[XeTeX] Ann: Nadyezhda SL one -- font for testing of OpenType feature support

[Adam Twardoch (List)]

(Pardon for cross-posting)

I have just released a special version of the Bitstream Vera Mono font,
originally designed by Jim Lyles.

This font is intended for testing of OpenType Layout features support in
an application. Using a special test string (see README.TXT included in
the ZIP archive for details), the user can selectively turn on and off
OpenType features in the application's UI and observe which OpenType
feature tags are being applied to the text. Each feature includes one
lookup that substitutes two particular Latin lowercase letters with a
special glyph that shows the feature tag associated with that feature. All
lookups are GSUB LookupType 4 (ligature) lookups and are registered in the
Latin (latn) default languagesystem.

The font implements all OpenType feature tags registered in the OpenType
specification version 1.4, as well as two unregistered tags: "ss21" and
"ss22".

Note that many OpenType Layout features should not be implemented this way
in real-world fonts. For example, the "nukt" (Nukta form) feature only
makes sense when registered in an Indic script, not in the Latin script.
Many of these features should be applied automatically in certain
language/script contexts by the OpenType Layout engine, and this font is
not suitable for testing such behavior. Also, the recommended
implementation for many features is to include positioning lookups rather
than substitution lookups, and this font also does not fulfil these
expectations.

Nonetheless, the font is useful for testing issues such as:

* What feature tags does my application apply by default, without any user
interaction?
* When triggering a particular UI item for applying a certain feature, is
the expected feature being actually applied?
* Does my application have human-readable UI labels for all possible
OpenType features?
* Are the human-readable UI labels for OpenType features localized into
other languages in a sensible way?

"Nadyezhda" is Russian for "Hope". Along with "Vera" (which was also the
original name for this typeface, and is Russian for "Faith") and with
"Lyubov" ("Love"), they form the three Biblical virtues, and rank among
the most popular Russian female given names.

The font is available FREE OF CHARGE and is released under a generous
Bitstream license, allowing derivative works (as long as "Bitstream" or
"Vera" are not in the names), and full redistribution (so long as they are
not *sold* by themselves). See COPYRIGHT.TXT included in the ZIP archive
for license details.

You can download Nadyezhda SL One from:
http://www.silesian.com/

Regards,
Adam