ByteMap Font
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
ByteMap Font is a public domain file format for storing bitmap fonts, designed by a person nickenamed crs/broncs. ByteMap fonts use ".bmf" file extension and is ment to store 8-bit character bitmaps (thus ByteMap). So it is capable of storing bitmap fonts with more than 2 colors, especially colorful bitmap fonts.
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[edit] Purpose
ByteMap Font format's aspiration is not to get peer to TrueType or OpenType fonts but to provide at least decent while still simple (and hopefully smart) choice for storing bitmap fonts, including some basic typografic attributes. This format is kept both public domain and as simple as possible so that programmer enthusiasts can use it (or get inspired by it) while implementing their code routines outputing bitmap fonts.
[edit] Motivation
(Colorful) bitmap fonts are most often "interchanged" in a form of computer images. Typical case is that computer graphician produces this image and passes it to coder whose task is to develop a routine ploting character bitmaps of this font out. This way is comprehensible and legible for human eye, however, to implement system capable of drawing bitmap fonts, something more about font characters is needed to be aware of - is it a monospace or proportional font? Which color attribute is supposed to be transparent? What are current widths of each font character? Where (relatively to notional cursor) shall each bitmap be plotted? Perhaps, our coder simply asks the graphician on all of that he does not know. But this is exactly what this file format provide to faciliate. Answers to all the questions above are auto-answered in by means of one firmly defined format.
[edit] Trivia
- The number of characters stored in BMF font format is limited to 256.
- It does not provide any pseudo-characters, defined by name, nor code pages, character grouping nor kerning.
- Up to now (version 1.1), charater bitmaps are uncompressed. However, not storing space outside hypothetic rectangle defining each character bitmap and using relative-X and relative-Y variables saves somewhat disk space.
- Creation of ByteMap fonts was inspired by web site devoted to pictures of bitmap fonts, edited by Daniel Guldkrans who managed to make a compilation of over 300 colourful font set pictures, often from older games or demoscene demos or intros (several made by himself).
[edit] Format Overview
BMF file format comprises of two parts - the part common to whole font and the part devoted to each single font character. The prior part involve basic font definitions and the font palette. The latter are simple data tables, each one defining the character bitmap that follows up in the file.
