Using The Amulet Font Converter

Fonts in HTML and the Amulet GEM Font Converter

To use a windows based font in an HTML page, use either the <FONT> tag with the FACE attribute or the CSS attribute font-family: in either the <DIV> tag or the <SPAN> tag. Any font that you use in your HTML pages will need to be converted into an Amulet Unicode Font file (.auf) using the Amulet GEM Font Converter and the subsequent .auf file should be placed in one of three acceptable folders. Either the root directory of the project you are compiling, the root\Fonts directory, or the Amulet\Configuration\Fonts folder. The GEM Compiler first looks in the root directory, then the root\Fonts directory, and finally the Amulet\Configuration\Fonts directory.

For example, to use the Arial font, size 4 (14 pt) on a string that says "Welcome to Amulet Fonts", use the following in an HTML page:

<FONT FACE="Arial" SIZE="4">Welcome to Amulet Fonts</FONT>

-OR-

<SPAN STYLE="font-family:Arial; font-size:14pt">Welcome to Amulet Fonts</SPAN>

You will then need to place Arial_4.auf, which is generated by the Amulet GEM Font Converter, into either the Amulet\Configuration\Fonts folder or in the root directory of the file you are compiling. If you save Arial_4.auf in the Amulet\Configuration\Fonts folder, then you can use Arial size 4 in any other Amulet project. If you save it in your root or root\Fonts folder, Arial size 4 can be used in any page or project used within the root directory.

To use a font generated by the Amulet GEM Font Converter in an Amulet Widget, use the "font" attribute to specify the font name. If the "font" attribute is missing, the default will be the Amulet Sans Serif. To specify a specific size, use the "fontSize" attribute. If the "fontSize" attribute is missing, the default is HTML size 3 or 12pt. With the "fontSize" attribute, you can specify in HTML size or in point size. If using HTML size, specify a number 1 - 7. If using point size, specify a point size between 8pt - 99pt. For example, to use the Arial font, size 14 pt, in an Amulet widget that contains a font, enter these two lines in the widget attributes:

<NAME="font" VALUE="Arial">
<NAME="fontSize" VALUE="14pt">

Starting the Amulet GEM Font Converter

The Amulet GEM Font Converter runs on Windows 2000, XP, and Vista. The Converter may be invoked by any standard Windows method:

From the START menu
Double clicking on the Amulet GEM Font Converter icon and/or any shortcuts

Using the Converter

To convert a Windows font into an Amulet Unicode Font (*.auf), load and save the font with the Amulet GEM Font Converter. Instructions follow detailing this process:

To load the font, click on "Load Font..." from the File menu and then choose the Font, Font style, and size that you used on the already created HTML page.

Once you load the font, you'll notice the display of the program now contains the character set of the font you are about to save.

To save the font, click on "Save AmuletFont..." from the File menu. You'll notice that you can only save the file as an Amulet Font file(.auf). In order for the Amulet GEM Compiler to compile correctly, the font name and size must match what was used in the HTML page. You should save the resultant .auf file in either the Configuration\Fonts folder in the Amulet sub-directory, the root directory of the project, or the root\Fonts folder. If the HTML font does not exactly match the converted Amulet Font, or if the .auf file is not located in one of the three acceptable directories, the compiler will throw a compilation error, stating the required font file cannot be found.

NOTE: The font size that you load must match the HTML font size used in the HTML page you created earlier. HTML font sizes 1 through 7 correspond to Windows font point sizes 8, 10, 12, 14, 18, 24, and 36 respectively. The save file name is the font name with _xx appended to the end, where _xx is the corresponding point size. This is the format that must be used for the compiler to compile correctly.

Selecting Range of Characters to Convert

The Amulet GEM Font Converter has the ability to convert all characters from 0x0 to 0xFFFF. By default, the Amulet GEM Font Converter only converts and saves the lower-ASCII characters, 0x21-0x7F. To convert and save either more or less than the default, select File > Options. A pop-up menu will appear similar to this:

The First Character range is 0x0-0xFFFF. The Last Character range is 0x0-0xFFFF. The First Character value should be less than or equal to the Last Character value.

This allows for displaying font characters that are not part of the ASCII range. The characters that can be found in the Unicode section (0x80 and above) are not always going to be the same from font to font, so ensure that the character you are interested in displaying is available in the font you are using.

This option also allows for saving a smaller subset of a font if you are sure that you will only be using a portion of a specific font. For instance, you may want a large number font to be used as part of a numeric field widget. Being it is a large font, if you saved all lower ASCII characters it would result in a very large .auf file which would eat up a large portion of your project's flash space. By setting the First Character to 0x30 and the Last Character to 0x39, you could save just the numbers 0-9, which would obviously result in a much smaller .auf file, thus using much less flash space.

These values are not persistant after closing down the Amulet GEM Font Converter. Each time you start the Amulet GEM Font Converter, the First Character defaults to 0x20 and the Last Character defaults to 0x7F.

