I don't know of any utility that lets you do that on the iPad itself, but you can easily make screen snapshots by pushing the home button and standby button at the same time. The screen snapshot is stored in the camera roll, which you can sync with a folder on your PC (via iTunes), and then open in your favorite image program to get a closer look.

There are not really a lot of type-centric apps (yet), unfortunately. There is a very simple modular font editor (similar to FontStruct in concept) called Fontula. There's also a simple font editor called iFontMaker. Seems to be best suited to fonts that have a hand-drawn (or -scribbled) look. I haven't tried it.

I think part of the reason there is a dearth of type- or font-related apps is that there is no way (yet) to install fonts beyond what it comes with. On the other hand, it does support web fonts in the web browser, so you can view other fonts on it if they are being served on the web.

The Font Game HD!

> which you can sync with a folder on your PC (via iTunes)

Another option is to email the photo to your PC. (Open the photo in your camera roll, then press the icon of an arrow coming out of a box.)

But syncing is the easier method if you've got several photos.

Can't you just view the snapshot/photo on the iPad itself, and zoom in?

> iFontMaker. Seems to be best suited to fonts
> that have a hand-drawn (or -scribbled) look.

That's the bane of capacitive (versus resistive*) touchscreens. To be fair you can buy a special stylus** though - I wonder if that makes iFontMaker's results more refined.

* I wonder about the new infrared stuff coming out now.

** http://www.engadget.com/2010/10/01/ostylus-capacitive-pen-review/

hhp

Can't you just view the snapshot/photo on the iPad itself, and zoom in?

You can, but the zoom level only goes up to about 2x, and the pixels are interpolated, so maybe not so good for getting a closer look.

What I meant about iFontMaker is that it doesn't have a Bézier pen tool or anything similar. You just trace strokes with your finger (or special stylus—I've got one and it is more natural for drawing). There is at least one app that has Bézier drawing—miniDraw HD—but so far no one has created a font editor for the iPad with such a tool.

> the pixels are interpolated

Figures. :-/
But there must be some "paint" app that lets you zoom in, right?

iFontMaker: I do realize it's for painting the bodies of letters, as opposed to defining outlines; but at least you could do a calligraphic font, if you had enough control. Otherwise it's just finger-painting... literally! :-)

miniDraw-HD: since it's hard to imagine producing a full working font on a portable device anyway (especially one that can't actually use the fonts you make...) this might be adequate for fleshing out ideas.

BTW, when you run an iPhone HD app on the iPad, does it display at 960x640 with a border, or does it scale up to 1024x768?

hhp

> when you run an iPhone HD app on the iPad,
> does it display at 960x640 with a border, or does
> it scale up to 1024x768?

There are 3 kinds of apps —1) iPhone apps, 2) iPad apps, and 3) Universal apps (designed for both iPhones and iPads)

1) If you run an iPhone app on an iPad, the image will not fill the screen and will have a large black border around it. Or you can press the 2x button and the image will increase to almost full screen, but will still have a border and will be very pixilated.

2) If you run an iPad app, it will fill the screen.

3) If you run a Universal app on an iPad, it will be hi res and fill the screen. I presume that Universal apps require that the developer create 2 sets of screens (iPhone and iPad), since the size & proportions of the screens aren't the same. In fact I believe Apple describes Universal apps as essentially being 2 apps (an iphone app and an iPad app) that are bundled together.

http://www.suitcasetype.com/app.php

also, all back issues of Esquire are free right now on the iPad, lots of type to look at.

And I assume an iPhone app that's HD will almost fill the screen without 2x.

BTW, since iOS apps are so resolution-dependent I wonder what new future there now is for bitmap fonts! :-)

hhp

> And I assume an iPhone app that's HD will almost fill the screen without 2x.

No, all iPhone apps, whether HD or not, are displayed small on an iPad unless you press the 2x button, in which case they are pixel doubled which make them larger but pixilated. Even the HD ones act this way. This may seem illogical, but there's a reason.

iPhone HD apps must have 2 sets of bitmapped graphics, to accomodate the resolution of both older iPhones and newer iPhones. If you play an iPhone app on an iPad, it uses the smaller version of the graphics.

