[nc] Hinting: Mono: ClearType(?): Ubuntu Mono on gVim under Windows XP+Win7 draws garbage around characters

[Federico Panico]

I've installed (today, september 29th) Ubuntu Mono from http://font.ubuntu.com/ on Windows XP.

Using it on gVim at 13px, numbers for line numbers are surronded by garbage pixels.

You have to set relativenumber (:set relativenumber) and then scroll in any direction. The trick happens because numbers are redrawn at fast speed.

Attaching screenshot.

[Paul Sladen (sladen)]

Federico: it looks more like a graphics driver bug. Can you produce it across reboots, or other sizes of the font in gVim?

[Federico Panico (bpm230-gmail-deactivatedaccount)]

It happens at these sizes: 11, 13, 14, 16,17, 19, 20.
It doesn't happen at 9, 10, 12, 15, 18, 21.

Different colorschemes produce the same results.
If I switch windows, the garbage dissapears.
Never happened with other monospaced fonts I've tried.

I will try this configuration at home asap (win7 and completely different computer).

[Federico Panico (bpm230-gmail-deactivatedaccount)]

Tested on Win7, same gVim version, same configuration. I can still reproduce the bug.

[Paul Sladen (sladen)]

I wonder if it's related to the ClearType width-fiddling (using the manual hinting, but then diving in and altering the node positions afterwards). See also bug #801716 with the proportional 'w' under MS Windows.

Either way, I think this is going to require some debugging by the experts who know the Microsoft font stack interacts a little better). Shiraaz: could you pass this onto Vinnie/Malcolm to look at?

  gVim: http://www.vim.org/download.php#pc

Federico: what's the exact sequence of key presses/commands to get gVim showing the line numbering with the issue from a fresh install of gVim?

[Federico Panico (bpm230-gmail-deactivatedaccount)]

Open a long file so there will be a lot of scroll. Then in command mode do:
:set relativenumber
:set guifont=Ubuntu_Mono:h13

Now scroll with scroll wheel or j/k and look at line numbers on the left.

[Federico Panico (bpm230-gmail-deactivatedaccount)]

On WinXP, if I choose standard font-smoothing or deactivate it completely, the bug is not reproducible.