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gaiji   User or privately-defined supplementary Japanese characters. Oftentimes, they are placed in a separate descendant font. When Unicode is used, some operating systems transfer these characters to code points in the Private Use Zone.
 
galley   A strip of photographic paper on which something has been typeset. The term is usually applied to material used in a paste-up.

(another definition follows)

galley   A long tray used to hold type bodies prior to assembling into a printing plate.
 
gamut   See color gamut.
  
Garalde   See Old Style.
 
GATF   An abbreviation for Graphic Arts Technical Foundation, and the name of a set of color calibration target files.
 
GB-Roman   The People's Republic of China equivalent (also known as GB 1988) of the ASCII character set.
 
GCGID   An abbreviation for Graphic Character Global IDentifier. A character name composing scheme consisting of up to two upper case letters and up to six numerals (e.g. 'SF540000' or 'H18533') used by IBM. They can be found in « Character Data Representation Architecture, Level 1, Registry SC09-1391 , » an IBM document.
 
GCR   An abbreviation for Gray Component Replacement.
 
GedML   An abbreviation for Genealogical Data in XML, a markup language based on XML for representing genealogical data for interchange.
 
GEM   The windowing system (Graphics Environment Manager) used by the original Ventura Publisher page layout program for MS-DOS systems. GEM was developed originally by Digital Research Corporation.
  
General Scripts and Symbols Supplementary Plane   See Secondary Multilingual Plane.
  
Georgian script   See references under Asomtavruli, Khutsuri, Nuskhuri, and Mkhedruli for descriptions of Georgian alphabets.
  
Geometric   See sans serif.
     
GhostScript   A clone of the Adobe PostScript interpreter which runs as an application with versions for many operating systems, including Atari OS, MS-DOS, Microsoft Windows, and various versions of Unix (GhostView). It is currently being developed by Aladdin Enterprises and Gnu, and is free to non-commercial users.
  
GIF   An acronym for Graphic Interface Format. A graphic image format developed by CompuServe Online Services in 1990 and widely used in Web sites. The format uses non-lossy compression, variable color pallets, permits transparent areas, and can contain animated images (the GIF89a format).

A another format widely used for Web sites (and also images used in publications and documents) is the JPEG format. The JPEG format, in contrast, uses a choice of several fixed color pallet sizes, can display an image in a « progressive » mode for quicker initial display, and a choice of lossy/non-lossy compression schemes. Depending on the color content of the image and the JPEG progression and compression options chosen, GIF image files could be either larger or smaller than corresponding JPEG files. However, for acceptable JPEG image quality, most of the time GIF images are smaller, and that is why GIF has become a de facto Web standard.

 
GIF89a   An enhanced GIF format for animated images developed in 1991 which also allows progressive decompression of images by loading additional frames, each representing more image detail.
 
gigabyte   A unit of data storage equal to 1.024 × 109 bytes, abbreviated « G » or « GB » or « Gbyte. » 1000 megabytes = 1 gigabyte. 1000 gigabytes = 1 terabyte.
   
G.Lite   Also known as G.992.2, a slightly lower speed and lower priced implementation of ADSL telecommunication service. The cost reduction is partly due to the replacement of costly splitters with cheaper microfilters, which can be easily installed by the end user.
 
globalization   See internationalization.
 
globally unique identifier (abbreviated GUIA unique serial number embedded in every version of Microsoft Windows98 to enable transfer of specific information (including: user's ID; owner's name, address, telephone numbers; type of hardware; and installed software) from the operating system to another source. This could be used for security purposes, remote software and hardware diagnosis, snooping, and other purposes.
 
glyph   Generally speaking, a glyph (Greek: glyphe [carving] ) is a one-color graphic image. More specifically, a glyph is a one-color graphic image which is coded and stored in a font. One or more glyphs may represent an entity, which is a purely numerical placeholder, referred to as a « character. »
 
glyph alternate   See alternate glyph.
  
Glyphic   A typeface style defined in BS 2961 and categorized by wedge-shaped serifs which (supposedly) suggests a « chiseled look. » Typeface examples include: Albertus, Copperplate Gothic, ITC Fritz Quadrata, ITC Korinna, Latin, Mision, and Spartan 140.
  
