[Matplotlib-users] Font problems with matplotlib 0.8 in OS X (aka very large postscript)

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Thought I'd summarize my experiences. They may result from a messed up =20=

installation, but could be useful for others -- Bradley Minch, using =20
10.2.8, seems to have had my initial problem, #I below.
Excuse the overlong email here.
Many thanks to Darren Dale for helping me out.

Setup:
matplotlib 0.80, ipython 0.6.13, readline.so [from =20
www.pycs.net/bbum/2004/1/21/readline.so.gz]
  zlib, libpng, tk_inter8.4, freetype 2.1.9 [produces =20
libfreetype.6.3.7.dylib], wx-2.6-mac-unicode,
  standard Panther Apple Python 2.3, updated to MacPython,
  scipy 0.3.2 [from =20
http://cbis.anu.edu.au/misc/SciPy_complete-0.3.2.mpkg.zip]
Numeric 23.1, OS X 10.3.9

Running with TkAgg backend set in .matplotlibrc

1. Original problem:
First time I did
from pylab import *  (or ipython -pylab)

got error while font_manager was trying to build the ttffont.cache...

  =C2=A0 File =20
"/Library/Frameworks/Python.framework/Versions/2.3/lib/python2.3/site-=20=

packages/matplotlib/font_manager.py", line 347, in ttfFontProperty
  =C2=A0=C2=A0=C2=A0 size =3D str(float(font.get_fontsize()))
  AttributeError: get_fontsize

Now, when building the ttf cache, font_manager searches for TrueType =20
fonts.
1. in the matplotlib data directory =20
/System/Library/Frameworks/Python.framework/Versions/2.3/share/=20
matplotlib
2. In the normal Mac places
/Library/Fonts/, /System/Library/Fonts,/Network/Library/Fonts, =20
~/Library/Fonts

Tracked this problem down to the font VT102Font that I had in =20
~/Library/Fonts.
Moved VT102Font to (new directory) ~/SuspectFonts off the font path.

Problem 1 solved! from pylab import * now happily built  a =20
~/.ttffont.cache for me.

2. Next problem -- absurdly large, corrupted, PS files.

Ran this script that produces simple plots, with axes labelled (by =20
default) with sans-serif numbers.
dt =3D 0.01
t =3D arange(0,10,dt)
subplot(211)
s =3D sin(t)
plot(t,s)
subplot(212)
c =3D cos(t)
plot(t,c)

savefig('/Users/agn/sincos.png')
  -- produced a nice file ~28KB in size
savefig('/Users/agn/sincos.ps')
  -- produced a file of 4.6MB.
  Trying to view this file using Apple preview, or converting it to pdf =20=

with ps2pdf (ps2pdf13, v1.3, 21Feb2002) or Apple pstopdf gave an error. =20=

E.g. ps2pdf sincos.ps gave:

Error: /invalidfont in -dict-
Operand stack:
    LucidaGrande   --dict:10/14(L)--   Font   LucidaGrande   =20
--dict:10/14(L)--   LucidaGrande

Darren Dale sorted me out here. The default  sans-serif font used to =20
label the axes is the first font in the san-serif line (about line 113) =20=

in the .matplotlibrc startup file. The default .matplotlibrc gives =20
LucidaGrande as that default font. LucidaGrande.dfont is an Apple =20
standard font living in /System/Library/Fonts.
He suggested that I put  Bitstream Vera Sans as the first font on the =20=

san-serif line in .matplotlibrc, so that this font, which comes with =20
matplotlib, and lives in =20
/System/Library/Frameworks/Python.framework/Versions/2.3/share/=20
matplotlib is used as the default sans-serif font instead.

Problem 2 solved. savefig('/Users/agn/sincos.ps') now gives a 176 KB =20
ps, that reduces to a 36KB pdf. Perfectly OK now.

Suspected same problem would arise for other families, so put Bitstream =20=

Vera Serif as the default serif font, &  Bitstream Vera Sans Mono as =20
the default monospace font.

