GFX Library font

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normlane
 
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GFX Library font

Post by normlane »

Can you tell me what tool was used to create the font included with the library? I'd like to modify the font.
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adafruit_support_mike
 
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Re: GFX Library font

Post by adafruit_support_mike »

IIRC, it was a pad of graph paper.

For small bitmaps like 5x7 characters, it's pretty easy to draw the pixels on a sheet of graph paper and convert to hex:
5x7A.jpg
5x7A.jpg (29.28 KiB) Viewed 352 times
(line 79 of glcdfont.c)

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normlane
 
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Re: GFX Library font

Post by normlane »

This is supposed to be a pleasant hobby. That sounds like masochism. :roll:

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adafruit_support_mike
 
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Re: GFX Library font

Post by adafruit_support_mike »

Hmm.. my first impulse is to say something glib like, "you're gonna love reading microcontroller datasheets", but that skims past a couple of important issues.

It's true that people enjoy electronics at various levels of engagement, and that each person has the right to choose the level of engagement they prefer. I happen to enjoy it at a fairly technical level, but that doesn't give me the right or inclination to sneer at people who enjoy it at a more casual level.

OTOH, it's true that -- regardless of your level of engagement -- what you *can* do depends heavily on what you're *willing* to do. It's each person's responsibility to balance "what I want to do", "what I can do", and "what I'm willing to do" in the way they find most satisfying. You can let "what I'm willing to do" set the limits on "what I want to do", or you can let "what I want to do" set the limits on "what I'm willing to do". You own the choice either way, and no third party has a right to question it.

That arrangement means you also own all of "I want to do X but I'm not willing to invest the effort". All the choices are yours.

If you're looking for a hobby that doesn't present you with frustration or tedious attention to details, I can't really recommend original hardware or software development. In both cases, your understanding of a problem and its solution are on one side, the laws of physics are on the other side, and the laws of physics never lose. Willingness to keep working in spite of uncertainty and frustration is a large part of the original developer's mental toolkit. Willingness to do the boring details is another.

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normlane
 
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Re: GFX Library font

Post by normlane »

I have a lot of trouble focusing on repetitive tasks when I know there is software that can do the same job. Probably free software.

I've done enough artsy stuff, including hand coding machine language without a compiler and keying it in with switches, to know that you can actually zone out and enjoy repetitive tasks. On the other hand boring holes with a penknife when you have access to a drill press is just stupid and frustrating.

There are a mess of free font editors out there. I was looking for the specific one used for this code. The ones I've found so far that are able to do small 5X7 fonts don't seem to do as good a job. Perhaps there isn't one that is up to the task, in which case it would be enough to say so instead of trying to teach your grandma to suck eggs.

My first computer was an SC/MP. Apple II's and Trash 80's were a huge step up.

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