glyph name   A text name (usually ASCII) which is assigned to a glyph. Many of the glyph names currently used by Production First Software were first developed in 1990. They are listed by category below. Within each category, they are in alphabetical order.
Arabic script (including Presentation Forms A and B)
Armenian script (including Alphabetic Presentation Forms and Private Zone)
Burmese script
Basic CJK ideographs (including Kangxi Radicals, CJK Symbols and Punctuation, Hiragana, Katakana, Bopomofo, Hangul Compatibility Jamo, Kanbun, Extended Bopomofo, Enclosed CJK Letters and Months, CJK Compatibility, CJK Compatibility Forms, Halfwidth and Fullwidth Forms)
Cherokee script
Cyrillic script (including Private Zone)
Spacing Modifier Letters, Combining Diacritical Marks (including Private Zone)
Georgian script (including Private Zone)
Greek script (including Extended and Private Zone)
Hebrew script (including Alphabetic Presentation Forms and Private Zone)
Khmer script
Latin script (including C0 Controls and Basic Latin, C1 Controls and Latin-1 Supplement, Latin Extended-A, Latin Extended-B, IPA Extensions, General Punctuation, Superscripts and Subscripts, Currency Symbols, Combining Diacritical Marks for Symbols, Letterlike Symbols, Number Forms, Arrows, Mathematical Operators, Miscellaneous Technical, Control Pictures, OCR, Enclosed Alphanumerics, Box Drawing, Block Elements, Geometric Shapes, Miscellaneous Symbols, Alphabetic Presentation Forms, Private Zone)
Thai and Lao scripts (including Private Zone)

There is an ongoing effort in the font and software industries to standardize on glyph names. As is usually the case in software, the largest companies involved (Adobe, Apple, IBM, Microsoft) carry the most influence, oftentimes self-fullfilling. When a small company originates an aspect of technology, very often a large company jumps in after the fact, but completely overpowers the small company and may render the technology developed by the small company incompatible. Such is the case with respect to glyph naming.

Production First Software character and glyph naming rules, including the reasons for those rules, can be found in the technical memorandum PFS-102, « Character Name Designation Methodology in Production First Software Fonts » (a 75K PDF file or a 35K text file). A PDF viewer can be downloaded from the Website of Adobe Systems Inc.

 
glyph topology   The topology-related issues and data of a glyph design.
 
glyph space   [An ambiguous-to-define quantity having been defined many different ways.] Glyph space can be considered to be the order or method of cataloging/arrangement of glyphs in a font. If glyphs in a font are defined according to glyph names, then glyph space is the collection of names. If glyphs in a font are ordered by a numerical « glyph index, » then the list of glyph indices constitutes the glyph space.
 
glyph variant   See alternate glyph.
  
GNOME   An acronym for Gnu Network Object Model Environment. A graphical user interface developed in 1999 for Linux. The interface comes with « themes, » enabling it to be configured to appear on-screen very close in appearance to the GUI of Windows, Motif, Macintosh, NeXTStep, or a simple wooden desktop, depending on preference. Red Hat Software, a commercial Linux distributor, spearheaded the development of Gnome.
 
Gnu Network Object Model Environment   See GNOME.
 
golden proportion   See golden ratio.
 
golden ratio   A now-generic term denoting the ratio of height to width which affords the most visually pleasing result. The term was originally applied to architecture (of the ancient Greeks), and later applied to text/layout and other design creations.
 
gothic   Another name for sans serif in the United States. A classification of typefaces without serifs, having straight lines of even thickness and slight vertical stress in curved strokes. It was first used in the 10th century. Examples: Folio, Univers.
gothic style typeface illustration The term « gothic » when applied to sans serif is a misnomer. Sans serif typefaces were erroneously characterized as gothic because of some overall similarities in type color and letterform flow between older sans serif typeface designs and gothic script typeface designs.
 
gothic script   A style based on calligraphic medieval script but without the tips or serifs. It was named by Renaissance scholars (who disliked script) for the Goths barbarians, so as to be contemptuous.
gothic script style typeface illustration
 
Goudy Center   An educational institute (located at the Rochester Institute of Technology of Rochester, New York) started for dissemination of information about type, its history, development, and its cross-platform use in documents. The Center offers courses, industry-sponsored design workshops, demonstrations of type-related technologies, and maintenance of typeface information databases.
 
Graffiti   The area on a PDA screen using the PalmOS which is touch-sensitive and is used to input by handwriting.
   
graffito font   The term used by Production First Software to denote a typeface design based on a « graffito » style. The rendered glyphs from a font based on graffiti should overlay or stack from right to left and bottom to top, in the classic graffiti style. (« Graffito » is the singular of « graffiti, » a single glyph of a graffito font termed a « graffito, » and the collection of glyphs termed « graffiti. » )

Graffiti, while unfortunately representing most of the time the execution of a social crime and destruction of property, is a legitimate art form of the 20th century. Graffiti is not to be confused with « tagging, » which is not artistic in intent, but is generally used in marking territory. Graffiti shares its origins, and sometimes its purpose, along the lines of ancient petroglyphs: to communicate directions, feelings, information, instructions, or messages on a medium visually available without cost to the public domain. It is interesting that both petroglyphs and graffiti seem to define the oldest and longest-lived communication system to be devised by man, and will not likely EVER disappear, although its name may change.

