Has anyone done any hacking into replacing the system font on the Empeg with something else?

I was just curious, because I got to thinking about how hella cool it would be if my Iron Maiden playlists used a "Maiden" font, my (older) Metallica playlists used that "scribble" font they used everywhere. (No comments about new Metallica, that's a whole nuther thread ).

The ability to load new fonts into the unit, and to be able to select which font to use on a per-song or per-playlist basis would kick serious ass... and it CAN'T be that hard to do, can it? (I mean, it's not something an end user could do, but it shouldn't be TOO hard for those fine lads in Cambridge to come up with, could it?

Thoughts?

D

Back when I first got the Empeg, I was interested in hacking the fonts myself, and I asked about it, both on this BBS and via e-mail. I located the font files on the disk, but I was unable to figure out how to translate those files into something editable. I was never able to work out the file format just by looking at the file.

I was only interested in altering the existing fonts a little bit, though. There are too few pixels to come up with a fancy "Maiden" font as you suggest.

I never got a reply on the subject from the Empeg guys, either because they were too busy to give some weirdo the file specs, or because hacking the font files would technically be altering the player software- something that they're probably not keen on having us do.

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Tony Fabris

altering the existing fonts a little bit

Yeah, I remember this. Didn't you suggest to make slight change to the layout of the number eight, such that it would become readable? This was very early after you got your player and before I started calling you Toni, wasn't it? At that time I found it a bit exagerated to complain about nitty gritty things like the pixel lay-out of the eight in the small font used by the empeg.

To be sure, I just had a look at the small eight again (track sequence in playlist) : I now think that it was (is) really a worthwile suggestion. May be that someone in empeg will pick this up and look at it again, now you've established your reputation

Henno
mk2 nr 6

Edited by Henno on 5/8/00 08:04 AM.

Yeah, that was me.

I feel vindicated.

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Tony Fabris

The fonts are fairly simply compiled, next week I'll see how everyone else feels about releasing the font compiler & current font sources.

Changing the size of the fonts may cause problems (though most stuff sizes bounding boxes, etc to the actual font size & doesn't assume anything), but pixel twiddling should be fine.

Hugo

but pixel twiddling should be fine.

What Tony suggested was to place the pixels of the top half of the '8' s one pixel wider apart. I bet Tony will jump on this once you release the fonts.
(you may want to ask Tony anyhow, in case you decide to keep the pixel maps to yourselves . . . )


Henno
mk2 nr 6