PostScript files produced by a TeX or a LaTeX source (via a dvi file) may contain bitmapped fonts and not the more desirable Type 1 (scalable) fonts. A BITMAPPED FONT is designed to be rendered at a single resolution, typically either 300, 400, or 600 dots per inch (DPI) depending on the installed printer. A SCALABLE FONT, by contrast, can be displayed at almost any resolution. By default TeX and LaTeX use bitmapped computer modern fonts for body text as well as for mathematical symbols. Since scalable versions of these fonts are not available on most platforms, dvips program (a utility that converts dvi files into PostScript format) incorporates these bitmapped fonts in the PostScript file. When the PostScript file is converted to PDF, the bitmapped fonts are carried over into the PDF file. Such PDF files will result in poor display and slow rendering as bitmapped fonts do not scale well to produce good screen fonts. However, both the PostScript and PDF files will print very well on any PostScript printer. The GOOD and BAD PDF files provided by Stephen Spencer of SIGGRAPH provide a stark contrast between the display quality produced by scalable and bitmapped fonts. (You will need a PDF viewer to see these papers. Adobe's free Acrobat Reader can be downloaded from Adobe's website).
A partial solution to this problem is to use scalable Adobe Type 1 fonts (such as Times or Times Roman) as the body text for the document. This is accomplished by declaring:
| \documentstyle[times, other options] {article} | in LaTeX 2.0 |
|
| \usepackage(times) | in LaTeX 2e. |
It is also essential that the Times font be installed on your system and that you are using a recent version of the dvips program. If your paper has been successfully formatted without the times.sty file and you wish to add it, remove the .aux file for TeX or LaTeX source document before rerunning TeX or LaTeX.
Unfortunately, the solution of using the Times font only works for the body text of your paper; TeX still uses the bitmapped computer modern font to display mathematical symbols. This hybrid format is quite legible on most screen displays, with the exception of some Macintosh systems which - due to encoding problems - may not correctly display the "fi" and "fl" ligatures, double quotes, or en and em dashes. However, authors who wish to research further font solutions are encouraged to start by visiting CTAN (Comprehensive TeX Archive Network) for information on bluesky or other scalable versions of the computer modern fonts.
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