't the most dramatic. Biggest differences were with serifed fonts; the ones that were dramatically better to my eyes were Calluna, Elena, Tiempos Text & Tisa. EDIT: I might run into some time tomorrow night that I could test it and take a few screenshots. Not sure yet. Also I'm running on a Kobo Aura.

01-20-2015, 01:45 PM	#4
buffaloseven Watching the Sky Posts: 239 Karma: 634112 Join Date: Sep 2012 Location: Winnipeg, MB Device: Kobo Aura	As an aside, if you have a Mac, Elena makes for a very nice reading font in my opinion.

01-20-2015, 02:04 PM	#5
JSWolf Resident Curmudgeon Posts: 79,497 Karma: 145863170 Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Roslindale, Massachusetts Device: Kobo Libra 2, Kobo Aura H2O, PRS-650, PRS-T1, nook STR, PW3	Try using ADe with a box standard ePub and embedded TTF fonts. That should work. It does work here for me on my H2O. Give it a try and see what happens.

01-20-2015, 02:26 PM	#6
frostschutz Linux User Posts: 2,282 Karma: 6123806 Join Date: Sep 2010 Location: Heidelberg, Germany Device: none	So far I only noticed one font rendering error on the H2O, with a single font, ant it may be the fault of the font itself. Using Linux Libertine TTF, in the bold or bold italic variant, the number 5 appeared crooked. It was visible in the 'Chapter 5' heading of don't ask me which book. I'd have to hunt it down in order to get a screenshot, but it was minimal enough (considering the lack of bold in regular text) to be silently ignored.

01-20-2015, 06:39 PM	#8
JSWolf Resident Curmudgeon Posts: 79,497 Karma: 145863170 Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Roslindale, Massachusetts Device: Kobo Libra 2, Kobo Aura H2O, PRS-650, PRS-T1, nook STR, PW3	WHat's the best way to convert from TTF to OTF without buying a font editor?

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