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MF(1) UNIX 5.3 (9/25/90) MF(1)
NAME
mf, inimf - Metafont, a language for alphabet design
SYNOPSIS
mf [ first line ]
inimf [ first line ]
virmf [ first line ]
DESCRIPTION
METAFONT reads the program in the specified files and
outputs font rasters (in gf format) and font metrics (in tfm
format). METAFONT capabilities and language are described
in The METAFONTbook by Donald E. Knuth, published by
Addison-Wesley.
Like TeX , METAFONT is normally used with a large body of
precompiled macros, and font generation in particular
requires the support of several macro files. The basic
program as compiled is called inimf; it can be used to
precompile macros into a .base file. The virmf variant is
used to reload the .base files quickly. Typically, virmf
has links to it by the names of the various base files. For
example, if you link foo to virmf and then execute the
program foo, you get the base file foo.base. You can load a
different base by saying, e.g., virmf&mybase.
As described in The METAFONTbook, the command line (or first
input line) should otherwise begin with a file name or a
\controlsequence. The normal usage is to say
mf '\mode=<printengine>; [mag=magstep(n);]' input
font
to start processing font.mf. The single quotes are the best
way of keeping your shell from misinterpreting the
semicolons and from removing the \ character, which is
needed here to keep METAFONT from thinking that you want to
produce a font called ``mode''. (Or you can just say mf and
give the other stuff on the next line, without quotes.)
Other control sequences, such as batchmode (for silent
operation) can also appear. The name ``font'' will be the
``jobname'', and is used in forming output file names. If
METAFONT doesn't get a file name in the first line, the
jobname is ``mfput''. The default extension, .mf, can be
overridden by specifying an extension explicitly.
A log of error messages goes into the file jobname.log. The
output files are jobname.tfm and jobname.<number>gf, where
<number> depends on the resolution and magnification of the
font. The ``mode'' in this example is shown generically as
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MF(1) UNIX 5.3 (9/25/90) MF(1)
<printengine>, a symbolic term for which the name of an
actual device or the name ``localfont'' (see below) must be
substituted. If the mode is not specified or is not valid
for your site, METAFONT will default to ``proof'' mode which
produces large character images for use in font design and
refinement. Proof mode can be recognized by the suffix
.2602gf after the jobname. Examples of proof mode output
can be found in ComputerModernTypefaces, (Volume E of
ComputersandTypesetting), by Donald Knuth. The system of
magsteps is identical to the system used by TeX , with
values generally in the range 0.5, 1.0, 2.0, 3.0, 4.0 and
5.0. A listing of gf numbers for 118-dpi, 240-dpi and 300-
dpi fonts is shown below.
MAGSTEP 118 dpi 240 dpi 300 dpi
mag=magstep(0) 118 240 300
mag=magstep(0.5) 129 263 329
mag=magstep(1) 142 288 360
mag=magstep(2) 170 346 432
mag=magstep(3) 204 415 518
mag=magstep(4) 245 498 622
mag=magstep(5) 294 597 746
Magnification can also be specified not as a magstep but as
an arbitrary value, such as 1.315, to create special
character sizes.
Before font production can begin, it is necessary to set up
the appropriate base files. The minimum set of components
for font production for a given print-engine is the plain.mf
macro file and the local `mode_def' file. The macros in
plain.mf can be studied in an appendix to the METAFONTbook;
they were developed by Donald Knuth, and this file should
never be altered except when it is officially upgraded. Each
mode_def specification helps adapt fonts to a particular
print-engine. There is a regular discussion of mode_defs in
the journal of the TeX Users Group, TUGboat; the local ones
in use on this computer should be somewhere in the directory
/usr/local/lib/mf/macros. With only plain.mf and the
``modes'' file loaded it is possible to create fonts of
simple characters, such as those used for the METAFONT logo,
and those used for the LaTeX line and circle fonts, but the
production of Computer Modern fonts would be facilitated by
making a cmmf.base file (which includes the macros in
cmbase.mf as well as those in plain.mf).