Why? Because Apple doesn't want developers to think that an HD iPhone app is "good enough" for iPads too. Apple wants developers to create separate iPad versions, so the screen sizes are correct and all the interface elements are properly designed and sized for an iPad, rather than just being an iPhone app displayed larger than originally intended, which often results in clunky, oversized buttons, etc.

So Apple makes sure that iPhone apps will play on an iPad, but won't look that great. That prods the developers to create real iPad versions.

Thanks for the full explanation.
This is exactly the sort of thing that turns me off.

Especially considering that huge black border that's there anyway I think 960x640 is close enough to 1024x768 that it would be nice to simply run iPhone HD apps as-is rather than ignoring the available data and displaying a cruddy version.

hhp

>...all back issues of Esquire are free right now on the iPad, lots of type to look at.

I think Hrant has other preconceived goals with no relation to reading, unless there's a book called "Trashing Apples";)

Apples? More like lemons. :-) But when you're given lemons,
you make lemonade - so I just want to see how to make fonts
as good as they can be on any medium.

hhp

Hrant: I use TinyPixels for rendering/bitmap sketching.

Well seeing how many of us are avid writers, you might be interested in checking out iA Writer.
It is a really simple text pad application that is void of all distractions and unnecessary options. I bought it for both my iPad and Macbook, it's quite fantastic.

Another app that is quite cool (only on iPhone though) is the Typography Manual. While I realize this is an app geared for people new to typography, it still has some interesting information and tools/resources in it.

I wish there was an app that had a massive stockpile of typefaces you could browse through and examine closely. There is one app that does this to some degree, but it is poorly made.

>Apples? More like lemons. :-)

This could be fun. I've never heard a sane person "go back".

>so I just want to see how to make fonts as good as they can be on any medium.

Great, if you have any hinting questions, feel free to ask.

Sure, thanks.

In fact here's one:
Recently we've nicely covered how OSX handles hinting. How does iOS differ from OSX in terms of hinting?

And another, more academic:
Has anybody made a font that's superhinted for CT? I mean controlling the exact (or near-exact) subpixel rendering with deltas?

hhp

Funny this should come up, I've been working on a typography app for iOS.

There are already a handful of apps:
iFontMaker,
Typefaces,
Font Book,
etc.

There are many features that I'd like to have that are absent in all of them. So, that's my motivation. But I'd love to hear about what you're looking for.

> Also of interest would be utilities that let you zoom in to the screen bitmap.

That can be arranged. I assume you would be most interested in see it rasterized as black on white, with the ability to control the point size even increments.

If there are other features you're looking for, please let me know.

>How does iOS differ from OSX in terms of hinting?

I've seen no evidence of fonts being rendered live and aliased in iOS environs. So no hinting is used, though I do not know if the iOS even carries the code to do so.

>Has anybody made a font that's superhinted for CT?

If "superhinted for CT" is a relative term, then the CT collection is such an example, being hinted for nothing else.

>I mean controlling the exact (or near-exact) subpixel rendering with deltas?

You missed a lot of discussion on this. The short answer is that all horizontal scaling in Windows, including glyphs and glyph widths, is out of hinting's reach when CT is enabled.

And then I'll continue here, when time permits. I'm in "Edison mode" until weds :D

But there is some live and subixeled (or at least anti-aliased) text. For example the browser on an iOS device. What I am wondering about however (which I asked in the "300dpi" thread) is: how much of the text in apps is actually text-as-image? Because, as I mentioned somewhere, I'm actually smelling a rise in the relevance of hand-made (anti-aliased, maybe even subpixel) bitmap fonts...

> the CT collection is such an example

Do the CT fonts contain delta hints to control individual subpixels at specific point sizes? What I'm looking for is the subpixel (or at least anti-aliased) equivalent to the old MS Core Fonts.

hhp

.

Charles, great to hear you're working on type stuff for iOS. You seem to be talking about a type specimen app? I'm not sure. But anyway you need to decide/state what your app will do in general before anybody can suggest features.

BTW, when I say "zoom" I don't mean just making text larger - I'm talking about zooming in to the rendering of a given font/size on the screen's bitmap. The point being to see what's going on, in order to design fine-tuned fonts.

hhp

@Mark Simonson

I think part of the reason there is a dearth of type- or font-related apps is that there is no way (yet) to install fonts beyond what it comes with

In other words, just another way to waste time (and money)...

