Arch Linux

sven

Member

Registered: 2005-02-01

Posts: 311

Problems with Helvetica after fontconfig update [SOLVED]

I have got used to use bitmap font Helvetica for everything, website texts in Opera/Firefox and UI widgets in GTK... Now after the latest pacman fontconfig update, Helvetica doesn't look the same anymore.

- In tcl/tk apps, like amsn, Helvetica is just as clear as before
- in Opera, only main menu and menuitems Helvetica has the same look and when I select something from menus, I have again that blurry look. Also texts on websites are blurry.
- in Firefox all the UI things are fine, just like before but webpages Helvetica fonts are blurry.

sven

Member

Registered: 2005-02-01

Posts: 311

Re: Problems with Helvetica after fontconfig update [SOLVED]

yeah, I got it fixed I downgraded fontconfig and freetype2, just like mico described in a fonts topic.

stavrosg

Member

From: Rhodes, Greece

Registered: 2005-05-01

Posts: 330

Website

Re: Problems with Helvetica after fontconfig update [SOLVED]

Downgrading isn't a real solution. Maybe it is just because tha configuration directory chaged a bit and bitmap fonts are not enabled by default. check the /etc/fonts/conf.d & conf.avail (and the README inside) if this is tha case.

If it isn't, then we have a regression.

PavelZh

Member

From: Russia

Registered: 2006-08-04

Posts: 31

Re: Problems with Helvetica after fontconfig update [SOLVED]

I examined /etc/fonts/conf.avail and found 2 files

70-no-bitmaps.conf and
70-yes-bitmaps.conf

But the content of this files the same! Defined value was set to "false"

I delete "no" file and correct "yes" file

<fontconfig>
<Accept>
 <selectfont>
  <acceptfont>
   <pattern>
     <patelt><bool>true</bool></patelt>
   </pattern>
  </acceptfont>
 </selectfont>
</fontconfig>

After this, Helvetica fonts became more likely

JGC

Developer

Registered: 2003-12-03

Posts: 1,664

Re: Problems with Helvetica after fontconfig update [SOLVED]

One says rejectfont, the other says acceptfont.

Check if 30-replace-bitmap-fonts.conf is symlinked in conf.d, that one replaces Helvetica/Times/Courier with sans/serif/monospace, which get replaced by common truetype fonts on almost every system.

sven

Member

Registered: 2005-02-01

Posts: 311

Re: Problems with Helvetica after fontconfig update [SOLVED]

Thanks all, and especially JGC - I updated to the newest fontconf version and deleted 30-replace-bitmap-fonts.conf link from conf.d. Now fonts are just like they should.