The paths for .PFM and .PFB files may be as deep as you like and there is no
need for any relationship between .PFM and .PFB directories. There is a limit
of 40 characters for a path string.
FontManager also creates an application section in WIN.INI with the
following lines:
[FONTMANAGER]
FontManager=Installed
FMDIR={Full path to \FONT_MGR directory}
INSTALLING FONTMANAGER
There are four basic files you will need to run FontManager:
1. FONTMGR.EXE This is the main executable file. It may be placed
anywhere you like, but I would suggest creating a
directory on the same drive as your windows directory
named [drive]:\FONT_MGR. If you don't create this
directory, the initial setup routine will create it
as this is where the master library and all Fontpaks will be stored.
2. HUGEARR.DLL This is a windows Dynamic Link Library that handles
huge array processing. It must be placed in the main
windows directory unless you want to add the
\FONT_MGR directory to your path and we know you
dont want to do that. Included with this upload.
3. PSETUP.DLL This is a very small DLL library file which also must
be placed in the Windows main directory. It handles
all the printer setup routines. It is the work of
Costas Kitsos, and it is included with this upload.
4. VBRUN100.DLL This is the main Visual Basic run time Dynamic Link
Library (DLL) file. It, too, must be located in your
windows directory. This file is also on CIS, MSLANG,
Lib 6, as VBRUN.ZIP
Simply place these files in the correct directories, fire up windows
and run FONTMGR.EXE. The first time you run FontMgr.EXE, only one menu item
will be active - FILES/INITIAL SETUP. Simply click on the FILES menu and then
INITIAL SETUP - it's the only one available.
You will first be asked what path you would like for installing the FontManager directory (\FONT_MGR). The default will be on your windows drive. You mau specify any path you wish. Just make sure your entry ends with \FONT_MGR.
You will be asked what drives you want searched for font files to catalog. You should search all drives which may contain type 1 font files.
This process may take a few minutes on machines with huge hard drives and/or
a very large number of fonts. When testing on a 386/33 with hyperdisk and a
total of 2034 PFM and 2034 PFB files, it took about 3 minutes to search, build
indexs, sort, and create the master file.
FONTMANAGER LIMITATIONS
FontManager is capable of managing up to 2048 type 1 postscript fonts.
As with most PC programs, this limit has its roots in the "Sector" format of
DOS memory. Handling more than this number of fonts would require foregoing
some very fast binary string processing, or in short, it would slow things
down a bunch.
Further, FontManager is limited to 6 installed PostScript ports in
WIN.INI. If you have more than six, FontManger will only work with the first
six it finds.
FontManager has not been designed for or tested with any network
environments.
WHAT INITIAL SETUP DOES
First it searches the drives you indicate for all .PFM and .PFB files
and catalogs them. It then matches up .PFM and .PFB files for the same font.
Missing .PFB files are no problem and will be normal for users with fonts
stored on a printer's hard disk. It will list any .PFB files it finds without
a matching .PFM file, however. Fonts with a .PFM file but no .PFB file are
forced to a PRINTER RESIDENT status when creating FontPaks and adding these
fonts to a port regardless of how you set the resident/not resident option at
that time.
Initial setup also tests for any duplicate .PFM files. FontManager will not work properly if there are any duplicate .PFM files for the same font in the Library. It simply has no way of knowing which one to use. If there are any duplicate .PFM file found, a critical warning diaplog box is displayed. Selecting OK to this dialog box will result in a printed list of all duplicates and where they are located.
The master font library file and all fontpak files you later create will be placed in the Font_mgr directory created at initial setup. If for any reason you opt to move the \FONT_MGR directory, you will also need to change to FMDIR={fullpath} line in the [FONTMANAGER] application section of WIN.INI to reflect its new location.
Once you have run the initial setup, all the other menu options will
be activated, and the INITIAL SETUP menu will be disabled. The only way you
can run INITIAL SETUP again is to manually delete the LIBRARY.FNT file from
the \FONT_MGR directory, and delete the entire [FONTMANGER] application section in WIN.INI. Doing this will invalidate all then existing FontPak files, so you might as well delete them, too, unless you want some real goofy fonts.
To get a printed listing of your Font Library, simply use the PRINT
MASTER LIBRARY menu under the FILES menu. This listing will be needed if you
opt to use Font ID numbers for creating fontpaks. It's also a good reference
of all the Type 1 postscript fonts you have on your system.
