#906099 RFP: fontdiff -- tool for finding visual differences between two font versions

Package:
wnpp
Source:
wnpp
Submitter:
Paride Legovini
Date:
2025-11-29 16:41:39 UTC
Severity:
wishlist
#906099#5
Date:
2018-08-14 08:17:05 UTC
From:
To:
* Package name    : fontdiff
  Version         : 0.2.3
  Upstream Author : Sascha Brawer <sascha@brawer.ch>
* URL             : https://github.com/googlei18n/fontdiff
* License         : Apache-2.0
  Programming Lang: C++
  Description     : tool for finding visual differences between two font versions

 fontdiff is a utility for testing fonts. When you modify a TrueType or
 OpenType font, fontdiff generates a PDF showing the typeset text both
 before and after the change. You can use this PDF to easily review the
 changes and spot any errors caused by a font switch.
 .
 For every line in the text sample, the tool renders two raster images in
 high resolution. One image is typeset using the original font, and the
 second uses the new font. If there is any difference between these two
 high-resolution images (even if it’s just whitespace caused by kerning
 changes), the output PDF highlights the difference in color.fontdiff is a
 utility for testing fonts. When you modify a TrueType or OpenType font,
 fontdiff generates a PDF showing the typeset text both before and after
 the change. You can use this PDF to easily review the changes and spot
 any errors caused by a font switch.

I plan to maintain this package within the Fonts packaging team.
The package is useful as a standalone tool, but I plan to integrate it
in the build process of fonts-hack as a QA step comparing the Debian
built font to the upstream released one.

The source is shipped with convenience copies of many third-party
libraries. It will have to be repacked.

Paride
#906099#12
Date:
2019-06-26 22:16:22 UTC
From:
To:
I don't think I will have time to work on fontdiff in the foreseeable
future, so I'm demoting this ITP to a RFP. I think all the dependencies
now packaged; the annoying part is that the upstream build scripts
(using gyp) have to be patched to use the system installed libraries
instead of the convenience copies upstream ships in the third_party
directory. It is probably not difficult and I may come back to it at
some point, but I don't want to give the impression that I'm actively
working at it.

Paride