Fonts & typography

Envy Code for programming

Specifically designed for programmers with clean distinct monospaced characters.

• Envy Code R — scalable extensively hinted in regular, bold and italic.
• Envy Code A — bitmapped tight spacing 7pt-12pt in regular and bold.
• Envy Code B — bitmapped relaxed spacing 9pt-10pt in regular, bold, italic and bold italics.

ZX Origins 8x8 bitmaps for games

ZX Origins is a large collection of fonts that started life as 8x8 pixel monospaced fonts on the Sinclair ZX Spectrum now being repackaged in a variety of formats and massively expanded in the subsequent years.

Advent of fonts collections

Each year I’ve put out a new font every day in December leading up to Christmas. They are a mix of new creations for ZX Origins as well as reproductions of fonts from old systems, apps and games.

• 2023 — 24 days of 8x8 pixel fonts for Christmas 2023
• 2022 — 24 days of 8x8 pixel fonts for Christmas 2022
• 2021 — 24 days of 8x8 pixel fonts for Christmas 2021

System fonts collection (monospaced)

• Acorn Archimedes 32-bit ARM based desktop computer
• Amstrad CPC home computer range
• Amstrad PCW business computer range
• Atari ST (low-res) 16-bit machine in low-resolution
• BBC Micro (mode 1) 6502 based computer popular in 80’s UK schools
• Commodore 128 128k version of popular C64
• Enterprise 128 Enterprise 128 8-bit computer
• Memotech MTX (computer from Weird Science!)
• OpenStep mono terminal font
• Osborne Osbone 1 computer from 70s
• SAM Coupé 8-bit computer from MGT
• Sinclair QL business 68k based machine
• Tasword 3 Tiny 6x3 font used in Tasword word processor

Alternatively a collection of 8x8 bitmap system fonts converted to a variety of formats is available including Apple ][, Amiga Topaz 1, 2, OS 3, Amstrad CPC, Atari 8-bit, Atari ST Low-Res, BBC Micro, Commodore 64, Commodore Vic-20, IBM CGA, Memotech MTX-512, MSX 1, Mullard SAA 5050, Oric Atmos, SAM Coupe, Spectrum, Tatung Einstein and VT-100.

System fonts collection (proportional)

• Chicago 12 Mac original Chicago font at 12pt
• MC6847T1 Motorola MC6847T1 video chip
• PalmOS system font pixel-plotted from screen-shots including 8pt regular+bold & 11pt regular
• Warp Desktop desktop font from IBM’s OS/2 Warp 4
• Twiggy Early Mac prototype with ’Twiggy’ floppy drives 12pt

Game font recoveries

• Defender of the Crown from Cinemaware’s Amiga classic
• Discworld from the crazy point ‘n click adventure
• Beneath a Steel Sky from distopian point ‘n click adventure

Movie font reproductions

• Tron Legacy screen font, complete with non-monospaced mistakes
• WarGames font inspired by how their screens looked enlarged in some shots

FontStruct fresh creations

FontStruct is a great tool for putting together block-based fonts. I’ve developed a few there over the years.

• Broadway tiny 1920’s broadway sign inspired
• Curvature weird curved experiment
• Doty Matrix retro font created for an ill-fated game
• Gateaux tall and thin font with flowing style
• Lickable5 small 5x5 pixel font with additional points to force aliasing
• Magic5 small 5x5 pixel monospaced font also available in bold
• Point ‘n Click proportional font that should look good in point ‘n click adventures
• SixByFourPro small 6x4 pixel proportional font
• Subpixel5 small 5x5 pixel proportional font that fakes sub-pixels for anti-aliasing
• Tiny small 5x3 pixel proportional font

Hand-drawn iFontMaker fun

A couple for a bit of fun using iFontMaker when I still had an iPad:

• Damien Typewriter the mean fusion of American Typewriter meets Comic Sans.
• Damien Vertical a vertical, straight, neat, hand-drawn type.