Preface
Welcome to TrueType 95! This is Microsoft's first major update and extension of the TrueType outline font format. This document describes the state of TrueType as it exists in Windows NT 3.5 and Windows 95.
The TrueType Font Format specification version 1.6 covers all the improvements and extensions made to the 1.6.x rasterizers included in Windows NT 3.5 and Windows 95:
32-bit rasterization, eliminating previous problems with complex fonts
Faster, optimized code
Gray-scale rasterization, for easy-to-read anti-aliased text on screen
(Gray-scale rasterization is not exposed through API's on Windows NT 3.5)
Embedded bitmaps for efficient display of complex characters at sizes where hinting is difficult
Vertical metrics, for scripts written vertically
Expanded character sets and better code page classification for international uses
TrueType Collections (TTCs), for efficient sharing of data among related fonts
(TTCs are implemented only on some versions of Windows 95. The other features are available across all versions of Windows NT 3.5 and
Windows 95.)
Microsoft has defined a number of new tables for TrueType font files (TTFs) to support these features:
EBLC, EBDT, and EBSC for embedded bitmaps
gasp for control of rasterizer and gray-scale features
vhea and vmtx for vertical metrics
An extended OS/2 for script classification information
We have also improved the organization of this document. As most font developers are chiefly concerned with producing TrueType font files (TTFs), we have moved the description of the file format to the front of the book, and organized the tables in alphabetical order. A new unified chapter presents a comparative list of the chief character set standards relevant to TrueType developers, including the Windows Glyph List 4 (WGL4), the new standard for the core fonts used in Windows 95. And throughout, we have tried to correct and clarify some of the more confusing aspects of TrueType development.
Although Microsoft has created new ways of extending the functionality of the TrueType font format, none of these changes need affect the end user. Both the rasterizers and the file formats are completely compatible with past, present, and future Microsoft software. Existing TrueType fonts will continue to work on current and future Microsoft platforms. And new fonts created to take advantage of the new tables listed above will continue to work (albeit without the new features) on existing platforms, such as Microsoft Windows 3.1.
TrueType 95 is just the first step in Microsoft's program to address new and changing uses for digital type, called TrueType Open. Among the extensions already planned are an expansion of TrueType to support high-quality international typography.
TrueType Open is an open format (Microsoft documents will describe everything you need to know); but it's also "Open" because its features are not dependent on a particular platform or a particular piece of operating system software.
Stay tuned for more information!
Microsoft Typography