Package: wnpp Severity: wishlist x-ttcidfont-conf is a debian specific package that configures TrueType fonts (as well as CID fonts) for X through defoma framework. Yes, thanks to Branden, there's already font configuration framework which works pretty fine for other scalable fonts and bitmap fonts, but there remains some problems about TrueType font configuration.
The biggest problem about TrueType font configuration for X is the syntax of .scale file. X provides two backends to handle TrueType fonts, xtt backend and freetype backend. The former features dynamic decoration of TrueType font, which for example creates bold and italic faces from upright medium face. This feature requires additional parameters to .scale file. Its syntax is of course nonstandard, and conflicts with the syntax for the freetype backend. This fact indicates that TrueType font package may need to prepare two scale files, know which backend the scale file should be for, and put the preferred .scale file into the right location. It's a little bit complicated task, so x-ttcidfont-conf manages it. 1) Ask which backend is used through Debconf. 2) generate the .scale file and .alias file suited to the selected backend from registered TrueType fonts. 3) call mkfontdir. When dpkg-reconfigure is called and the selected backend is changed, it automatically regenerate the .scale file and .alias file suited to the newly selected backend. All ttf-packages have to do is just register the truetype font to defoma. I've already thrown this idea to debian-x at about the end of the March, and got the agreeing responce from Anthony (but no responce from Branden).
