Synopses & Reviews
Donald E. Knuth's five volumes on Computers & Typesetting comprise the definitive user guides and thoroughly documented program code for the TeX and METAFONT systems. This open-source software is widely used around the world by scientists, mathematicians, and others to produce high-quality, aesthetically pleasing text, especially where technical content is included.
TeX and METAFONT have now reached a state of maturity that few pieces of software have ever been able to achieve. The start of the Millennium is a perfect time to offer users and libraries the opportunity to fill their reference shelves with an up-to-date and comprehensive collection of Knuth's work, as well as to encourage a broad audience of software developers to learn from the complete, robust, and portable systems built by a master programmer.
This Millennium Boxed Set -- five elegantly printed books that describe their own method of creation -- celebrates Knuth's monumental coupling of programming and typography. Originally published in 1986, each volume has changed so much in subsequent printings that nearly every page has been touched in some way. Improvements to the books have followed developments in digital printing technology; they also reflect corrections submitted over the years by thousands of volunteers. The volumes in this box are the latest and most accurate versions yet published.
If you have earlier printings of Knuth's books, or holes in your collection, the Millennium Boxed Set makes updating easy. If you have none of the books, you now can conveniently get them all at once. Whether your work requires that you generate superbly formatted text, or that you hone the skills needed for writing your own successful programs, you will find these volumes to be an immediately valuable resource, as well as a treasure for future generations.
0201734168B04062001
Synopsis
METAFONT, created by author Donald E. Knuth, is a computer language that allows you to produce professional quality typefaces using mathematical type design.
The METAFONTbook, a users guide and reference manual, enables readers with only minimal computer science or word processing experience to master the basic as well as the more advanced areas of METAFONT programming.
Readers will learn how to write a program for each letter or symbol of a typeface. Using METAFONT, it is possible to customize a type design that already exists, or even to create an entire alphabet from scratch. It is particularly easy to create logos or special symbols. Advanced users will enjoy the freedom and artistry that METAFONT allows in creating original typefaces.
HIGHLIGHTS
- Introduces concepts informally early in the text; in later chapters, these concepts are filled in with more detailed explanations.
- Program exercises are found throughout the text with answers in an appendix.
- Exercises and concepts of greater difficulty are marked with margin symbols. In this way, both beginning and experienced users of METAFONT can benefit.
- The book is a companion text to Knuth's The TeXbook, since TeX can be used to typeset with fonts created using METAFONT.
Knuth's familiar wit, and illustrations specially drawn by Duane Bibby, add a light touch to an unusually readable software manual.
The METAFONTbook is the third in a five-volume series on Computers and Typesetting, all authored by Knuth.
0201134454B04062001
About the Author
Donald E. Knuth is known throughout the world for his pioneering work on algorithms and programming techniques, for his invention of the Tex and Metafont systems for computer typesetting, and for his prolific and influential writing. Professor Emeritus of The Art of Computer Programming at Stanford University, he currently devotes full time to the completion of these fascicles and the seven volumes to which they belong.