[gentoo-user] How do I get larger fonts in X ?

[gentoo-user] How do I get larger fonts in X ?

[Walter Dnes]

  I'm running Gentoo (of course) with Blackbox as my WM.  I got a
digital camera several weeks ago, and am now playing around with
2590 x 1920 sized images in Gimp.  My monitor can't go quite *THAT*
high, but 1600 x 1200 (for that matter 1560 x 1170) is large enough
for Gimp to display its toolbox menu plus an image window at 50%
(1280 x 960) without any overlapping.

  My only complaint is that I can barely see the fonts at that
resolution.  I normally run at 1152 x 864 on a 19" CRT.  I'd prefer to
switch my web-browsing, etc to 1560 x 1170, but I simply can't read
the text.  For the time-being, I've created a second user account for
myself.  waltdnes (my regular account) surfs the web at 1152 x 864 on
display :0, and user2 (how original) works with Gimp at 1560 x 1170 on
display :1.

  How do I boost font size across the board so I can surf the web, and
do spreadsheets, etc without having to squint at higher resolutions ?

-- 
Walter Dnes <waltdnes@waltdnes.org>
My musings on technology and security at http://tech_sec.blog.ca
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Re: [gentoo-user] How do I get larger fonts in X ?

[Zac Medico]

Walter Dnes wrote:
>   I'm running Gentoo (of course) with Blackbox as my WM.  I got a
> digital camera several weeks ago, and am now playing around with
> 2590 x 1920 sized images in Gimp.  My monitor can't go quite *THAT*
> high, but 1600 x 1200 (for that matter 1560 x 1170) is large enough
> for Gimp to display its toolbox menu plus an image window at 50%
> (1280 x 960) without any overlapping.
> 
>   My only complaint is that I can barely see the fonts at that
> resolution.  I normally run at 1152 x 864 on a 19" CRT.  I'd prefer to
> switch my web-browsing, etc to 1560 x 1170, but I simply can't read
> the text.  For the time-being, I've created a second user account for
> myself.  waltdnes (my regular account) surfs the web at 1152 x 864 on
> display :0, and user2 (how original) works with Gimp at 1560 x 1170 on
> display :1.
> 
>   How do I boost font size across the board so I can surf the web, and
> do spreadsheets, etc without having to squint at higher resolutions ?
> 

Although it seems like your X dpi setting should match the physical resolution of your monitor, it can be used to tweak font sizes.  There is an X -dpi command line setting documented in the Xserver manpage and a DisplaySize directive that can go in your xorg.conf file.  The xdpyinfo program will tell you the current dpi setting.

Zac
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Re: [gentoo-user] How do I get larger fonts in X ?

[George Garvey]

On Sun, Aug 14, 2005 at 11:28:44PM -0700, Zac Medico wrote:
> Although it seems like your X dpi setting should match the physical 
> resolution of your monitor, it can be used to tweak font sizes.  There is 
> an X -dpi command line setting documented in the Xserver manpage and a 
> DisplaySize directive that can go in your xorg.conf file.  The xdpyinfo 

   But his stated aim is to increase font sizes, and use gimp at a
higher resolution. Changing the DPI would mess up his expectations
about gimp, as I understood them. He might as well stick to the lower
resolution he prefers.
   I have a similar problem, due to a large monitor size coupled with
2304x1440 resolution. Font sizes for most X programs can be changed,
including widow managers. Most of the web sites out there refuse to
respect settings about font sizes put in browsers, though. It is
annoying. Only thing I know to do is change zoom factors (and Firefox
doesn't make that easy as far as I know: Opera did), squint and hope
you don't ruin your eyes, or change X resolutions on the fly
(Ctl-Alt-+, etc.).
   Web sites have really lowered my respect for graphic artists, which
used to be quite high when I worked in the print medium. They don't
seem to get how to design with relationships instead of exact numbers.
Wierd to me that an "artist" doesn't understand using relationships.
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Re: [gentoo-user] How do I get larger fonts in X ?

[Zac Medico]

George Garvey wrote:
> On Sun, Aug 14, 2005 at 11:28:44PM -0700, Zac Medico wrote:
> 
>>Although it seems like your X dpi setting should match the physical 
>>resolution of your monitor, it can be used to tweak font sizes.  There is 
>>an X -dpi command line setting documented in the Xserver manpage and a 
>>DisplaySize directive that can go in your xorg.conf file.  The xdpyinfo 
> 
> 
>    But his stated aim is to increase font sizes, and use gimp at a
> higher resolution. Changing the DPI would mess up his expectations
> about gimp, as I understood them. He might as well stick to the lower
> resolution he prefers.

Yeah, I agree, changing the dpi is an ugly hack.  ;-)  It should match the physical resolution.

