What is Glyf, pros and cons, use cases
The ‘glyf’ table in TrueType fonts serves as a repository for glyph data, which is the graphical representation of characters in a font. Glyph data blocks within the ‘glyf’ table contain information about the shape and characteristics of each glyph.
Glyph IDs are used to uniquely identify each glyph within the ‘glyf’ table. These IDs are essential for referencing and accessing specific glyphs in a font.
There are two formats for glyph descriptions: simple glyph descriptions and composite glyph descriptions.
Simple glyph descriptions are used for glyphs that are composed of a single outline, or collection of curves and lines. They contain information such as the xy values of the glyph’s points and the sequence of contours that make up the glyph.
Composite glyph descriptions, on the other hand, are used for glyphs that are composed of multiple individual glyphs. They contain references to the parent and child components, which are other glyphs within the font. Composite glyphs allow for greater flexibility and complexity in designing intricate glyph shapes.
Both types of glyph descriptions share a common glyph header, which contains information about the glyph’s attributes and properties. This header includes details such as the number of contours in the glyph outline, the bounding box dimensions, and the glyph description type.
In summary, the ‘glyf’ table in TrueType fonts stores glyph data blocks, which contain information about the shape of each glyph. Glyph IDs are used to reference specific glyphs within the table. Glyph descriptions can either be simple or composite, with a shared glyph header providing essential attributes for each glyph.
