Annotating the Occidental Glyph Data

Contents

• Introduction
• General Annotation File
• Special Annotation Files

1 - Introduction

The Hershey glyph data contains the only the polylines which form the glyphs themselves, together with an indication of the left and right sides of the glyph. Each glyph might also have associated with it other information, such as:

• glyph top
• glyph bottom
• baseline
• shifts or "jogs" to realign it in either of the four cardinal directions
• short name
• long name
• comment
• provenance

To make automated processing more flexible, it would be best if this information could be recorded in a file (rather than encoded in a particular processing program). So as not to disrupt the classic glyph data in its pristine splendor, this information might best be recorded in a separate file keyed to the glyph data file by glyph number. Actually, since some of this information is of a more general nature (e.g., the glyph's name) and some is more specific (e.g., the jogs appropriate for a particular application), it would be best if the general information were stored in one file and the more specific information in other files.

2 - General Annotation File

The format for the general annotation file is exceedingly simply. Blank lines and lines beginning with a "#" are ignored. Data lines consist of several fields separated by commas. There is no provision for escaping the comma within text. The first field is the glyph number. Glyph numbers do not have to be in order in the file, nor need they be unique - but it should be assumed that, in processing, the first glyph number encountered will be the one used. The fields are:

1. glyph number
2. short name
3. provenance, coded numerically
4. comment
5. baseline

The file itself is: "list_glyphs_occidental.txt".

Here's a sample from it:

# Identifications mostly from WH
# Note: In CC, 710 (period) through 728 (asterisk) correspond,
#       but 729 is lozenge rather than dot,
#       730 through 735 are the suits in a different order,
#       and 736 through 800 are not used.
# Identifications mostly from Wolcott & Hilsenrath
710,period,5,,
711,comma,5,,
712,colon,5,,
713,semicol,5,semicolon,
714,exclam,5,exclamation,
715,question,5,interrogation,
716,prime,5,,
717,second,5,,
718,degree,5,,
719,dollar,5,,
720,solidus,5,,
721,lparen,5,left parenthesis,
722,rparen,5,right parenthesis,
723,vert bar,5,vertical bar,
724,minus,5,difference,
725,plus,5,sum,
726,equals,5,equality,
727,times,5,cross,
728,asterisk,5,,
729,dot,6,,
730,lquote,6,left single quotation mark,
731,rquote,6,right single quotation mark,
732,arrow,6,right arrow,
733,number,6,number sign or poundsign or hashmark,
734,ampersnd,6,ampersand,
735,lozenge,6,,

3 - Special Annotation Files

Special annotation files may be created as each application warrants. For example, the process of creating VARKON® fonts from the glyphs requires that several of the glyphs be "jogged" in certain directions. An annotation file for this might contain data for only the glyphs to be jogged, in five comma-separated fields: glyph number, jog left, jog right, jog up, jog down. Annotation files for other purposes are easy to imagine.