3. John Hunter suggested that problem 2 might be solved if I were to =20
modify line 180 of .matplotlibrc to set
  ps.useafm         : True
This should give smaller Ps files at the cost of breaking mathtext =20
(which incidentally *does* (almost completely) work for me with =20
ps.useafm  : False).
Unfortunately, setting ps.useafm  true doesn't work for me. Now if  =20
ps.useafm  is True, font_manager only makes a cache -- .afmfont.cache =20=

-- when you first try to save to PS. I have at present the problem that =20=

font_manager is falling over when trying to make this cache. One of the =20=

Chinese-type opentype (.otf) fonts ---  =
/System/Library/Fonts/=E3=83=92=E3=83=A9=E3=82=AD=E3=82=99=E3=83=8E=E6=98=8E=
=E6=9C=9D =20
Pro W3.otf -- or in hex
/System/Library/Fonts/=20
\xe3\x83\x92\xe3\x83\xa9\xe3\x82\xad\xe3\x82\x99\xe3\x83\x8e\xe6\x98\x8e=20=

\xe6\x9c\x9d Pro W3.otf
causes an infinite loop with 'Key error converting in AFM' in afm.py, =20=

when trying to parse the header.

Quite a few fonts are in 'seen', --
{'pbkd8a.afm': 1, 'pagd8a.afm': 1, 'pbkl8a.afm': 1, 'ptmri8a.afm': 1, =20=

'pncb8a.afm': 1, 'phvbo8a.afm': 1, 'phvb8an.afm': 1, 'phvro8an.afm': 1, =20=

'ptmb8a.afm': 1, 'pcrro8a.afm': 1, 'pcrb8a.afm': 1, 'pplr8a.afm': 1, =20
'pzdr.afm': 1, 'cmsy10.afm': 1, 'phvlo8a.afm': 1, 'cmr10.afm': 1, =20
'phvb8a.afm': 1, 'phvl8a.afm': 1, 'pncri8a.afm': 1, 'pagdo8a.afm': 1, =20=

'putri8a.afm': 1, 'pzcmi8a.afm': 1, 'ptmbi8a.afm': 1, 'phvro8a.afm': 1, =20=

'putr8a.afm': 1, 'phvbo8an.afm': 1, 'pcrr8a.afm': 1, 'putbi8a.afm': 1, =20=

'pcrbo8a.afm': 1, 'cmtt10.afm': 1, 'pplb8a.afm': 1, 'pbkdi8a.afm': 1, =20=

'pagk8a.afm': 1, 'pncr8a.afm': 1, 'putb8a.afm': 1, 'psyr.afm': 1, =20
'pagko8a.afm': 1, 'pplbi8a.afm': 1, 'pbkli8a.afm': 1, 'pncbi8a.afm': 1, =20=

'cmmi10.afm': 1, 'ptmr8a.afm': 1, 'pplri8a.afm': 1, 'cmex10.afm': 1, =20
'phvr8a.afm': 1, =20
'\xe3\x83\x92\xe3\x83\xa9\xe3\x82\xad\xe3\x82\x99\xe3\x83\x8e\xe6\x98\x8=20=

e\xe6\x9c\x9d Pro W3.otf': 1, 'phvr8an.afm': 1}

so have presumably been successfully parsed, except for this .otf font.

Haven't sorted this problem out yet. I suppose I could try removing the =20=

East Asian fonts from the system folder, or changing font_manager so it =20=

does not read them in.

4. Conclusion: For me, the only fonts that work are the BitStream Vera =20=

Fonts supplied with matplotlib. Not ideal, because they do do not =20
include italic, cursive, or fantasy fonts (although they do include an =20=

*oblique* sans serif font). But this is sufficient to make matplotlib =20=

work for most practical purposes, especially as mathtext does work =20
(though ps2pdf can't convert the ps fonts to pdf; Apple pstopdf (used =20=

by Preview) must be used)

Again, many thanks to Darren Dale and also to John Hunter and Fernando =20=

Perez for their replies.

George Nurser.