Text Background

[Anonymous]

some programs offer a non-transparent background for text. Is there any way to get this out of AC, or does it have to be done manualy with fills? I won a shirt for posting the 10,000 th post. It came today! Nice! Also wondering how to use the "vector fonts that came with AC" Thanks

[Dave Jochum]

Mark wrote:
some programs offer a non-transparent background for text. Is there any way to get this out of AC, or does it have to be done manualy with fills?

Unfortunately, manually. It's a long-standing wish.

[Anonymous]

Thanks for the reply Dave. What is a vector font? I cant figure out what they are for.

[Dave Jochum]

Mark wrote:
Thanks for the reply Dave. What is a vector font? I cant figure out what they are for.

I don't use them. I think they were a plotter friendly font from the "olden days", but I'm really not sure. Somebody who really knows will chime in, I'm sure.

[Anonymous]

Dave,

You are right. Vector fonts are simplified letters for use with pen plotters and early plot file formats (what we now call HPGL was originally called HPGL2). They are drawn with simple lines and arcs in the same manner as hand lettering - i.e. simple and quick to draw by pencil or pen whether by hand or machine.

The typefaces we use now (even the "hand lettered" styles) are outline fonts (what Postscript was originally developed for) which define letter forms as vector outlines with (typically) solid fills. Pen plotters didn't understand fills so the fills in each letter had to be described as a bunch of lines. Liberal use of outline fonts would cause plot files to become huge. This was a serious issue when sending files to the service bureau meant using floppy disks (720KB or 800KB) or 1200 baud modems (that's about 1200 BITS per second or about 9KB per MINUTE - that's around 2 hours to sent 1MB).

It's kind of amazing how we managed back then.

Why I remember back in the last century when we had to walk ten miles in the snow to stoke the coal furnace to heat the office before powering-up the old hand-cranked computers. We used to dream of getting one of those newfangled water wheel powered models. The gear drives on the old quill plotters were always getting out of whack and keeping the inkwells full was always a problem. We sure wasted a lot of sheepskin getting that sorted out.

[Dave Jochum]

I wrote:
Somebody who really knows will chime in, I'm sure.

You don't look that old, Professor Matthew!