Several environment variables can be used to set up
directory paths to search when METAFONT opens a file for
input. For example, the csh command
setenv MFINPUTS .:/usr/me/mylib:/usr/local/lib/mf/macros
or the sh command sequence
MFINPUTS=.:/usr/me/mylib:/usr/local/lib/mf/macros
export MFINPUTS
Page 2 (printed 12/3/90)
MF(1) UNIX 5.3 (9/25/90) MF(1)
would cause all invocations of METAFONT and its derivatives
to look for \input files first in the current directory,
then in a hypothetical user's ``mylib'', and finally in the
system library. Normally, the user will place the command
sequence which sets up the MFINPUTS environment variable in
his or her .login or .profile file.
The e response to METAFONT's error-recovery mode invokes the
system default editor at the erroneous line of the source
file. There is an environment variable, MFEDIT, that
overrides the default editor. It should contain a string
with "%s" indicating where the filename goes and "%d"
indicating where the decimal linenumber (if any) goes. For
example, an MFEDIT string for the vi editor can be set with
the csh command
setenv MFEDIT "/usr/ucb/vi +%d %s"
The environment variables section below lists the relevant
environment variables, and their defaults.
A convenient file in the library is null.mf, containing
nothing. When mf can't find the file it thinks you want to
input, it keeps asking you for another file name;
responding `null' gets you out of the loop if you don't want
to input anything.
ENVIRONMENT VARIABLES
The default values for all environment variables are set at
the time of compilation in a file site.h. See tex(1) for
the details of the searching. If the environment variable
TEXMFOUTPUT is set, METAFONT attempts to put its output
files in it, if they cannot be put in the current directory.
Again, see tex(1).
MFINPUTS
Search path for input and openin files. It should be
colon-separated, and start with ``.''. Default:
.:/usr/local/lib/mf/macros.
MFINPUTS_SUBDIR
Search path for directories with subdirectories of
input files. Default: @MFINPUTS_SUBDIR@
MFBASES
Search path for base files. Default:
/usr/local/lib/mf/bases.
MFPOOL
Search path for METAFONT internal strings. Default:
/usr/local/lib/mf.
MFEDIT
Page 3 (printed 12/3/90)
MF(1) UNIX 5.3 (9/25/90) MF(1)
Command template for switching to editor. Default:
/usr/bin/vi+%d%s.
FONT UTILITIES
A number of utility programs are available. The following is
a partial list of available utilities and their purpose.
Consult your local METAFONT guru for details.
gftopk Takes a GF file and produces a more tightly packed
PK font file.
gftodvi Produces proof sheets for fonts.
gftype Displays the contents of a GF file in mnemonics
and/or images.
pktype Mnemonically displays the contents of a PK file.
mft Formats a source file as shown in Computer Modern
Typefaces.
FILES
/usr/local/lib/mf METAFONT's library areas
/usr/local/lib/mf/mf.pool
Encoded text of METAFONT's messages
/usr/local/lib/mf/bases/*.base
METAFONT base files
/usr/local/lib/mf/macros/plain.mf
The ``standard'' macro package
/usr/local/lib/mf/macros/(something).mf
The file of ``mode_def''s for your
site's various printers
/src/TeX+MF/typefaces/cm/mf
METAFONT sources for Computer Modern
SUGGESTED READING
Donald E. Knuth, The METAFONTbook (Volume C of Computers
and Typesetting)
Donald E. Knuth, METAFONT: The Program (Volume D of
Computers and Typesetting)
Donald E. Knuth, Computer Modern Typefaces (Volume E of
Computers and Typesetting)
TUGboat (the publication of the TeX Users Group)
COMMENTS
Warning: ``Type design can be hazardous to your other
interests. Once you get hooked, you will develop intense
Page 4 (printed 12/3/90)
MF(1) UNIX 5.3 (9/25/90) MF(1)
feelings about letterforms; the medium will intrude on the
messages that you read. And you will perpetually be
thinking of improvements to the fonts that you see
everywhere, especially those of your own design.''
SEE ALSO
gftopk(1), gftodvi(1), gftype(1), mft(1), pltotf(1),
tftopl(1)
BUGS
On January 4, 1986 the ``final'' bug in METAFONT was
discovered and removed. If an error still lurks in the code,
D.E. Knuth promises to pay a finders fee which doubles every
year to the first person who finds it. Happy hunting.
AUTHORS
METAFONT was designed by Donald E. Knuth, who implemented it
using his WEB system for Pascal programs. It was originally
ported to Unix by Paul Richards at the University of
Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. This page written by Pierre
MacKay (mostly).
Page 5 (printed 12/3/90)