>    I have a similar problem, due to a large monitor size coupled with
> 2304x1440 resolution. Font sizes for most X programs can be changed,
> including widow managers. Most of the web sites out there refuse to
> respect settings about font sizes put in browsers, though. It is
> annoying. Only thing I know to do is change zoom factors (and Firefox
> doesn't make that easy as far as I know: Opera did), squint and hope
> you don't ruin your eyes, or change X resolutions on the fly
> (Ctl-Alt-+, etc.).

I know of a couple text size related extensions for firefox.

http://www.splintered.co.uk/extensions/
https://addons.mozilla.org/extensions/moreinfo.php?application=firefox&category=Miscellaneous&numpg=10&id=55

>    Web sites have really lowered my respect for graphic artists, which
> used to be quite high when I worked in the print medium. They don't
> seem to get how to design with relationships instead of exact numbers.
> Wierd to me that an "artist" doesn't understand using relationships.

Overuse of pixel measurements is a sign of someone without a clue.  ;-)

Zac
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Re: [gentoo-user] How do I get larger fonts in X ?

[George Garvey]

On Mon, Aug 15, 2005 at 12:58:26AM -0700, Zac Medico wrote:
> I know of a couple text size related extensions for firefox.
> 
> http://www.splintered.co.uk/extensions/
> https://addons.mozilla.org/extensions/moreinfo.php?application=firefox&category=Miscellaneous&numpg=10&id=55

   Thanks for that. Turns out that Firefox 1.0.6 already has something
to make it easier built-in, as far as I know. It is under view text
size on the menu, and uses shortcut keys similar to X's.
   Sad thing is I remember noticing that a while back and then not
using it :<.
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Re: [gentoo-user] How do I get larger fonts in X ?

[Willie Wong]

On Mon, Aug 15, 2005 at 12:24:22AM -0700, George Garvey wrote:
> On Sun, Aug 14, 2005 at 11:28:44PM -0700, Zac Medico wrote:
> > Although it seems like your X dpi setting should match the physical 
> > resolution of your monitor, it can be used to tweak font sizes.  There is 
> > an X -dpi command line setting documented in the Xserver manpage and a 
> > DisplaySize directive that can go in your xorg.conf file.  The xdpyinfo 
> 
>    But his stated aim is to increase font sizes, and use gimp at a
> higher resolution. Changing the DPI would mess up his expectations
> about gimp, as I understood them. He might as well stick to the lower
> resolution he prefers.

The question is precisely whether his X dpi matches his physical dpi.
I used to have a similar problem when I tried to run 1280 x 1024 on my
laptop and get itsy-bitsy fonts. 

Then I took a ruler and measured the monitor and set the DisplaySize
in the Monitor section of xorg.conf and now the fonts becomes readable
again. 

>    I have a similar problem, due to a large monitor size coupled with
> 2304x1440 resolution. Font sizes for most X programs can be changed,
> including widow managers. Most of the web sites out there refuse to
> respect settings about font sizes put in browsers, though. It is
> annoying. Only thing I know to do is change zoom factors (and Firefox
> doesn't make that easy as far as I know: Opera did), squint and hope
> you don't ruin your eyes, or change X resolutions on the fly
> (Ctl-Alt-+, etc.).
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Re: [gentoo-user] How do I get larger fonts in X ?

[Walter Dnes]

On Mon, Aug 15, 2005 at 05:24:40PM -0400, Willie Wong wrote

> The question is precisely whether his X dpi matches his physical dpi.
> I used to have a similar problem when I tried to run 1280 x 1024 on my
> laptop and get itsy-bitsy fonts. 
> 
> Then I took a ruler and measured the monitor and set the DisplaySize
> in the Monitor section of xorg.conf and now the fonts becomes readable
> again. 

  Thanks.  That was it, at least for menus.  Here are a couple of lines
from my revised xorg.conf

#    DisplaySize 400 300
    DisplaySize 328 246

  400 mm x 300 mm gives approx a 19 inch diagonal.  I lied to X, telling
it that I have a smaller CRT.  X uses bigger fonts to remain readable on
the "smaller CRT", and I like it.  Non-menu fonts for apps have to be
set individually.  For Firefox, it's...  

Edit => Preferences => General => Fonts & Colors

  The one part I haven't figured out is xterm.  If I {ALT-RIGHT-CLICK}
in an xterm, I get a menu that will alter font sizes.  How do I change
the default font size that xterm comes up with?

-- 
Walter Dnes <waltdnes@waltdnes.org>
My musings on technology and security at http://tech_sec.blog.ca
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Re: [gentoo-user] How do I get larger fonts in X ?

[Tom Naujokas]

On Mon, 2005-15-08 at 22:09 -0400, Walter Dnes wrote:

>   The one part I haven't figured out is xterm.  If I {ALT-RIGHT-CLICK}
> in an xterm, I get a menu that will alter font sizes.  How do I change
> the default font size that xterm comes up with?