More Examples

Below are examples of using different fonts in your UI with the help of the Amulet GEM Font Converter:

Example 1:

If you want to use Lucida Handwriting size 3 (12 pt) on a string that says "Using the Amulet GEM Font Converter", use the following in an HTML page:

<FONT FACE="Lucida Handwriting" SIZE="3">Using the Amulet Font Converter</FONT>

You will need to place Lucida Handwriting_3.auf, which is generated by the Amulet GEM Font Converter, into the Amulet\Configuration\Fonts folder or the root directory of this project. You'll notice when you load the Lucida Handwriting font in the Converter, "Italic," "Bold," and "Bold Italic" are the only font styles available. If there is no "Regular" font style, the top font style in the style list box is the default style, which is "Italic" in this case. Using this rule, you'll want to load and save Lucida Handwriting, Italic, size 12 with the Converter, in order to match the HTML page created earlier. If Lucida Handwriting_3.auf is loaded in your Amulet\Configuration\Fonts folder you can use Lucida Console size 3 in any other project. If Lucida Handwriting_3.auf is loaded in the root or root\Fonts directory, you can use Lucida Handwriting size 3 in any project whose initial page is in the root directory.

Example 2:

If you want to use Lucida Console size 15 pt on a string that says "Lucida Console is a fixed width font.", use the following in an HTML page:

<SPAN STYLE="font-family:'Lucida Handwriting'; font-size:15pt;">Lucida Console is a fixed width font.</SPAN>

You will need to place Lucida Console_15.auf, which is generated by the Amulet GEM Font Converter, into the Amulet\Configuration\Fonts folder, the root directory, or root\Fonts directory of this project. When using the style font-family attribute, if you have a font that has white space in the middle of the name, you will need to bracket that name with single quotes. If Lucida Console_15.auf is loaded in your Amulet\Configuration\Fonts folder you can use Lucida Console size 15pt in any other project without doing anything special. If Lucida Console_15.auf is loaded in the root or root\Fonts directory, you can use Lucida Console size 15pt in any project whose initial page is in the root directory.

Example 3:

If you want to use Lucida Sans Unicode size 9 pt on a string that says "Floating text box", in a floating cell with absolute positioning, use either of the following in an HTML page:

<DIV STYLE="position:absolute; top:100px; left:20px; height:100px; width:100px; font-family:'Lucida Sans Unicode'; font-size:9pt;">
Floating text box
</DIV>

-OR-

<DIV STYLE="position:absolute; top:100px; left:20px; height:100px; width:100px;">
<SPAN STYLE="font-family:'Lucida Sans Unicode'; font-size:9pt;">Floating text box</SPAN>
</DIV>

You will need to place Lucida Sans Unicode_9.auf, which is generated by the Amulet GEM Font Converter, into the Amulet\Configuration\Fonts folder, the root directory, or root/Fonts directory of this project. When using the style font-family attribute, if you have a font that has white space in the middle of the name, you will need to bracket that name with single quotes. If Lucida Sans Unicode_9.auf is loaded in your Amulet\Configuration\Fonts folder you can use Lucida Sans Unicode size 9pt in any other project without doing anything special. If Lucida Sans Unicode_9.auf is loaded in the root or root\Fonts directory, you can use Lucida Sans Unicode size 9pt in any project whose initial page is in the root directory.

Example 4:

If you want to use Arial size 17 pt on the label of a function button, use the following in an HTML page:

You will need to place Arial_17.auf, which is generated by the Amulet GEM Font Converter, into the Amulet\Configuration\Fonts folder, the root directory, or root\Fonts directory of this project. If Arial_17.auf is loaded in your Amulet\Configuration\Fonts folder you can use Arial size 17pt in any other project. If Arial_17.auf is loaded in the root or root\Fonts directory, you can use Arial size 17pt in any project whose initial page is in the root directory.

Example 5:

If you want to use Garamond Bold Italic size 7 (36 pt) on a string that says "Amulet GEM Font Converter", use the following in an HTML page:

<FONT FACE="Garamond" SIZE="7"><i><b>Amulet Font Converter</b></i></FONT>

You will need to place Garamond_7.auf, which is generated by the Amulet GEM Font Converter, into the Amulet/Configuration/Fonts folder, the root directory, or root\Fonts directory of this project. It is HIGHLY recommended in this situation and situations like this one in which "non-regular" font styles are used, to use the Amulet GEM Font Converter to convert the font in the "Regular" style and let the Amulet software modify the style of the font. If you were to use the Amulet GEM Font Converter to save the .auf with a bold and italicized font style, in addition to including the bold and italic tags in the HTML page, what you would see on the Amulet GUI would actually be a bolded bold and italicized italic representation of the font. Following this important rule, for this situation, you would use the Amulet GEM Font Converter to load and save Garamond, Regular, size 36. If Garamond_7.auf is loaded in your Amulet\Configuration\Fonts folder you can use Garamond size 7 in any other project. If Garamond_7.auf is loaded in the root or root\Fonts directory, you can use Garamond size 7 in any project whose initial page is in the root directory.

File Menu

Load Font...	Loads font for viewing. Brings up a font dialog box for choosing the font.
Save AmuletFont...	Saves font in AmuletFont (*.auf) format. Brings up a save file dialog for choosing the name and save location of the .auf file
Options	Opens a separate pop-up window which allows for specifying the first and last characters to convert.
Exit	Exits the program.

Disclaimer

Converting copyrighted TrueType and bitmap fonts for the purposes of resale, copyright infringement or licensing avoidance is strictly prohibited. Refer to the original font's licensing agreement for additional restrictions that may apply. Amulet Technologies will not be held liable for infringements made to a font's licensing agreement, nor will it take responsibility for the user's actions involving the use of the Amulet GEM Font Converter.

©2003-2010 Amulet Technologies. U.S. & European Patents Granted. Other Patents Pending.
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