To use GNU/Linux’s text processing abilities for graphic design, I needed to find a way to expand this world of plain text. My approach herefore is the automated generation of plain text control files, that serve as input for software, that extends the world of plain text.
Lists are the most simple example for a control file. For the creation of lists I would describe two different approaches: creation and analysis .
creation
INPUTDIR=i/pdf/alphabets LIST=$TMPDIR/sentence.listfor LETTER in H E L L O W O R L D do find ${INPUTDIR} -name "$LETTER*.pdf" |\ shuf -n 1 >> $LIST done
Within this loop I want to find a matching pdf file
for every letter in the sentence HELLO WORLD.
The pdf files were created in advance, all letters in
different fonts.
The result:
i/pdf/alphabets/_Nimbus_Sans_L_/H.pdf
i/pdf/alphabets/_eufm10________/E.pdf
i/pdf/alphabets/_eufm10________/L.pdf
i/pdf/alphabets/_Courier_New___/L.pdf
i/pdf/alphabets/_Nimbus_Sans_L_/O.pdf
i/pdf/alphabets/_Nimbus_Sans_L_/W.pdf
i/pdf/alphabets/_Webdings______/O.pdf
i/pdf/alphabets/_Nimbus_Sans_L_/R.pdf
i/pdf/alphabets/_Webdings______/L.pdf
i/pdf/alphabets/_Webdings______/D.pdf
analysis
INPUTDIR=i/pdf/words/_Nimbus_Sans_L_/ LIST=$TMPDIR/alphabet.listls -rS ${INPUTDIR}/*.pdf > $LIST
ls -S
is the command to list files in a order
according to their file size.
The selected files are random words stored as pdf files. The idea is to get a sorting dependent on the complexity of the words. The file size is connected to the amount of vector path information. A letter with a complex form produces a bigger file size. The filesize of a word is therefore dependent on number and complexity of its letters.
The result:
i/pdf/words/_Nimbus_Sans_L_/lollopy.pdf
i/pdf/words/_Nimbus_Sans_L_/sculpt.pdf
i/pdf/words/_Nimbus_Sans_L_/dovelike.pdf
i/pdf/words/_Nimbus_Sans_L_/pubes.pdf
i/pdf/words/_Nimbus_Sans_L_/Clerus.pdf
i/pdf/words/_Nimbus_Sans_L_/canelo.pdf
i/pdf/words/_Nimbus_Sans_L_/Mezentius.pdf
i/pdf/words/_Nimbus_Sans_L_/denounce.pdf
i/pdf/words/_Nimbus_Sans_L_/tiptoppish.pdf
i/pdf/words/_Nimbus_Sans_L_/focometry.pdf
i/pdf/words/_Nimbus_Sans_L_/ungeneric.pdf
i/pdf/words/_Nimbus_Sans_L_/periocular.pdf
i/pdf/words/_Nimbus_Sans_L_/gynarchic.pdf
i/pdf/words/_Nimbus_Sans_L_/polycythemic.pdf
i/pdf/words/_Nimbus_Sans_L_/untrinitarian.pdf
i/pdf/words/_Nimbus_Sans_L_/scaldweed.pdf
i/pdf/words/_Nimbus_Sans_L_/enchondrosis.pdf
i/pdf/words/_Nimbus_Sans_L_/unscathedly.pdf
i/pdf/words/_Nimbus_Sans_L_/phlebotomical.pdf
i/pdf/words/_Nimbus_Sans_L_/transferred.pdf
i/pdf/words/_Nimbus_Sans_L_/photophysical.pdf
i/pdf/words/_Nimbus_Sans_L_/balaenoidean.pdf
i/pdf/words/_Nimbus_Sans_L_/hyperterrestrial.pdf
The visual results
The lists are used to generate pdf files in the next step.