5.9.2.0.1 Font Changes

[DuckieTigger]

Originally Posted by thatsmyfish

Forgive me for being a novice on this one, but I just want to make sure I'm understanding correctly. I downloaded the book from Amazon to the kindle. The font appears normal for the settings I always use. I update to 5.9.2.0.1. The font, on an already downloaded book, now appears different, as shown above. If the book was already downloaded and is in the same format, why would the font not look the same? Something about the operating system?

Apparently the update changed either the font itself or the way the renderer displays the font. If you want to call everything on your Kindle operating system, then the rendering app would be part of that system. In that case, yes, a change in that system is to blame.

I don't agree with allowing an app to be considered part of the operating system, but there is little sense in arguing about it. And depending on who you ask, you will get different opinions on where the cutoff is to the operating system.

[JSWolf]

Originally Posted by DuckieTigger

Oh right, wrong word. I am not sure and it is probably hard to test it. That would only make a difference when hyphenating?

If you look at a line that's only part of the screen like the last line of a paragraph, look at the spaces. If you see other lines (that wrap) have smaller spaces, then yes, KFX has variable spaces. Larger spaces don't count as they are normal.

[DuckieTigger]

Originally Posted by JSWolf

If you look at a line that's only part of the screen like the last line of a paragraph, look at the spaces. If you see other lines (that wrap) have smaller spaces, then yes, KFX has variable spaces. Larger spaces don't count as they are normal.

Then no, it doesn't make the spaces between words smalller in order to squeeze in an extra part of the next word in to be hyphenated. The hyphenation algorithm is not very aggressive - it tries to avoid hyphenating too frequently.

[NullNix]

Originally Posted by DuckieTigger

Apparently the update changed either the font itself or the way the renderer displays the font. If you want to call everything on your Kindle operating system, then the rendering app would be part of that system. In that case, yes, a change in that system is to blame.

I don't agree with allowing an app to be considered part of the operating system, but there is little sense in arguing about it. And depending on who you ask, you will get different opinions on where the cutoff is to the operating system.

It's probably not an app: it's probably the FreeType library. There have been a lot of changes to FreeType to improve rendering over the last couple of years, right up to an entirely new hinter. The FreeType updates often come with security and stability fixes too, so it's not unlikely that Amazon updated that, and the tiny rendering changes came along for the ride.