Sorry, this is probobly in some manpage or faq somewhere, but I am in a rush to read any right now.... hopefully when I come back someone might know how to do this. I just compiled Firebird, and the fonts are way too small. Now, I know that this is not a problem with Firebird, because the font sizes are good (16, et cetra), bu does anyone know how to make the general font size in gtk larger? Thanks for the help, and this is what I am talking about:

check xdpyinfo to see what X is claiming your DPI is.

Try making the dpi bigger (by lying in your xf86 config, for instance and claimer your screen is an inch smaller than it is)

edit: or just check Applications>Desktop Preferences>font

[edited by - C-Junkie on February 9, 2004 5:08:05 PM]

Did''nt work.

Anyone have another solution?

Well, I generally hit Ctrl-+ after loading Gamedev.

If you''re using GNOME, use the Applications -> Desktop Preferences -> Font dialog (gnome-settings-daemon handles font sizes and such if it''s running). Otherwise, the easiest way is to install gtk-theme-switch, which has a program called "switch2" that can change the default font (after you click the plus sign to show that option; why it''s hidden at all I don''t know).

You can also just hand edit the gtkrc-2.0 file. To make the changes system-wide modify /etc/gtk-2.0/gtkrc, otherwise modify ~/.gtkrc-2.0. Add a line with something like this: gtk-font-name = "Sans 12" (change the point size to whatever you like).

Since Gecko (Mozilla, Firebird, Firebox, Galeon, Epiphany, et cetera) only "half uses" GDK, you may have to further modify its default font size in its preference dialog.

If the previous suggestion doesn''t help, maybe my experience will shed some light. Recently, I installed Firebird on my Mandrake 9.2 system and I had the same problem that you''re having -- ugly fonts. However, one of two things that I''ve done recently has straightened the problem out.

The first thing I did was install some standard Windows TTF fonts onto my box so I could play Steam games (namely Counterstrike) on my Linux partition. I didn''t try Firebird after this, so this may or may not have been what fixed it.

The other thing I did was compile and install KDE 3.2. Fonts seem to be handled differently within this version (they look much better in general) so this may have had some effect. This may not be an option for you if you''re a die-hard GNOME user. Also because getting a fresh compile of KDE 3.2 to work can be a pain in the ass (and buggy to boot).

Hope this helps.

Dave


--
david@neonstar.net
neonstar entertainment

By the way, here is the link to the tutorial that told me how to install the TTF fonts in Linux:

http://www.linux-gamers.net/modules/wfsection/article.php?articleid=17

Dave


--
david@neonstar.net
neonstar entertainment

quote: Original post by neonstar
The first thing I did was install some standard Windows TTF fonts onto my box so I could play Steam games (namely Counterstrike) on my Linux partition. I didn''t try Firebird after this, so this may or may not have been what fixed it.

While I''m not sure if it''s actually the case yet, distributions should use the Bitstream Vera family of fonts for the default fonts. They''re "openly" licensed and produce very nice results with a good font renderer (e.g., FreeType 2, which is the backend of Xft).

quote: Original post by neonstar
The other thing I did was compile and install KDE 3.2. Fonts seem to be handled differently within this version (they look much better in general) so this may have had some effect. This may not be an option for you if you''re a die-hard GNOME user. Also because getting a fresh compile of KDE 3.2 to work can be a pain in the ass (and buggy to boot).

I''m pretty sure that "new" (not really, but "not old") versions of Qt (and, hence, KDE) use Xft for font rendering. Pango (and, hence, GDK, GTK+, and GNOME) uses Xft for font rendering and has for a while.

quote: Original post by neonstar
By the way, here is the link to the tutorial that told me how to install the TTF fonts in Linux:

For some distributions it''s even easier than that (see this or this). Microsoft''s "core fonts" are licenced somewhat oddly, so they''re "shunned" to an extent by many distributors for legal reasons.

Whoa. Thanks for the help everyone. I installed the Windows Core fonts, restarted X and now everything looks bootylicious!

This is awsome, makes me regret that I used Windows at all. Thank you all so mutch for helping.

EDIT: w00t


[edited by - aftermath on February 16, 2004 2:21:33 AM]