NAME

       mkfontdir - create an index of X font files in a directory

SYNOPSIS

       mkfontdir [-n] [-x suffix] [-r] [-p prefix] [-e encoding-directory-name] ...  [--] [directory-name ... ]

DESCRIPTION

       For  each  directory  argument,  mkfontdir  reads  all  of  the font files in the directory searching for
       properties named "FONT", or (failing that) the name of the  file  stripped  of  its  suffix.   These  are
       converted  to  lower  case and used as font names, and, along with the name of the font file, are written
       out to the file "fonts.dir" in the directory.  The X server and font server use "fonts.dir" to find  font
       files.

       The  kinds  of font files read by mkfontdir depend on configuration parameters, but typically include PCF
       (suffix ".pcf"), SNF (suffix ".snf") and BDF (suffix ".bdf").  If a  font  exists  in  multiple  formats,
       mkfontdir will first choose PCF, then SNF and finally BDF.

       The  first  line  of fonts.dir gives the number of fonts in the file.  The remaining lines list the fonts
       themselves, one per line, in two fields.  First is the name of the font file, followed by a space and the
       name of the font.

SCALABLE FONTS

       Because scalable font files do not usually include the X font name, the file "fonts.scale" can be used to
       name the scalable fonts in the directory.  The fonts listed in it are copied to fonts.dir  by  mkfontdir.
       "fonts.scale"  has  the  same  format as the "fonts.dir" file, and can be created with the mkfontscale(1)
       program.

FONT NAME ALIASES

       The file "fonts.alias", which can be put in any directory of the font-path, is used to map new  names  to
       existing fonts, and should be edited by hand.  The format is two white-space separated columns, the first
       containing aliases and the second containing font-name patterns.  Lines beginning with  "!"  are  comment
       lines and are ignored.

       If  neither the alias nor the value specifies the size fields of the font name, this is a scalable alias.
       A font name of any size that matches this alias will be mapped to the same size  of  the  font  that  the
       alias resolves to.

       When  a  font alias is used, the name it references is searched for in the normal manner, looking through
       each font directory in turn.  This means that the aliases need not mention fonts in the same directory as
       the alias file.

       To embed white space in either name, simply enclose it in double-quote marks; to embed double-quote marks
       (or any other character), precede them with back-slash:

       "magic-alias with spaces"     "\"font name\" with quotes"
       regular-alias            fixed

       If the string "FILE_NAMES_ALIASES" stands alone on a line, each file-name in the directory  (stripped  of
       its suffix) will be used as an alias for that font.

ENCODING FILES

       The  option  -e  can be used to specify a directory with encoding files.  Every such directory is scanned
       for encoding files, the list of which is then written to an "encodings.dir" file in every font directory.
       The "encodings.dir" file is used by the server to find encoding information.

       The "encodings.dir" file has the same format as "fonts.dir".  It maps encoding names (strings of the form
       CHARSET_REGISTRY-CHARSET_ENCODING ) to encoding file names.

OPTIONS

       The following options are supported:

       -e     Specify a directory containing encoding files.  The -e option may be specified multiple times, and
              all the specified directories will be read.  The order of the entries is significant, as encodings
              found in earlier directories override those in later ones; encoding files in  the  same  directory
              are discriminated by preferring compressed versions.

       -n     do  not  scan for fonts, do not write font directory files.  This option is useful when generating
              encoding directories only.

       -p     Specify a prefix that is prepended to the encoding file path names when they are  written  to  the
              "encodings.dir" file.  The prefix is prepended as-is.  If a `/' is required between the prefix and
              the path names, it must be supplied explicitly as part of the prefix.

       -r     Keep non-absolute encoding directories in their relative form  when  writing  the  "encodings.dir"
              file.   The  default  is  to  convert  relative  encoding  directories  to absolute directories by
              prepending the current directory.  The positioning of this options is significant, as this  option
              only applies to subsequent -e options.

       -x suffix
              Ignore fonts files of type suffix.

       --     End options.

FILES

       fonts.dir      List  of  fonts  in the directory and the files they are stored in.  Created by mkfontdir.
                      Read by the X server and font server each time the font path is set (see xset(1)).

       fonts.scale    List of scalable fonts in the directory.  Contents are copied to fonts.dir  by  mkfontdir.
                      Can be created with mkfontscale(1).

       fonts.alias    List  of  font name aliases.  Read by the X server and font server each time the font path
                      is set (see xset(1)).

       encodings.dir  List of known encodings and the files they are stored in.  Created by mkfontdir.  Read  by
                      the X server and font server each time a font with an unknown charset is opened.

SEE ALSO

       X(7), Xserver(1), mkfontscale(1), xfs(1), xset(1)