If you count participating on Typophile a waste of time, which is what I'm using it for at the moment, I suppose.

I think sooner or later user-installed fonts will be possible. Currently I imagine it has to do with keeping system resources to a minimum for maximum performance.

I have a feeling it has more to do with draconian control of Image.

hhp

>I'm talking about zooming in to the rendering of a given font/size on the screen's bitmap.

It's simple enough to grab an iPad screen and bring it to your development platform for detailed viewing. There's really no call on the iPad for zooming to "fat bits" in the old terminology.

>Currently I imagine it has to do with keeping system resources to a minimum for maximum performance.

To a great extent I think this is as good a guess as any. I think it's also that Apple's not interested in the installation and laying about of fonts not required for a specific purpose. Fonts can come and go via browser, and by apps, which pretty takes care of mobile requirements up to gratuitous fonts.

>In other words, just another way to waste time (and money)...

lol.101.

>to waste time (and money)

Unless i misunderstand, thisi is pretty funny ... A SiNgLe daily newspaper at the newsstand, is what? $400

> bring it to your development platform

A tablet computer is supposed to be about convenience.
Hopefully convenient to think on, not just to buy on.
And it's not like I'm asking for an app that turns the
iPad into a jet pack.

hhp

Apple's has a FAQ (dated April 21, 2011) for their iPad word processor, Pages, which discusses which fonts are available for their word processor:

http://support.apple.com/kb/HT4065

It says:

+ + +

iPad supports over 40 fonts and font families which can be used with iWork for iPad apps. When importing a document that uses a font not available on iPad, iWork attempts to replace an unsupported font with one that is a close match. If a close match is not found, the Helvetica font will be used instead. After the import process, fonts that were replaced are listed for review by the user.

Fonts available on the iPad include:

American Typewriter
AppleGothic
Arial
Baskerville
Bodoni 72
Bradley Hand
Chalkduster
Cochin
Copperplate
Courier
Courier New
Didot
Futura
Geeza Pro
Georgia
Gill Sans
Heiti J
Helvetica
Hoefler Text
Marker Felt
Optima
Palatino
Papyrus
Party LET
Snell Roundhand
Thonburi
Times New Roman
Trebuchet MS
Verdana
Zapf Dingbats
Zapfino

+ + +

> Currently I imagine it has to do with keeping system
> resources to a minimum for maximum performance.

I suspect you're right. And also the main way to load resources onto an iPad is via a sync with iTunes, so you'd need to load fonts via iTunes which perhaps would create some technical challenges. But I'm sure the ability for load fonts will come in the future.

Apple just announced that they'll be unveiling their next iPad OS — iOS 5 — on Monday June 6. So perhaps we'll see if more font capabilities are added. Their press release says:

CUPERTINO, California—May 31, 2011—Apple® CEO Steve Jobs and a team of Apple executives will kick off the company’s annual Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) with a keynote address on Monday, June 6 at 10:00 a.m. At the keynote, Apple will unveil its next generation software – Lion, the eighth major release of Mac OS® X; iOS 5, the next version of Apple’s advanced mobile operating system which powers the iPad®, iPhone® and iPod touch®; and iCloud®, Apple’s upcoming cloud services offering.

HP>it's not like I'm asking for an app that turns the iPad into a jet pack

If you can wave your jet pack up and down fast enough to create lift, you're all set then.

@dberlow

Unless i misunderstand, this is pretty funny ... A SiNgLe daily newspaper at the newsstand, is what? $400

Well less than half of that, if you subscribe. I might add that a newspaper requires no batteries or power adapters, upgrades or wireless connection fees (how much do THEY cost a year?), nor is a newspaper likely to be stolen by a snatch-and-grab thief (a growing problems with iGadgets, according to a story in yesterday's real-deal-on-newsprint Washington Post).

James, thanks for the details. One big benefit custom
fonts would bring is support for non-Latin scripts! :-/
Personally I'd like to see Sylfaen in the core set.

Also (via the ATypI list):
http://cre8ive.kr/thesis/index.html

hhp

Looks like it supports at least non-Latin scripts. If you go to the Settings app > General > Language, you can see a list of language localizations. Doesn't look like Armenian is in the list, unfortunately. However, Mobile Safari does display it, so some of the included fonts must have the necessary glyph support.