LIBRARY.FNT MASTER FILE
This file is created when the initial setup is run. It is a random
access file with information on all the fonts Initial Setup and subsequent
Updates find on user selected logical disk drives. If this file is ever
deleted and re-created using Initial Setup, ALL EXISTING FONTPAK FILES WILL
BE INVALID AND MUST BE DELETED. I STRONGLY SUGGEST MANUALLY MAKING A BACKUP
COPY OF THIS FILE AFTER INITIAL INSTALLATION AND ANY TIME IT IS UPDATED WITH
THE UPDATE PROCEDURE.
UPDATE MASTER FILE
This procedure allows you to add new fonts and record changed locations of existing fonts in the master library. It simply searches an entire directory for .pfm and .pfb files, and adds ones not currently in the master directory.
Unlike initial setup, update is done on individual directories. A drive\directory list box is displayed. You simply click on the directories you want updated and press Add Directory. It will then appear in the selected list. You must actually select each individual directory you want to update as only the selected directory and NOT any lower directories on that branch will be updated. You may select a directory at any level it appears.
For example, if you want the \psfonts and the \psfonts\pfm directories, you'll select each of these directories and the selected list will look like this:
c:\psfonts
c:\psfonts\pfm
CREATING FONTPAKS
You may create FontPaks in one of two ways. You may either enter the
desired fonts by their Font ID Number as shown on the printed Master Library
Catalog, or you can select fonts based on thier full name from a displayed
selection list.
When using the Font ID method, I used a technique not normally found
in window apps. You enter the font ID number in a text box and press enter to
accept it. Normally in windows apps, pressing enter selects the OK or CONTINUE
or some such command button while the tab key usually accepts data from a text
box. As only numbers are used to create FontPaks in this mode and the TAB key
is on the other side of the keyboard, I used this ENTER method. If you enter
an incorrect font ID, just select the appropriate displayed line for it and
press the delete button.
When selecting fonts based on font names, a more traditional windows
approach is used. You'll have a list of available fonts on the left, and a list
of selected fonts on the right. Simply click on the desired font in the
available list, and it will be transfered to the selected list. FontManager
will not allow you to select a font more than once. You can remove a selected
font by clicking on it and pressing the delete button.
You may also include whole fontpaks when creating a new fontpak. Simply
press the INCLUDE FONTPAK button, select the desired fontpak and it will be
inserted. FontManager will not allow duplicating font's in a fontpak, so don't
worry if an included fontpak includes some fonts that you have already selected
for inclusion.
MODIFYING FONTPAKS
This procedure uses exactly the same window as creating a font pack
using font names. It simply starts with the FontPak to modify already loaded
into the selected list. You may add fonts, delete fonts or include other
fontpaks just as when creating a new fontpak.
DELETEING FONTPAKS
Another no-brainer. Select DELETE A FONTPAK from the FILES menu, select
the desired FontPak, press Delete, answer yes to another "Are you sure?" query,
and it's gone. If you delete a fontpak by mistake, hopefully you have Norton
Utilities handy.
PRINTING THE MASTER CATALOG AND FONTPAK LISTS
Again, very straight forward. You may print to either a PostScript or
other type printer. If you're using a PostScript printer, FontManager will
recognize the selected paper size and print accordingly.
SETUP PRINTER
This feature utilizes the small Psetup.DLL created by Costas Kitsos.
It simply allows you access to your printer driver setup feature. If you wish
to actually change selected printers, you will need to do that through Control
Panel.
LIST INSTALLED FONTPAKS
This routine is in the "WIN.INI" main menu. It simply displays every
PostScript port you have and the FontPak that is installed on each. If you have
modified an installed FontPak by adding another fontpak or individual fonts to
a port, it will say "CUSTOM". If you have no softfonts installed on a port, it
will say "NONE". If one of the displayed postscript ports is also the active
printer port, that line will be highlighted.
CHANGE OR SAVE FONTS
This is the actual routine to make changes to installed softfonts with
FontManger. It is decribed in detail below. If you ever look at WIN.INI in a
text editor after it has been modified by FontManger, you'll see the line:
;FONTPAKINSTALLED=[text] immediately preceeding the SOFTFONTS=XX line. This
line is used by FontManger to know what pak is installed on that port. It is
installed as a comment line to preclude it interfering in any way with that
ports functionality.
MOVING .PFM and .PFB FILES
If you should move any PFM or PFB files, FontManager will update the
master library file with the new locations the next time UPDATE is run on the
drive that contains the moved files. No changes are necessary to any FontPaks
if any font files are moved. Just Make sure to run UPDATE after moving any
file.
CHANGING A PRINTER PORT'S FONT SETUP
You may perform any combination of 4 actions in this window:
1. REPLACE A PORT'S FONTPAK: This action will delete all currently installed
softfonts lines from the selected Port or ports and install the selected font
pack.
