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)