Try this page: http://hy.wikipedia.org/wiki/Վիքիփեդիա:Վիքիփեդիաների_ցանկ

I do know that the iPhone does have Armenian - although I don't know
too much about it. I'd like to know what font it is, and who made it.

hhp

>Well less than half of that, if you subscribe
or five times that to subscribe to 8 pubs,

>I might add that a newspaper requires no batteries or power adapters
Follows you nowhere, needs light somehow, no translations, search, customization or adapting to fit in your pocket on another device

>upgrades or wireless connection fees (how much do THEY cost a year?),
Upgrades r free, Kind o need them connections anyway,

>nor is a newspaper likely to be stolen by a snatch-and-grab thief (a growing problems with iGadgets
No one wanting to steal your recyclables is hardly a great attribute, but hide your iGads in a newspaper then.

And then don't forget to take that hidden gadget out before collecting up 400 lbs of recyclables and driving ten miles round trip to a waste management center monthly...

If you have not experienced a paperless digital media lifestyle, I think you might be on but one side of the tree of nhaledge.

> I might add that a newspaper requires no
> batteries or power adapters...

Certainly there are some advantages to paper newspapers, but it's clear that the the future is electronic publications.

I doubt if many newspapers will still be publishing paper editions 10 years from now. Or if they do, it'll probably be reduced-size versions that only come out a few times a week, for the benefit of the small percentage of their subscribers who in 2021 still want paper versions.

Same thing with magazines and books. Already Amazon reports that it sells more Kindle books than printed books.

I have mixed feelings about this as I love traditional books. But I've got to admit that I buy most of my books now on my iPad. It's just so darn convenient.

Maybe veering a bit off-topic, but:
What are some good online forums that app developers (and not just for iOS) use?

hhp

If you enroll in the iOS Developer Program ($99/year), you have access to the official developer forums. Charles might know of and suggest other less official forums, if any (if he's still following this discussion).

@dberlow

Kind o need them connections anyway

If you click the "Punchcut gig" at the bottom of the Forums page, you will be informed, post haste, that "Mobile is not a Device, It's a Lifestyle." If so, it's a lifestyle which some among us--admittedly dinosaurs--choose not to embrace, for a variety of reasons. A story in today's Washington Post details the World Health Organization's latest opinion of cellphone usage, and it's not pretty, i.e., "possibly carcinogenic." The WHO admits that its findings are incomplete, but does not back off from the claim of "possibily." Of course, one can easily dismiss the possibility, as do deniers of global warning, but at what cost? I, for one, am not willing to make the gamble...

> If you enroll in the iOS Developer Program ($99/year),
> you have access to the official developer forums.

Knowing Apple's reputation for strictness, I have to ask:
Would I get kicked off for trying to sell iPad-tuned fonts on those forums?

hhp

Would I get kicked off for trying to sell iPad-tuned fonts on those forums?

And deprive Apple of their App Store cut? You bet your booties...

http://blogs.wsj.com/deals/2011/04/21/apples-cash-pile-now-65-8-billion/

But I wouldn't be selling stuff on a device.
I'd be selling stuff to developers of apps.
I don't mind giving a cut, but I don't want
to have to develop an app just for that! :-/

And of course I'm interested in finding the best
watering-holes for Android (and other OSes) too.

hhp

Apple doesn't get a cut if you sell a font license to an app developer. None of that goes through the App Store.

To answer your question, Hrant, I don't know. I would guess if there is a prohibition on selling one's services on the forum, it would be in forum terms of participation. You might try asking on http://stackoverflow.com . Also would probably be a good place to ask about developer forums.

Thanks Mark!

hhp

http://www.fastcodesign.com/1664003/nearly-10-years-in-the-making-a-revo...
Thanks to Hussein Alazaat.

hhp

@JamesM

>No, all iPhone apps, whether HD or not, are displayed small on an iPad unless you press the 2x button, in which case they are pixel doubled which make them larger but pixilated.

Not if you install RetinaPad extension.
With it, the HD Iphone apps are rendered properly in the 2x mode. They become nearly indistinguishable from Ipad versions in terms of quality. And with old sans-HD programs, at least you get clear unpixilated type.

Granted, the nifty program requires a jailbroken device.

I didn't know that, oprion. Sounds like it might be a handy extension for those who have jailbroken iPads.