TrueType ( TT ) , PostScriptA® Type 1 ( Type 1 ) and Open TypeA® are all multi-platform lineation fount criterions for which the proficient specifications are openly available. “ Multi-platform ” means that both font types are useable on multiple kinds of computing machine systems. “ Outline fount ” means that they describe missive forms ( “ glyphs ” ) by agencies of points, which in bend define lines and curves. This representation is resolution independent, intending that lineations, by their very nature, can be scaled to reasonably much any arbitrary size.
Depending on the peculiar plan being used and the operating system it ‘s run under, there may be upper and lower bounds to the size the fount can be scaled to, but few users will of all time meet these bounds.
An outline fount must be represented by the points of the end product device, whether it ‘s screen pels or the points of a optical maser, ink-jet or wire-pin pressman. The procedure of change overing the lineation to a form of points on the grid of the device is called “ rasterization.
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When there are n’t adequate points doing up the glyph ( such as at little sizes or low declarations ) ,
there can be incompatibilities in the representation of certain missive characteristics, at a individual size, due to different rounding based on how the lineation happens to sit on the grid. A common signifier of this is that the breadths of the missive stems can change when they should n’t. Worse, cardinal characteristics of the glyphs can vanish at little sizes.
However, Type 1, TrueType and Open Type founts all have a agency of covering with these incompatibilities, called “ hinting. ” This consists of extra information encoded in the fount to assist forestall these jobs.
Brief History
PostScript and the Type fount format predate TrueType by about six old ages ( with Open Type being
a much later merger of the two formats ) . First, we had many different formats for digital founts, none of which were standardized. Then Apple adopted the AdobeA® PostScript page description linguistic communication ( PDL ) for its Apple LaserWriter pressman in 1985. It is, combined with the debut of PageMakerA® , the first desktop publication package, sparked a revolution in
page layout engineering.
Soon the PostScript linguistic communication was adopted for usage in higher-end image puting devices, and became the native operating manner and linguistic communication of many artworks plans every bit good. The bid construction of the PostScript linguistic communication was publically available, so it was possible for person to construct a PostScript translator to vie with Adobe ‘s rasterizing package. But
it would n’t be able to construe the intimations in Type 1 founts. This was because the PostScript font specification for Type 1 founts, which included hinting, was non publically available. Adobe had merely released the specifications for Type 1 founts. Type 1 founts were a more general format, but Type 3 was smaller, faster, and had a native hinting construction ( of which see more below ) .
It quickly became obvious to the major system package Godheads ( Apple, Microsoft, and subsequently IBM ) that it was of import to hold scaleable font engineering supported at the degree of the operating system itself. This would let much better screen show, compared to pre-made electronic images which would merely look good at a few sizes, and would be jagged at all others. So in the late eightiess, Apple developed its ain scaleable fount engineering, First code-named Royal,
and subsequently introduced as TrueType.
Apple traded the engineering to Microsoft in exchange for the latter ‘s TrueImage PostScript ringer engineering ( which was buggy at the clip, and ne’er used by Apple, although it has surfaced in assorted ulterior embodiments ) . The TrueType specifications were made public, and TrueType was built into the following versions of the Mac and WindowsA® runing systems, released in 1991.
Adobe ‘s response started with the release of the long-protected specifications for the PostScript Type 1 fount format in March 1990. This was followed by debut of Adobe Type ManagerA® ( ATMA® ) package in mid-1990. ATM scales PostScript Type 1 founts for screen show, and for imaging on non- PostScript pressmans.
In early 1991, TrueType for the Mac became available, followed by the Windows 3.1 execution ( the Windows scaler was and remains somewhat more Accurate / efficient than the Mac version, though it ‘s nil a normal user is likely to notice ) . Now, with either TrueType or ATM, Mac users ( and subsequently Windows and OS/2 users ) could really see on-screen at
any size what the fount end product would look like.
Technical Differences
The first difference between TrueType and PostScript founts is their usage of different kinds of mathematics to depict their curves. Open Type founts can hold either sort of lineations, with their several advantages and disadvantages.
Some articles have said that TrueType founts require more points than PostScript, or that they take longer to rasterize because the math is more complicated. In fact, the math is simpler ( quadratics are simpler than cubics ) . Although a few forms take fewer points in TrueType than in PostScript ( a perfect circle takes twelve points in PostScript vs. eight in TrueType ) , in pattern the forms in real-world founts all tend to take more points in TrueType, it ‘s true that most founts will stop up utilizing more points in TrueType, even if the sort of mathematics used to depict the curves is simpler.
The primary advantage of TrueType over Type 1 founts is the fact that TrueType has the potency for better hinting. Mind you, PostScript Type 1 intimations manage a batch: perpendicular and horizontal characteristics, wave-offs, root catchs, equal counters, and shallow curves ( “ flex ” ) . Several of these can hold a threshold pel size at which they activate.
