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- Documentation for the font "penpal"
-
- This font has a standard Amiga font structure. In order to install the
- "penpal" font on a disk (which, for safety, should be a backup disk in case
- something goes wrong), follow these instructions:
-
- 1. Create a directory called "penpal" in the "fonts" directory of
- the disk on which you want to put "penpal" by using the CLI command
- MAKEDIR df0:fonts/penpal
- or MAKEDIR df1:fonts/penpal
- depending on whether the target disk is in drive 0 or 1.
-
- 2. Copy the file in this ARC called "PenPal.18" into the "penpal"
- directory as a file named simply "18" using a CLI command something
- like COPY df1:PenPal.18 df0:fonts/penpal/18
- or COPY ram:PenPal.18 df0:fonts/penpal/18
- or whatever corresponds to your source and destination files.
-
- 3. Copy the file in this ARC called "penpal.font" into the "fonts"
- directory using a CLI command like
- COPY df1:penpal.font df0:fonts
- or COPY ram:penpal.font df0:fonts
- or whatever.
-
- Once you have "penpal.font" in the "fonts" directory and "18" in the
- "fonts/penpal" subdirectory, you should then find that "penpal 18" appears
- in your font menu when you use the disk. Don't use CLI to change the names
- of these files to something you like better, because the "penpal.font" file
- has the "penpal" name imbedded in it. You can, of course, change the names
- and even the font itself, using a font editor, as mentioned below.
- If you have already installed additional fonts, the process described
- above should seem familiar but, if not, it will seem a little weird.
-
- "Penpal" is a true script font, in that the letters join together as
- in normal handwriting. Cursive fonts also simulate handwriting, but do not
- actually join together. The "penpal" font was designed to simulate normal
- handwriting on a dot matrix printer, and consequently may look somewhat thin
- on a screen display. With it you could "write" someone a "handwritten" note
- or letter by just typing on your keyboard.
-
- Like other Amiga fonts, "penpal" can be used in NotePad,
- in PageSetter and other desktop or personal publishing programs, and
- in paint programs. Just install "penpal" in the "fonts" directory of a
- working copy of the program disk, as described above.
-
- You can use "penpal" as a starting point for creating
- your own custom script fonts by using a public domain font editor or by
- using "FED" which was included on the Extras disk of the AmigaDos 1.2
- Enhancer package. FED is a full-featured font editor with a good user
- interface. Fed does not require the two files associated with a font to be
- in the "fonts" directory. Fed has a small bug that messes up sometimes
- when you shift a character's bit pattern right or left, but you can replace
- the few dropped or misplaced pixels without too much trouble.
-
- I used "Fed" to create "penpal". Once you load "penpal" into Fed,
- you can "see how it was done." The tricky part with a script font is
- to get the letters to join up smoothly and still have the letters look
- fairly natural. But the Amiga fonts are versatile enough to allow you
- to do that, and more.
-
- Handwriting is a very personal thing, and there are many styles and
- variations for each letter. So I expect that many of you will want to
- personalize "penpal" to your very own font, using Fed or some other
- font editor. If you are a patient person, you may find font editing or
- font creation to be an interesting activity. And perhaps in time to come,
- the public domain will become a rich storehouse of Amiga fonts of all kinds.
-
- Enjoy,
-
-
- Burton Ray Ogden 22 Apr 87
-
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-