miktex-mf 1 &PACKAGE_NAME; &miktexrev; User Commands
miktex-mf &METAFONT;, a language for font and logo design
`miktex-mf` option command file

## Description

&METAFONT; reads the program in the specified files and outputs font rasters (in &GF; format) and font metrics (in TFM format). The &METAFONT; language is described in The &METAFONT;book.

Like &TeX;, &METAFONT; is normally used with a large body of precompiled macros, and font generation in particular requires the support of several macro files. This version of &METAFONT; looks at its command line to see what name it was called under. Both &inimf; and &virmf; are links to the &miktexmf; executable. When called as &inimf; (or when the `--initialize` option is given) it can be used to precompile macros into a `.base` file. When called as &virmf; it will use the plain base. When called under any other name, &METAFONT; will use that name as the name of the base to use. For example, when called as &miktexmf; the mf base is used, which is identical to the plain base. Other bases than plain are rarely used.

The commands given on the command line to the &METAFONT; program are passed to it as the first input line. (But it is often easier to type extended arguments as the first input line, since shells tend to gobble up or misinterpret &METAFONT;'s favorite symbols, like semicolons, unless you quote them.) As described in The &METAFONT;book, that first line should begin with a filename, a \controlsequence, or a `&basename`.

The normal usage is to say `miktex-mf \mode=printengine; input font` to start processing `font.mf`. (Or you can just say &miktexmf; and give the other stuff on the next line.) Other control sequences, such as `batchmode` (for silent operation) can also appear. The name font will be the jobname, and is used in forming output file names. If &METAFONT; doesn't get a file name in the first line, the job name is `mfput`. The default extension, `.mf`, can be overridden by specifying an extension explicitly.

A log of error messages goes into the file `jobname.log`. The output files are `jobname.tfm` and `jobname.numbergf`, where number depends on the resolution and magnification of the font. The mode in this example is shown generically as printengine, a symbolic term for which the name of an actual device or, most commonly, the name `localfont` (see below) must be substituted. If the mode is not specified or is not valid, &METAFONT; will default to proof mode which produces large character images for use in font design and refinement. Proof mode can be recognized by the suffix `.2602gf` after the job name. Examples of proof mode output can be found in Computer Modern Typefaces (Volume E of Computers and Typesetting). The system of magsteps is identical to the system used by &TeX;, with values generally in the range 0.5, 1.0, 2.0, 3.0, 4.0 and 5.0.

Magnification can also be specified not as a magstep but as an arbitrary value, such as 1.315, to create special character sizes.

Before font production can begin, it is necessary to set up the appropriate base files. The minimum set of components for font production for a given printengine is the `plain.mf` macro file and the local mode_def file. The macros in `plain.mf` can be studied in an appendix to The &METAFONT;book; they were developed by Donald E. Knuth, and this file should never be altered except when it is officially upgraded. Each mode_def specification helps adapt fonts to a particular printengine. The local ones in use on this computer should be in `modes.mf`.

modes.mf

The `e` response to &METAFONT;'s error-recovery prompt causes the default editor to start up at the current line of the current file. The configuration value [Core]Editor can be used to change the editor used. It may contain a string with `%f` indicating where the file name goes and `%l` indicating where the decimal line number (if any) goes. For example, an [Core]Editor string for `emacs` can be set with the command

    &prompt;initexmf --set-config-value="[Core]Editor=emacs +%l%f"

A convenient file is `null.mf`, containing nothing. When &METAFONT; can't find the file it thinks you want to input, it keeps asking you for another file name; responding `null` gets you out of the loop if you don't want to input anything.

## Online Graphics Output

You can see &METAFONT;s output without printing. Chapter 23 of The &METAFONT;book describes what you can do. You enable screen ouput by giving `--screen` on the command-line.

## Options

`--screen`

  Enable screen output.

--screen

## Environment

## See also