Parametric / Generative Fonts

[hrant]

This topic was imported from the Typophile platform

This has been brought up before, but I'm hoping to
wrap my head around the state-of-the-art of systems
that generate fonts [semi-]computationally.

We have the LettError work, we have MetaFont*, and
we have this: http://www.yannickmathey.com/prototyp

* https://typography.guru/forums/topic/83827-forwarding

Any others?
Any first-hand experience?

hhp

[Dunwich Type]

Any others?

Frank Blokand's DTL Letter Modeler. And makeOTF can generate various filler symbols for Mac OS Roman.

Any first-hand experience

Drawing is a lot more fun.

[hrant]

> DTL Letter Modeler.

DTL Letter Modeler: ah yes, thanks.
MakeOTF: how smart is it?

Designing "metaglyph systems" is to drawing glyphs what drawing glyphs is to lettering. I think most people who prefer drawing glyphs over lettering would prefer making systems even more (if/once it's easy and powerful enough). A good litmus test might be: do you enjoy spacing a font?

hhp

[nina]

Does Elementar count?
https://www.typotheque.com/fonts/elementar

[hrant]

Oh yeah!

hhp

[nina]

Then there was this:
«TYPEFACE is software that translates facial dimensions into generative type design.»
http://www.rhymeandreasoncreative.com/portfolio/index.php?project=typeface

[miha]

Some more:

Publicly available programs

• Calliculator
• FontChameleon (video) (discontinued)
• Metafont

Projects

• Lettersoup (video).
• Type Generator (pictures)
• LiveType & ParamTT (also, author has written some papers about this)

Other

There are some papers about parametric/generative font design, usually written by non-designers two or three decades ago. Also, not surprisingly there are patents, and systems which I don't know where to put, such as PANOSE.

These links are about latin parametric fonts for text. There may be some systems for experimental type that I didn't include and some interesting non-latin systems, I have to check my saved links.

[Riccardo Sartori]

Another interesting Metafont project:
https://typography.guru/forums/topic/89266-forwarding

[Joshua_Koomen]

Haagse Letters

[hrant]

Related:
https://typography.guru/forums/topic/102278-forwarding

hhp

[Ryan Maelhorn]

Perhaps obvious and not really a "system" but, Python in Fontlab.

[Amado]

FontChameleon

WANT!