 
Graphic   A typeface style defined in BS 2961 and categorized by looking like hand-drawn designs. This might include typefaces based on calligraphy, black letter, gothic script, uncial, or other styles. Some typefaces fitting into this group could also be classified as decorative.

(another definition follows)

graphic   A placeable or usable electronic diagram or image.
 
graphic inset   A type of embedded graphic which is linked to an external application, which is called an « inset editor. »
 
graphical user interface (abbreviated GUI)   An operating system or part of an operating system where windows appear on the screen, one per task, which are used to control the application by means of pull-down menus and dialog boxes.
 
gravure   A term applied to the plates or the printing process using such plates in which the image is engraved onto the plate. Also called intaglio plate or intaglio printing.
 
gray balance   In process color work, the procedure of regulating the process colors so as to produce a neutral gray shade when equally mixed. In traditional (analog) color technology, this is a simple visualization. In digital color technology, where special halftone screens may be used to control moiré, the best color balance for typical images may not yield the best gray balance from a test area or color bar.
 
Gray Component Replacement   In process color work, the technique of subtracting as much cyan, magenta, and yellow as possible in equal proportions from the process colors in dark areas and replacing the deficit with process black, adding to the density of black which is usually already present in dark areas. The advantage of doing this is that it reduces the Total Area Coverage of ink transferred to the printing medium and decreases the muddiness in dark areas. Gray Component Replacement can be used in conjunction with Undercolor Removal (which can be used in all areas of the image, and which may add process black in areas which originally do not contain any black).
 
grayed   See halftoned.
 
grayscale   An arbitrary scale of monochrome (black to white) intensity varying between black and white, the variation consisting of various shades of gray.
 
grayscale rasterization   See anti-aliasing.
 
Greeking or greeking   The use of hatching (on computer screens) or indistinct letterforms (on printed text) to indicate lines of text which are either too small to display letterforms explicitly or not desired to be readable.

A sometimes used alternative definition is text composed of non-existent words, for the purpose of judging the overall layout shape, appropriateness of a particular choice of typeface, or type color.

 
Greek Unical   See uncial.
 
GretagMacbeth   A commonly-used color calibration chart in analog photography, sized approximately 9 inches by 12 inches (229 mm by 305 mm), having 24 squares of colors. See also IT8 and GATF.
 
grid   A locus of locations defined by parallel series of horizontal and vertical lines. The horizontal lines and/or the vertical lines need not be all the same length.
 
grid fitting   A Microsoft term for hinting.
  
grotesque or Grotesque   Same as gothic. See sans serif.
 
ground   A partial or complete image perceived as being the background, rather than perceived as being a foreground image object.
 
group ruby   See ruby.
    
grunge font   (jargon) A structural style classification and term used for the 1990's fad of freeform, dirtied, almost graffiti-like typeface designs. Very few of them are done artistically, but, that may be the intent.

Possible reasons for the acceptance of this new style are: novelty, emulation of an informal style, or greater appeal to dissident and indignent masses. Some socialogists believe that typography reflects the minds of the masses. Indeed, the grunge font movement seems to be influencing the direction of modern typography: away from century-proven typographic design principles. Other marketing terms that have been used to describe these fonts are: « abused, » « alternative » (the term used by Production First Software), « distressed, » « garbage, » and « junk. »

 
GSM   A metric unit of paper weight: Grams per Square Meter.
 
GUI   An acronym for Graphical User Interface.

(another definition follows)

GUI   An acronym for Globally Unique Identifier.
 
guide point   A node point on an outline that serves only to precisely locate the as-drawn curve at that point, without any regard for later actions. Guide points do not necessarily occur in pairs and are not superfluous.
 
gutenberg   A unit of measurement: 1 gutenberg = 0.01 pica point.

(another definition follows)

Gutenberg, Johann (~1400-1468)   The inventor of moveable type used for printing.
 
gutter   In a publication page, the area between columns, usually the margins closest to the binding side.
 
GX   See PostScript GX or TrueType GX.
 
Gyosho   See Soft Brush :Gyosho.
 
G0 space   Code points of <0020> through <007f>. This is equivalent to the so-called ASCII character set range, except for starting at <0020> instead of <0000>.
 
G1 space   Code points of <00a0> through <00ff>. This is equivalent to the so-called « upper ASCII » or « extended ASCII » character set range.  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
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