In terms of textual content, how small is simply too small? The consultants say a six level font is the minimal for readability, however as [James Bowman] exhibits us, you will get away with half of that.
The aim is to supply a 40-character show on a 24 mm x 24 mm LCD that has a decision of 240 x 240 to point out a serial terminal (or different knowledge) on the “TermDriver2” USB-to-Serial adapter. With 24 strains, that’s a line per millimeter: very small textual content. Three factors, to be exact, half what the consultants say you want. Diving this up into 40 columns offers a personality cell of six by 9 pixels. Is it sufficient?
Not by itself, no. That’s the place the hack is available in: sub-pixel rendering. In spite of everything, a “white” pixel on an LCD is definitely three components: a crimson, a inexperienced, and a blue subpixel, stacked side-by-each. Drive every of these subpixels independently and 240 pixels now turns into 720. That’s loads for a 40 column terminal.
The article discusses how, typically phrases, they pulled off the subpixel rendering and saved the font as legible as potential. We predict it’s a superb strive, although the coloured fringe across the characters will be uncomfortable to have a look at for some folks — after which we will’t neglect the bodily measurement of the characters being 1 mm tall.
If this trick have been getting used on a bigger show with a 240-wide decision, we’d say “sure, very legible, good job!”– however at this measurement? We hope we will discover our studying glasses. Nonetheless, it’s a neat trick to have in your again pocket for driving low-resolution LCDs.
It could not shock you that apart from bettering legibility, subpixel rendering can be used for pixel (er, sub-pixel) artwork.