However, TrueType intimations can make all that PostScript can, and about anything else, as defined by the really flexible instructions of the TrueType linguistic communication. This includes commanding diagonals, and traveling specified points on the glyph lineations at specific arbitrary sizes to better discernability. This ability to travel points at a specific point size allows font production staff to hand-tune the electronic image form produced by the out-line at any specified size. Or at least it used to ; more recent divergencies in TrueType rasterizing between different participants ( including Apple and Microsoft ) make this a little more unsure.
This difference in suggesting doctrine is truly diagnostic of a larger philosophical difference. PostScript uses “ dumber ” founts and a “ smarter ” translator, while TrueType utilizations comparatively smarter founts and a dumber translator. This means that PostScript intimations tell the rasterizer what features ought to be controlled, and the rasterizer interprets these utilizing its ain “ intelligence ” to make up one’s mind how to make it. iˆ•ere-fore, when person upgrades their PostScript translator, the rasterization can be improved.
Contrariwise, TrueType puts all the suggesting information into the fount to command precisely how it will look when rasterized. Some TT aficionados prefer to name TrueType intimations “ instructions, ” partially in mention to the full-featured nature of the TrueType scheduling linguistic communication, but besides to clear up the function of this information. As Jelle Bosma of Agfa Mono- type says, “ I do n’t hintA at what I want to happen-I tellA the fount what to make. ”
iˆˆus the TrueType fount manufacturer has the potency for really iˆˆne control over what happens when the fount is rasterized under different conditions. However, it requires serious attempt, expertness, and high-end tools for a font developer to really take advantage of this greater suggesting possible. Besides, doing major alterations to the TrueType rasterizer while exposing bing founts at their best would look to be hard to pull off.
Until late, the other advantage of TrueType was that it was the font format supported straight by the Ma degree Celsius and Windows runing systems, while Type 1 required an add-on. These runing systems will rasterize TrueType founts for the screen, and direct them to pressmans, whether as electronic images or in some font format the pressman understands.
Scaling either PostScript founts, or Open Type founts with PostScript lineations, on Mac OS 8/9 and Windows 95/98/ME, requires the Adobe Type Manager ( ATM ) package, which handles the rasterizing to the screen, and rasterizes or converts the founts for non- PostScript pressmans. ( Technically, Mac users do n’t necessitate ATM to utilize PostScript founts on PostScript pressmans, but ATM is required to expose the fount Accurately on screen at arbitrary sizes. ) ATM is freely available: the “ Light ” version is a free download from Adobe ‘s Web site, and besides comes with many Adobe applications.
However, in Windows 2000 and XP, and Mac OSX, the PostScript Type1 and Open Type CFF support is built in, merely like the TrueType support has long been. So this former advantage is quickly disappearing.
A smaller, but consistent, advantage of Open Type and TrueType has to make with the physical storage of the founts. Open Type and TrueType founts have all the informations in a individual file. PostScript Type 1 founts require two separate files: one contains the character out-lines, and the other contains prosodies informations ( character breadths and kern braces ) . On the Macintosh, Mac OS 8.1 and earlier requires Type 1 founts to hold non merely the lineation fount, but besides a bit-mapped screen fount in at least one size, which contains the prosodies informations. For Windows systems utilizing PostScript, a “ PFB ” file contains the lineations, while a “ PFM ” file carries the prosodies.
The system-independent “ AFM ” prosodies file can be converted to a Windows PFM file upon installing by ATM, or can be used by a font redacting plan along with the lineation to make a screen fount for the Mac that includes any kerning braces in the original. On the other manus, PostScript ‘s brace of files are frequently smaller than TrueType ‘s individual file. The size difference ranges from merely a 5 % nest eggs for an mean fount, to every bit much as a doubling of size for True Type founts that really have extended “ hinting ” instructions.
Besides, most high-end end product devices use PostScript as their internal page description linguistic communication. PostScript founts can be sent straight to these devices. It used to be the instance that TrueType founts were either down-loaded as electronic images or required that the TrueType rasterizer be downloaded as a PostScript plan, which slowed publishing a spot.
Further Practical Differences
Many of the theoretical advantages of TrueType are non really realized in most commercially available TrueType founts. PostScript angels point to a figure of jobs that still make PostScript founts a better solution for many users. Besides the abovementioned issue of the linguistic communication of the end product device, there are four other practical issues that even the mark for PostScript: First, at present many of the commercially avail-able TrueType founts one sees at the package mega-mart are of hapless quality, coming in “ zillion-fonts-for-a-buck ” aggregations. Many of these founts were originally shareware or public sphere PostScript founts, and were converted to TrueType utilizing some basic automatic public-service corporation. The lineations and suggesting are no better than they were in the PostScript versions, and will super somewhat in about any automatic con-version. Normally in the instance of highly inexpensive aggregations, they were n’t the best quality* PostScript founts even before transition to TrueType. Of class, TrueType angels point out that frequently these founts were available earlier ; it ‘s merely the handiness of a cosmopolitan font scaling engineering that makes price reduction founts for the multitudes practical, and of class they are more likely to be released in the most widely available format.
