Re: Re[2]: pixel fonts

>> But even if the breaking and entering is a crime, it is still wise to 
>> lock your doors and put valuables in a safe.
>
>Up to a point;  beyond the point it becomes an inconvenience.
Well of course, but that point has not been reached in typeprotection. To 
continue a lame analogy: the doors are open and big neon signs on the 
roof saying "free fonts here"

>Then mail the postmaster of the offending site;  many sites pull accounts
>for that sort of thing.
On usenet? Nope.

>Would the people who use knockoff fonts purchase legitimate fonts if
>knockoffs were unavailable?  I doubt it.  For legitimate fonts, one is
>paying at least as much for quality and reliability as for the appearance
>of the font.
It is always possible to construct a profile of someone who will or do 
won't do something. The number of people involved is so large that it is 
safe to assume that because these things _can_ happen they will happen on 
a large scale.

>Java applets for implementing fonts are an interesting idea, and better
>than bitmaps.  Although I suspect that people would crack them soon 
Java or something else. There are many other reasons to develop secure 
technologies. A javafont, or a font based on similar technology is 
already much more secure than an embedded type1 or truetype font. No 
technology will provide total safety, but current font technology offers 
none, whereas safer alternatives can be developed easily or are already 
present. Type deserves a better deal.

>I'm sorry to hear that.  Is that an actual copy of Trixie, or 
>another typewriter font made in the same style (such as Harting)?
The original. 1991.

>Understandably so.  But the need for scalable fonts for text and such 
>won't go away either.  A fair deal may be easier to achieve by 
>education and enforcement than by technology.

Daily practice for many typedesigners, foundries and distributors. 
Brochures, campaigns, ads, visits, publicity cases, clemency periods for 
pirates, stickers, articles, press. The type industry is doing everything 
it possibly can already to educate people about legalities and value of 
type.

The fact that piracy exist does not justify increasing it, or enabling it 
to increase.



erik van blokland, LettError
home of the randomfonts
   letterror http://www.letterror.com
   typelab   http://www.dol.com/TypeLab/

Received on Friday, 9 August 1996 12:14:15 UTC