2. ADD A FONTPAK TO A PORT: This action will add the selected FontPak to any
currently installed softfonts installed on the selected port. No exisitng
softfont lines are deleted.
3. ADD SINGLE FONTS TO A PORT: This action will add selected single fonts to
any currently existing softfont lines on the selected ports.
4. SAVE PORT SETUP TO A FONTPAK: This action will save the softfont
configuration of a selected port to a FontPak file for future use. The FontPak
file created may be printed and modified just like any other FontPak. The SAVE
action is only available when only one port is selected. If you have selected
more than one port, SAVE will not be available.
In steps 1 thru 3, the softfonts=xx line is updated to reflect the
actual number of softfont lines for that port. Additionally, FontManager makes
it impossible to have a font listed more than once in a port section. Even if
you add a fontpak that contains some fonts already in the section, it will not
make duplicate entries for the same font.
You may perform any combination or all of these actions at one time.
You may replace the base fontpak, add a second font pak, and add some
individual fonts. If your actions only affect one port, you may also save the
final font contents created on that port to a fontpak file. The SAVE action
may also be used by itself to create a fontpak file from a port's font
configuration. The only limitation is that you may only ADD one FontPak with
the Add FontPak action. You may add all the single fonts you want.
REPLACING AND MODIFYING INSTALLED SOFTFONTS
Modifying a port's installed softfonts is done in two steps. First,
select the printer port(s) you want to change, select a desired action, select
the appropriate FontPak or individual softfonts to use and click on Post
Change. Then select the next desired action, FontPak or fonts and click on
Post Change again. Clicking on Post Change tells the system that you are done
with this action and ready to do another. When you click on Post Change, the
selected Action button line will change from blue to red to indicate this
action will occur when you finally Write Win.Ini. If you find you're working
on the wrong action line, simply click on the correct action line without
pressing Post Change. If you're unsure about an action you have already
comitted (Action button line is red), simply click on that action line again
and make any necessary changes.
NOTE: At this time, there is no way to completely UNDO an action once it has
been committed with Post Change. If you have slected an action and Posted it,
you can change the Port, the FontPak or the individual fonts, but you can't
stop the basic action from occuring when you Write Win.Ini. The only current
way to get out of this situation is to Exit the window and restart it from the
Main Menu. Candidly, I've run out of room on the window for another command
button to UNDO and I'll need to modify the window to handle this.
SELECTED PORTS TO MODIFY
This selection determines which PostScript printer ports will be
modified. When Win.Ini is finally written, all actions will occur for the
Port(s) selected at that time. Thus, you can change the desired ports between
different change actions if the original selections were incorrect. If you have
selected multiple ports, the same changes will be carried out on all the
selected ports.
SELECTING INDIVIDUAL FONTS TO ADD TO PORT
The sub-dialog box for this action is very similar to the Create a
FontPak window. Simply enter the Font ID number for the desired font(s) in the
Add Font# text box and press ENTER after each one. Alternatively, you can press
the SHOW FONTS button which will display a list of all fonts in the master
library. When this list is displayed, double clicking on an available font will
place it in the selected list. The list of availbale fonts can be erased by
either pressing SHOW FONTS again, or exiting the Add Individual Fonts action.
If you add an incorrect font ID, simply select the bad font in the list and
press Delete Font. The printer resident box is straight forward. When selected,
it indicates fonts are printer resident. When not selected, it indicates fonts
are NOT printer resident. It can be changed for each font added. When the Add
SINGLE Fonts to a Port action button is inactive, the entire Select Individual
Fonts sub-dialog is disabled.
POST CHANGE
This command button acts to validate an action. If you're missing
something required for the particular change to occur, you will be prompted
for the missing information. If you do not press Post Change before going to
another Action, the action just left WILL NOT be carried out when Write Win.Ini
is selected. Post Change also turns the selected Action line red to indicate
that this action will occur when you do Write Win.Ini.
WRITE WIN.INI
This is the big one that will actually cause all selected actions and
changes to be made to Win.ini. If you select Write Win.Ini by mistake, there is
still a dialog box which summarizes all your changes where you'll be able to
abort. Even if you don't abort here and discover a problem, Win.Ini is saved
to a file named WIN.WFM in your windows directory which may be manually copied
back to WIN.INI to restore the previous setup. In the next revision, the option
to do this automatically will be added.
