[tex-k] dvips config change. Comments?

[Thomas Esser]

[This "rfc" is send to comp.text.tex, the tex-k list and the tetex list]

I am planning to change teTeX's default configuration of dvips. The
current configuration is that bitmap fonts are preferred over type1 if
both are available. This has the drawback that lots of ugly pdf files are
produced (since the acrobat really does not do a good job in displying
type3 fonts) and even ugly prints (if the resolution of the bitmap font
does not match the printer).

My plan is to reverse the preference so that type1 fonts are used unless
a paramter is given (e.g. -Pusepk) or a printer specific configuration
file requests this otherwise (e.g. by setting "p usepk.map").

The implementation of that feature would be that I set up a psfonts.map
which includes all type1 fonts available and a usepk.map file without
the fonts that are availabe in metafont format. Some config.usepk file
which just contains "p usepk.map" can be provided too.

Users of teTeX can use the updmap script which will be changed to output
(among other files) psfonts.map and usepk.map. So, there would still
be a single place to configure the map files. So, if you have your own
fonts, just make them known to updmap and regenerate the map files for
all applications (dvips, pdftex, gsftopk, xdvi, ...).

Of course, it will be easily possible to change the global preference
(i.e.  make bitmap download the default) via updmap, but still, I'd like
to hear if the suggested change would cause a problem somewhere.

Thomas