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Re: variable fonts. What’s the rule of thumb on file size ... is 1 variable font smaller than 1 normal font? Or is it more like 1 variable font is smaller than
by tiffanyh 7y ago
Re: variable fonts.
What’s the rule of thumb on file size ... is 1 variable font smaller than 1 normal font? Or is it more like 1 variable font is smaller than 3 normal fonts combined (eg bold, italic, regular).
- raphlinus 7y agoA coarse rule of thumb is that each axis doubles the font size. So one that has just a weight axis is twice a normal font. One with a weight and width axis is four times. So if you actually use multiple instances from the design space, it's a win. This is only a rough guide, don't take it as gospel. I'm also researching ideas (radial basis function interpolation) to make it more sparse for larger numbers of dimensions.
- mmmrk 7y agoFor some anecdata, compare the file sizes in the latest Cantarell release tarball from the GNOME FTP server. The compression ratio varies depending on how the variable font was made though. E.g. Noto Sans clocks in at 1.5 MB because it is made from 8 masters for two axes. Reducing it to 5 masters results in a 900 KB binary.