Write Win.Ini also forces Windows to re-read Win.Ini and update the
system resources. Thus, all changes you make with FontManager are immediately
available to all Windows apps. This is accomplished by sending the
wm_WININICHANGE message. If a running app does not respond to this message by
updateing it's font resources, you'll have to close and re-open that app for
the new fonts to be available in it. Unfortuneatly, PageMaker and Word for
Windows are two big ones that don't update their font resources even when
notified by windows of a change in resources.
SUMMARY MESSAGE BOX
After selecting Write Win.Ini to make your changes, you'll get a dialog
box that summarizes what changes will be made. It will also give you the option
of aborting these changes and return to the Change Window.
IF YOU'RE NOT SURE
If you make some complex changes to a port and aren't sure about their
accuracy, simply start over and do it again.
ADDING MULTIPLE FONTPAKS TO A PORT
You may ADD multiple font packs to a port by doing it one at a time.
Select ADD a FontPak to a Port, select the port and FontPak, press Post Change,
Write Win.ini and repeat these steps until all the desired FontPaks have been
added to the port. Just remember that Win.Ini has a practical limit of
somewhere around 150 fonts.
ORDER ACTIONS ARE CARRIED OUT
Actions are carried out in the same order the Action Button Lines are
displayed in the window. Save Port to a FontPak is the last action. This allows
you to make any combination or all of the first three Actions and save the
result of those Actions to a new FontPak in one pass. Remember, the SAVE action
is only available if you're acting on only a single port. If you select more
than one port, the SAVE action is disabled.
AVAILABLE FONTPAKS
The Available FontPak list displays FontPaks with their ".FP" file
extensions which FontManager adds to the names of all FontPak files. Whenever
you are asked for a FontPak name, you DO NOT need to enter this extension.
Doing so, however, won't hurt a thing.
THE APP LAUNCHER:
FontManager incorporates an application launcher to allow you to immediately open any apps directly from FontManager. Simply double click on the desired application file or an associated document file from the drive\directory\file list box that is displayed.
You may also open Control Panel directly from FontManager with the Control Panel menu item under the FILES menu.
GENERAL - SCREEN DESIGNS vs SCREEN RESOLUTION
The windows in FontManger were written to look the best on high
resolution video systems, 1024x768 in particular. They display just fine in
std VGA mode, but do look a little "Horsey" to steal a Kathleen Tinkel phrase.
I just felt most people with enough fonts to need this program would have
better than VGA resolution video systems.
FONT ID NUMBERS
During Initial Setup and Update, FontManager assigns Font ID Numbers
to each font it adds to the Master Font Library. These Font ID Numbers are used
when creating new fontpaks and when adding individual fonts to a printer port.
When FontManager is initally setup, these Font ID numbers are in the same order
as the alphabetical order of the full font names. As the UPDATE routine adds
newly installed fonts, they are added to the end of the master file and their
Font ID numbers have no relationship to any alphabetical order. Thus, if the
1789th font added to the library is named AARDVARK, it will have the Font ID
number 1789 and not 1. Just don't be surprised when you print a Master Font
Library Catalog which is ordered alphabetically by full font name and the Font
ID numbers are not in order.
VIEW/EDIT WIN.INI
Selecting this option under the FILES menu will display the current
WIN.INI file in a text box. You may move through this text box with the scroll
bars, up/down arrows or page up/page down keys. You may also edit WIN.INI in
this text box. All the standard Windows text box editing tools are available.
Save the edited version by selecting SAVE from the FILE menu. If you save an
edited version of WIN.INI, Windows will re-read it immediately.
WHO'S RESPONSIBLE?
The guy below did it, and he'd sure appreciate any comments about problems or
ways to improve this program. If you need to get ahold of me, I can be reached
at:
Dennis Harrington
7300 Evergreen Way
Everett, Wa. 98203
(206) 355-6690
CIS id: 76216,3472
THERE IS NO REGISTRATION FEE OR ANY OTHER FEES NEEDED TO USE FontManager. It is
totally public domain freeware. Please feel free to share it with anyone you
want if you find it helpful. Consider it my token of appreciation for all the
help I've received from the members of the DTP forum on CIS. The author sure
wouldn't turn down any C notes, though.
IF FONTMANAGER SHOULD CAUSE ANY PROBLEMS OF ANY KIND, PLEASE LET ME KNOW, BUT PLEASE FULLY UNDERSTAND THAT THERE ARE NO WARRANTIES, PROMISES OR GUARANTEES THAT FONTMANGER WILL DO ANYTHING OTHER THAN TAKE UP GOOD DISK SPACE. PLEASE CONSIDER THIS AS THE OLD "I AIN'T RESPONSIBLE FOR NOTHIN" DISCLAIMER.
