Sparrow Forum

1. 

   TTStu
   Member

   Hi everybody,

   perhaps you can help me with a little mental conundrum?

   I have implemented bitmap fonts, and they are working great.

   I created them using Glyph Designer and added the png to my texture atlas and use that to pull the texture, and it's working just fine.

   But now I want to implement @2x HD versions, and the SD version.

   I see from the demo project and various wiki entries that you can generate a 1x version and a 2x version, and use separate pngs etc with the @2x to do this.

   The problem for me is that I am adding the pngs to my main texture atlas, and generating the SD texture atlas by using the AutoSD mode in texture packer.

   Of course, this means the SD texture is exactly half of the HD texture, but the pngs and fnt files generated by Glyph Designer are NOT exactly half values.

   So... what to do?

   I can't manually edit the fnt XML values, because some of them are odd numbers, which would result in n.5 values if I halve them.

   Does anyone else use texture atlases to store SD/HD bitmap font atlases, and if so, how do you go about it?

   Thanks

   Posted 5 months ago #
2. 

   Jugibur
   Moderator

   Hi TTStu,

   for now I'v just created a seconds GlyphDesigner project with doubled values. If you duplicate + edit your SD project file it's a quick change.
   The output fnt + png file must then of course have the @2x suffix.

   Beside that I have read from the developer, that in one of the next versions a support for automatic SD + retina will be implemented.

   Posted 5 months ago #
3. 

   TTStu
   Member

   Thanks for the response, interesting to know that HD support is on its way!

   As for your method of doing it, that is fine, I can do that, but what I am saying is that after I have created both versions, I need to insert one into the SD texture atlas (with all my other graphics) and one into the HD texture atlas...

   But the SD texture atlas is created directly from the HD texture atlas via the AutoSD checkbox in Texture Packer... so I never get the chance to insert the SD bitmap font seperately...

   Erm, I hope I'm explaining myself properly!

   The only way I can think of achieving this so far is either to stop using the AutoSD option in Texture Packer and create both atlases separately, or use separate bitmap font atlases and texture atlases for "other" graphics... either way, I miss out on *some* handy functionality...

   So I wondered if anyone had any clever ways of doing it all...

   Posted 5 months ago #
4. 

   Jugibur
   Moderator

   Oh, I misunderstood you...
   The problem is that GlyphDesigner arrange the characters of my HD and SD fnt-file in a different way. So the fnt-files contains different positions of some characters...

   So one way could be just use one fnt-file (the HD-version) and manipulating the way how SPBitmapFont handles SD fonts by just using the half width/height. Beside that TexturePacker also creates the SD-version of the font bitmap, as you mentioned.

   Posted 5 months ago #
5. 

   Jugibur
   Moderator

   I have now changed he way how SPBitmapfont reads the fnt-file and it works roughly.
   There are inaccuracies with the line-height and offset, and I can't adjust them in the right way (regardless if I use floorf or roundf). If I don't use one of them I get half float-values which brings blurred results of course.

   Posted 5 months ago #
6. 

   TTStu
   Member

   Hi again, thanks for looking!

   I have now found a way around this.

   First, I generate the SD and HD versions of the bitmap atlas using GlyphDesigner.

   Then, I note the size of the SD bitmap font atlas (in my case, 128 x 64).

   I then created a blank/solid colour PNG in Photoshop that was double that, eg 256 x 128, with the SAME NAME as the bitmap font atlas.

   I add THAT PNG to Texture Packer, check the box AutoSD and generate the texture atlas.

   This then gives me an SD texture atlas with a coloured box exactly 128 x 64, a perfect fit for the SD bitmap font atlas! So back into Photoshop, I edit the texture atlas PNG and copy/paste the bitmap font atlas over the container box. Now my bitmap font atlas is exactly where the texture atlas expects it to be.

   Back into Texture Packer, I remove the containing box again, add the HD font atlas and UNCHECK AutoSD, and just generate the HD texture atlas by itself.

   I now have my two texture atlases.

   Phew, works a treat though

   Posted 5 months ago #
7. 

   Jugibur
   Moderator

   Cool you've got it...
   Unfortunately I'm modifying my texture atlases frequently while the development phase, but your method is perfect shortly before releasing a game.
   So thanks for sharing!

   Posted 5 months ago #

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