Second is the issue of easy-to-use tools. On the plus side, there is eventually a retail fount editor with native TrueType support ( Font Lab 3 ) , every bit good as Microsoft ‘s Visual TrueType ( VTT ) suggesting tool.
However, irrespective of the particular tools used, accomplishing first-class hinting in TrueType presently requires intensive manual cryptography on a glyph-by-glyph footing. This requires significant clip and expertness on the portion of the individual making the hinting.
As a consequence, high-quality TrueType founts are presently merely available from a smattering of sellers, and merely a minority of even those founts truly exploit the potency of TrueType hinting. Third, TrueType ‘s hinting advantage merely affairs when suggesting affairs: when outputting to low-resolution devices, or for screen show. The increasing, widespread usage of 600 dpi and better optical maser pressmans makes this less critical for print work. On the other manus, the increasing importance of screen shows for so many intents including multimedia, the Internet, and electronic books makes suggesting more of import.
Fourth, PostScript has some advantages merely from being the longer-established criterion, particularly for serious in writing humanistic disciplines work. Service agency are standardized on, and have big investings in, PostScript founts. Most of the founts which have “ adept sets ” of old manner figures, excess ligatures, true little capitals and the similar are in PostScript Type 1
format.
Although most major sellers have TrueType founts, non all offer their full libraries in both for-mats. Agfa Mono type and Bit stream have their full libraries in both formats, while Adobe has but a smattering of TrueType founts. Given the current province of the tools, although a simple transition would be easy, it would take a conjunct attempt of many old ages to change over all the major sellers ‘ fount libraries to True-Type if they besides wished to heighten the quality.
Translation Memory Technologies
What is Translation Memory ( TM ) and interlingual rendition alliance?
Translation MemoryA is a database incorporating a set of texts translated into different linguistic communications andA divided into fragments which are juxtaposed harmonizing to their content. That means that fragments of the beginning text are juxtaposed to the fragments with the similar content translated into another linguistic communication.
Such texts translated into different linguistic communications are calledA parallel textsA ( or bilingual texts ) .
Fragments in which each text is divided are calledA sections. Sections are normally made of one or more sentences, parts of sentences or word groups, and, in some instances, words.
Juxtaposed parallel texts are calledA aligned parallel texts.
Thereby theA parallel text alignmentA ( or bilingual text alliance ) is a apposition of the beginning and translated texts by sections. Translators usuallyA name this processA interlingual rendition alignment.A A Translation Memory database consists of such aligned interlingual renditions.
Application of Translation Memory engineering and computer-aided interlingual rendition
Thulium bases are used by transcribers when working in variousA computer-aided interlingual rendition toolsA ( CAT-tools ) A whichA allow put to deathing TM base hunt, happening perennial sections in new texts and replacing them with interlingual renditions taken from antecedently translated texts.
In other words, transcribers, when working with CAT-tools, utilize them to split new texts into sections and look into if these sections match those stored in interlingual rendition memories. When a given lucifer per centum is detected, interlingual rendition discrepancies are displayed. If a beginning section to the full matches a translated section in the database ( translation memory ) , the latter can automatically replace the former. New sections can be somewhat different from those stored in interlingual rendition memories. In this instance, it is besides possible to infix the stored section into the text, butA a transcriber will hold to do necessary alterations. Therefore, a transcriber either accepts the suggested discrepancy, or alterations and accepts it, or translates the section as a new one.
Advantages of Using Translation Memory for Clients of Language Service Providers ( LSP )
Then doing an order, you can provideA interlingual rendition companiesA withA TranslationMemoryA bases incorporating translated corporate certification to:
Save clip.
Translators wo n’t hold to interpret fragments that were already translated one time, therefore increasing productiveness and cut downing completion footings.
Reduce costs.
Shorter completion footings and lower labor-intensiveness provide for lower costs.
Maintain company-specific manner and nomenclature.
Translation Memories allow remaining in line with nomenclature accepted in your company. This is particularly critical for clients working in specific industry subdivisions and for those who choose to work with multiple interlingual rendition companies. A common interlingual rendition database ( Translation Memory ) ensures uniformity of manner and nomenclature every bit good as high interlingual rendition quality.
Advantages of utilizing TM for linguistic communication service suppliers, interlingual rendition bureaus, sections and single transcribers
Shorter completion footings.
With interlingual renditions stored in TM bases, transcribers can salvage clip when working on new texts with similar content. There is no demand to interpret subdivisions that were already translated one time, and hunt for branch- or company-specific footings. Therefore, task completion footings become shorter.
Increased income.
Shorter footings mean better productiveness. More orders can be fulfilled within the same time-frame.
Better interlingual rendition quality.
In add-on to increased productiveness, Translation Memories aid keep the uniformity of nomenclature interlingual rendition. Uniformity is critical when interpreting specialized texts.
Image of interlingual rendition expert.
The TM engineering is widespread in Europe and the USA, where transcribers with Translation Memory accomplishments are an industry criterion. Professional companies have already adopted it to guarantee high quality criterions.