You can control xterm fonts with either command line options or with
Xtoolkit resources. "man xterm" shows the option:

  -fn font   This option specifies the font to be used for displaying
             normal text.  The default is fixed.

and for a resource:

  font (class Font)   Specifies the name of the normal font.  The 
                      default is ``fixed.''

Reviewing the rest of the man file, there are many other options and
resources for controlling fonts. Far more than I remember from the
last time I looked at this particular man file. Looks like some
experimentation would be in order to determine what works best for
you.

Tom Naujokas  



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Re: [gentoo-user] How do I get larger fonts in X ?

[Holly Bostick]

Tom Naujokas schreef:
> On Mon, 2005-15-08 at 22:09 -0400, Walter Dnes wrote:
> 
> 
>>  The one part I haven't figured out is xterm.  If I {ALT-RIGHT-CLICK}
>>in an xterm, I get a menu that will alter font sizes.  How do I change
>>the default font size that xterm comes up with?
> 
> 
> You can control xterm fonts with either command line options or with
> Xtoolkit resources. "man xterm" shows the option:
> 
>   -fn font   This option specifies the font to be used for displaying
>              normal text.  The default is fixed.
> 
> and for a resource:
> 
>   font (class Font)   Specifies the name of the normal font.  The 
>                       default is ``fixed.''
> 
> Reviewing the rest of the man file, there are many other options and
> resources for controlling fonts. Far more than I remember from the
> last time I looked at this particular man file. Looks like some
> experimentation would be in order to determine what works best for
> you.
> 

The 'simplest' way to control xterm fonts is to edit your ~/.Xresources
file to specify the font, or font size, or font encoding, that you want
xterm (or terms based on xterm, like aterm or mrxvt) to use, although
gnome-terminal and konsole can edit such settings directly in the GUI.

HTH,
Holly
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Re: [gentoo-user] How do I get larger fonts in X ?

[Fernando Canizo]

El 15/ago/2005 a las 23:09 -0300, Walter me decía:
> On Mon, Aug 15, 2005 at 05:24:40PM -0400, Willie Wong wrote
> 
> > The question is precisely whether his X dpi matches his physical dpi.
> > I used to have a similar problem when I tried to run 1280 x 1024 on my
> > laptop and get itsy-bitsy fonts. 
> > 
> > Then I took a ruler and measured the monitor and set the DisplaySize
> > in the Monitor section of xorg.conf and now the fonts becomes readable
> > again. 
> 
>   Thanks.  That was it, at least for menus.  Here are a couple of lines
> from my revised xorg.conf
> 
> #    DisplaySize 400 300
>     DisplaySize 328 246
> 
>   400 mm x 300 mm gives approx a 19 inch diagonal.  I lied to X, telling
> it that I have a smaller CRT.  X uses bigger fonts to remain readable on
> the "smaller CRT", and I like it.  Non-menu fonts for apps have to be
> set individually.  For Firefox, it's...  
> 
> Edit => Preferences => General => Fonts & Colors
> 
>   The one part I haven't figured out is xterm.  If I {ALT-RIGHT-CLICK}
> in an xterm, I get a menu that will alter font sizes.  How do I change
> the default font size that xterm comes up with?

Seems you have found your solution to this problem, but i want to
add this, maybe unrelated to your problem, but yet usefull:

In your original solution you have two X servers running at different
resolutions, you don't need to start two servers for this, just use
the command 'xrandr'

# to see available modes 
xrandr -q
 
# to change to a desired mode
xrandr -s number_in_first_column_of_previous_command
  
'xrandr' is part of the x11-base/xorg-x11 package.

-- 
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Confirmed bachelor:
	a man who goes through life without a hitch.

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Re: [gentoo-user] How do I get larger fonts in X ?

[Walter Dnes]

On Tue, Aug 23, 2005 at 01:32:06PM -0300, Fernando Canizo wrote

> Seems you have found your solution to this problem, but i want to
> add this, maybe unrelated to your problem, but yet usefull:
> 
> In your original solution you have two X servers running at different
> resolutions, you don't need to start two servers for this, just use
> the command 'xrandr'
> 
> # to see available modes 
> xrandr -q
>  
> # to change to a desired mode
> xrandr -s number_in_first_column_of_previous_command
>   
> 'xrandr' is part of the x11-base/xorg-x11 package.

  I'm aware of xrandr; unfortunately, applications don't seem to be.
xrandr is great for internet-TV, when I want to temporarily resize the
screen, because resizing the screen doesn't cost anything in cpu cycles.
Software scaling of video is a cpu hog.  But Firefox won't automatically
resize to the new resolution.  fbpanel menubar disappears off the bottom
when I go to a smaller screen, etc, etc.

-- 
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My musings on technology and security at http://tech_sec.blog.ca
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