[mpeg-OTspec] Tighten name ID 2 spec?

[Sairus Patel]

John,

I see name ID 2 as simply the user-facing string associated with the face in a 4-face style-linked grouping.

I don't see a problem with this user-facing string indicating the "true" weight of that face, e.g. "Semibold", if that’s what the foundry wants. The font engine shouldn't have any use for this string except as a UI label; the underlying style bits (or weight class and friends) should be what matter, and should be set appropriately. Also, the usual name table localizations should apply.

That said, its wording is definitely stale, and I'd welcome a proposal to tighten it, though what you suggest goes excessively far, IMO.

Also, I should say that an app UI that does have 4-face style groupings could express the styles as name ID 2 (whatever its contents), as a hard-coded string corresponding to the style bits ("Regular", "Bold", etc), as two buttons or checkboxes, or other means – an app isn't *required* to use name ID 2.

Sairus

From: John Hudson <john at tiro.ca<mailto:john at tiro.ca>>
Organization: Tiro Typeworks
Date: Monday, June 24, 2013 12:24 PM
Cc: "mpeg-OTspec at yahoogroups.com<mailto:mpeg-OTspec at yahoogroups.com>" <mpeg-OTspec at yahoogroups.com<mailto:mpeg-OTspec at yahoogroups.com>>
Subject: [mpeg-OTspec] Tighten name ID 2 spec?



OpenType name table ID 1 (Font Family name) and ID 2 (Font Subfamily
name) together provide for style-linking in simple four-style families.
This is explicit in the spec for ID 1:

Font Family name. Up to four fonts can share the
Font Family name, forming a font style linking group
(regular, italic, bold, bold italic - as defined by
OS/2.fsSelection bit settings).

However, the spec for ID 2 refers also to weight differences other than
regular and bold:

Font Subfamily name. The Font Subfamily name
distiguishes[sic] the font in a group with the same
Font Family name (name ID 1). This is assumed to
address style (italic, oblique) and weight (*light*,
bold, *black*, etc.). A font with no particular
differences in weight or style (e.g. medium weight,
not italic and fsSelection bit 6 set) should have
the string “Regular” stored in this position.

I believe this is a mistake, and that name ID 2 should be more strictly
defined as being one of the four basic styles Regular, Italic, Bold or
Bold Italic, in accordance with the corresponding OS/2.fsSelection setting.

JH

--

Tiro Typeworks www.tiro.com
Gulf Islands, BC tiro at tiro.com<mailto:tiro%40tiro.com>

The criminologist's definition of 'public order
crimes' comes perilously close to the historian's
description of 'working-class leisure-time activity.'
- Sidney Harring, _Policing a Class Society_


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