Hacker News Board Hacker News, browsed like a classic message board
Live data from Hacker News

Show HN: Miracode, a Minecraft programming font that is readable

github.com

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

1–10 of 52 posts

Show HN: Miracode, a Minecraft programming font that is readable

#1

Post by IdreesInc »

I always believe in using what one makes, which is unfortunate because I made Monocraft. For the past year I've been stuck looking at those pixels while I code, so over the weekend I tried my hand at making a version of Monocraft that was more legible. Introducing Miracode, a Minecraft programming font that is actually usable! Using a custom algorithm, I've converted adjacent pixels from the original font into strokes, which allow for a more smooth look while maintaining that Minecraft-y look. Give it a try and let me know what you think!

Show HN: Miracode, a Minecraft programming font that is readable
github.com

Re: Show HN: Miracode, a Minecraft programming font that is readable

#4

Post by CaptainOfCoit »

Solvency wrote: post #2

Love the font but wish you'd share your custom algorithm. I've designed a number of pixel fonts in the past I'd love to convert to strokes in this way. Any chance you'd release a little conversion kit?

Is it not what's in miracoda.py? https://github.com/IdreesInc/Miracode/blob/main/src/miracode...

Would be strange to make the project FOSS but not share all the parts that went into it.

Re: Show HN: Miracode, a Minecraft programming font that is readable

#6

Post by crazygringo »

I applaud the attempt!

That being said, I sadly do not find this to be particularly "readable". The choice to introduce octagonal-style 45° segments rather than normal rounding makes it quite difficult for me to read. The worst glyphs for legibility for me are "r" and "p" -- you've actually increased the size of the diagonal segment that connects to the stem, compared to diagonals on letters like "o", which really throws off the forms for me, and doesn't seem to be inspired by anything in the original font. If anything, rounded connections to stems in fonts tend to be reduced rather than exaggerated. (As in the font used by HN, Verdana.)

I wonder what this would look like if you used curves rather than introducing octagonal corners, and didn't exaggerate the connections to stems? Keeping in mind that curves usually do things like extending slightly beyond the baseline or at the top.

Re: Show HN: Miracode, a Minecraft programming font that is readable

#8

Post by IdreesInc »

crazygringo wrote: post #6

I applaud the attempt! That being said, I sadly do not find this to be particularly "readable". The choice to introduce octagonal-style 45° segments rather than normal rounding makes it quite difficult for me to read. The worst glyphs for legibility for me are "r" and "p" -- you've actually increased the size of the diagonal segment that connects to the stem, compared to diagonals on letters like "o", which really th…

Thanks for the in-depth comment, it's definitely been a balancing act trying to determine how to handle things like the diagonals/curves. I originally made things more "curvy", but it made the font look similar to comic sans or other handwriting fonts for some reason. Perhaps a sharper curve algorithm would avoid this, though the "angular" look does make this font into something a bit more unique than the other programming fonts available.

Re: Show HN: Miracode, a Minecraft programming font that is readable

#9

Post by crazygringo »

IdreesInc wrote: post #8
crazygringo wrote: post #6

I applaud the attempt! That being said, I sadly do not find this to be particularly "readable". The choice to introduce octagonal-style 45° segments rather than normal rounding makes it quite difficult for me to read. The worst glyphs for legibility for me are "r" and "p" -- you've actually increased the size of the diagonal segment that connects to the stem, compared to diagonals on letters like "o", which really th…

Thanks for the in-depth comment, it's definitely been a balancing act trying to determine how to handle things like the diagonals/curves. I originally made things more "curvy", but it made the font look similar to comic sans or other handwriting fonts for some reason. Perhaps a sharper curve algorithm would avoid this, though the "angular" look does make this font into something a bit more unique than the other progr…

Happy to help! Font design isn't easy, but it's very rewarding. You might look at the famous Eurostile font which does a kind of "rounded rectangle" style of curves which might work well here.

One more note -- I think this font actually works great as a display typeface. The octagonal angles and exaggerated stem connection give it a ton of personality, and display typefaces used for headings, titles, packaging, etc. are where personality is more important than readability.

So I think you've produced something really cool -- just not necessarily as a coding font!

Re: Show HN: Miracode, a Minecraft programming font that is readable

#10

Post by IdreesInc »

ruined wrote: post #5

ooh, cute. excited to try the vectorizer on some old favorite BDFs from my eeepc days

No promises that it is actually a good algorithm, I definitely had to handle a lot of edge cases and I am sure there are more out there! The best decision I made was to make a unit testing system for the font, so hopefully that'll make things easier for people in the future.
Post reply on HN